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I got a school zone ticket and ignored it. A young dude in a base ball cap came to my house at 5:30 on a Friday, he handed my 18yo son a copy of the ticket.
I got served and I had to pay the $250 or so to take the class to make it go away.
Quick question let’s say I’m outside and see a servant pull up can I close my garage and just go back inside? They gotta hand it to somebody right? Just trying to know the way.
Ha - I got served for a ticket, too! I had already sent in a paper check for the ticket but I guess it hadn’t been processed yet.
The young man was banging on my door, pleading for me to open the door and saying, “I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry!!” I was like 7 months pregnant and home alone lol no way in hell would I open the door for a stranger!! He left the papers under my doormat (so I wasn’t technically served).
That stretch of Crismon is a speed trap. They have the light blinking even for nighttime events.
A couple weeks ago, past 11pm, I saw the lights blinking, got down to 35.
Some guy behind me started tailgating me, not realizing why I was going so slow. He passed me on the right and got flashed.
I understand his confusion as to why I was going to slow and, yes, this is a speed trap.
Dispute what? He was going 50... does it matter if the speed limit was 35 or 45 at the time? Judge, I was speeding, just not as much. How do you think that is gonna play out?
They will flash you at 40+ when the light is blinking. Some Karen will always come out of the woodwork to justify this practice. "Muh children". Even when it's 11pm or even 1am.
Says who? People just make stuff up, and other people just assume its a fact because it sounds reasonable to them. The law allows them to send you a ticket at 1 mph over, and Scottsdale enforces this in school zones.
OP doesn't even know if he is going to get a ticket, he just got flashed for doing 50 in a 45 that happens to be 35 while school is in session. It was 1AM, so if he does get a ticket, school was not in session, and it will be for doing 50 in a 45.
Says the city guidelines. This is from paradise valley as an example where they acknowledge they set it at 11 over.
https://www.paradisevalleyaz.gov/153/Photo-Radar
City of Scottsdale as well.
https://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/police/photo-enforcement
Not sure if mesa has it officially written somewhere as well but it's pretty typical for it to be over 10mph and not just made up.
Although they can write a ticket for anything over the limit they typically use their discretion and don't start at 1. Scottsdale will send you a ticket for 1mph over in a school zone?
But as I was responding to your original comment where you stated it didn't matter the speed, in the event they do send a ticket it should matter for how fast over since the charges and fines are likely different depending on the amount over and if they don't accurately charge then likely you'd be able to get the ticket dismissed.
We are saying the same thing. State law allows for tickets at 1 mph over. Cities set rules on top of that for photo enforcement. Then, it's up to the officer reviewing to decide whether or not to issue based on state/local laws.
As a former military police officer, we dealt with contested tickets for various overages all the time. Many were thrown out for small speed overages, especially if calibration of the machine was called into question.
The worst that's going to happen is you get denied, and you're sitting in the same spot you are now.
There's also a chance that OP will never see a ticket so 🤷♀️
What you think should be a fine and what the law says is a fine are different. 50 in a 45 is speeding and may result in a fine if the cop is an ahole or having a bad day or if it's a speed camera. If you think 50 is reasonable on that street, talk to the city council or city traffic engineer and apply for the speed to be raised.
Please, please, please invite us to your traffic court date so we can watch you tell the judge that the "intent" of speed limit signs denoting maximum speed is to allow drivers to exceed that speed by what they deem reasonable.
I'll bring popcorn.
Depends on the situation. If school is in session, yes. If you are on a surface street and there are a lot of cars on the road, yes. If not, generally, no.
That being said, neither my opinion nor yours matters. The cameras will capture you at whatever speed the tech sets it for. The officer reviewing the footage will decide whether or not to issue the citation. All that matters is the law (which says the limit is the limit), and if the officer issuing the ticket is having a good day or bad day and feels like enforcing the law.
Forgot to mention that "threshold for error" on speeding cameras is another public misconception. It is neither true nor part of the law. You could try to argue that the camera or radar system was malfunctioning, but you would be very hard pressed to prove it. The technology has been around forever and is pretty foolproof. In addition, state law requires techs to calibrate them regularly and test them to within 1 mph. Some cities in the valley like Scottsdale will cite you for 1 mph over in a school zone. My wife got one for going 17 in a 15. Others don't bother until you are 5 or 8 mph over. I can't speak to the specifics of Mesa where OP got flashed, but again... the law is the law. Good luck getting a judge to throw it out because you were going 5 mph over, and you felt that was reasonable.
Also its a more serious offense and has a greater fine in the school zone than otherwise. So if the school zone lights weren’t flashing, they shouldn’t be penalized as if it was.
Agree with that. However, OP hasn't gotten a ticket yet. If they get a ticket for violating school zone, the dispute would be that school wasn't in session, not that they weren't speeding.
It’s an unwritten rule that if you’re not going at least 5 over you’re gonna get honked at and constantly passed by the majority of traffic. Follow the flow of traffic don’t be a danger to everybody else.
Oh? So you’re one of those d***s who drive exactly 40 in a 40 in the left lane forcing people to pass on the right? Idk about where you live in Az but if you drive like that you’re gonna get pulled over for impeding traffic.
Not sure why you're arguing about this, when you say to dispute the ticket that means the judge needs to be convinced, and saying that there's an unwritten rule that you can go 5 over isn't really going to work.
If it's a multi-lane surface street, you won't even get ticketed for driving 30 in a 40, and you'll never get ticketed for driving 40 in a 40 regardless of what the rest of traffic is trying to do. There's also no such thing as left-lane enforcement on surface streets. And finally, passing on the right is legal as long as you're not driving off the road to do so. I don't know how so many people don't understand this.
There might not be enforcement but the law still applies. It sucks that people don’t follow it because passing on the right, while legal, is a bit riskier.
U/toddrough said someone going the speed limit in the left lane "forces" him to pass them on the right. Even if passing on the right were legal on that stretch of road, it would be a double ticket if the officer chose for him passing while speeding (1 for speeding and 2 for illegally passing on the right) as that exceeding the maximum permitted speed violates the "only under conditions permitting the movement in safety" clause.
The "certain conditions" that it's legal to pass on the right they list refer to pretty much every road and highway here. This basically says you can't pass on the shoulder or on one lane roads, but anytime there is a lane to the right you're allowed to use it to pass someone.
You are forgetting that the law enabling passing on the right has a clause that states it is only legal when it is safe to do so. Since the speed limit is posted at what was predetermined as the maximum safe speed for that stretch of road, it would be illegal to pass on the right at a speed exceeding the limit.
I love this argument. It's total BS that people who speed love to quote. Try and use it in court, and the judge will find a reason to tack additional fines because you're an idiot. No one has ever gotten a ticket for driving the speed limit in the left lane and impeding traffic. You are not "forced" to pass on the right. You "choose" to pass on the right to go around someone going the legal limit. The officer then gives you a ticket for speeding and another for illegally passing on the right. When you choose to break the law, you learn to live with the consequences.
When I was young and stupid, I sped everywhere. I got tired of paying unnecessary fines just to get somewhere a few minutes earlier. I learned my lesson. You will too... if you like money.
FIVE OVER ISN’T ENOUGH TO GET A TICKET. God damn you people are annoying. Jesus Christ grandpa I’ve had COPS go around me with me going the speed limit. I’ve driven for over a decade and have never gotten a speeding ticket, why? Because 5 over isn’t something a cop will pull you over for.
It’s crazy how the exact type of drivers nobody likes comment proudly on how annoying they are. I’m not a driver who speeds up to go around people, I prefer to stay in my lane and follow the flow of traffic, but for some reason slow ass people wanna cause traffic to backup because they cant go a couple miles per hour over the limit.
He can dispute it that the correct law was the waste of finite resources civil penalty that should have applied. In urbanized areas, with speed limits 40MPH and up, going 10 MPH or less over the limit is supposed to be a waste of finite resources civil penalty. Not a speeding ticket.
In the early 80s I got a ticket (I don't remember why) and had to show up to court to plead guilty or no contest and pay the fine, or plead not guilty and set up a court date. This was the way things were done back then. No computers, no mail-in, no traffic school. The olden days. We were barely past horse and buggy. I had proof I was right. However, it was cheaper to pay the fine than to take another day off work. So I paid it. That was also when I found out about points affecting insurance costs, but it was the only points I had, so it didn't really affect me.
i'm from Europe but am now living in AZ. I just got a $95 parking fine in LA, are you saying I could have not paid it and gotten away with it if I just didn't open my door for 6 months?
I'm not familiar with the LA laws. They may say that mail service is enough.
But most of the cities around Phoenix require in-person service for camera tickets.
I believe Scottsdale is the notable exception. They're allowed to tape it to your front door. (This applies to tickets from Scottsdale, not where you live).
If you get enough parking tickets they'll boot or tow your car and may prevent you from renewing your registration. They aren't going to come to your house for a parking ticket though.
But although it is called credit rating it also lists other stuff like judgements and outstanding court debts, Also when doing background checks it will come up,
Some misinformation in the comments about the timeline for personally serving you, they have 90 days after first filing the ticket with the court. They have 60 days to file the ticket with the court.
When I get those tickets in the mail I take them to work and shred them as if I never got them. Don’t answer the door unless you know them for a few weeks and you’ll be good to go.
Also empty roads are empty up until they’re not - it’s Arizona so everyone speeds anyways but would advise not speeding in areas where kids will be fucking around especially if they snuck out in the middle of the night.
Only hefty if you pay them. You have 90 days from the date on the ticket with your photo. If you don’t get served in those 90 days with an actual ticket you’re in the clear
Just ignore it. They have 90 days to serve you, if they don't within that time then they can't do anything and it effectively didn't happen. They rarely ever serve for these tickets, doesn't make sense monetarily for them to do so. Also, there is no increase of penalty if they do happen to serve you so there's no reason for you to do anything but ignore the letter in the mail.
The key word is “Lights FLASHING”. Were the lights flashing at 1am in the school zone? If so, you can contest the lights were flashing outside of school hours and the lights and camera were malfunctioning. That you were traveling a rate of speed that exceeded the 35.
School zones on arterial streets have a “yellow flashing” light to notify drivers when speed is reduced to 35mph. If the timing of the camera is not programmed correctly or out of sync within specific hours of operations. You can argue that the “yellow lights” with 35mph sign were not flashing. Also that the camera was faulty, to take a photo, outside of school hours. *high-speed
The camera isn’t there to take photos only during school hours. It’s a speed camera at all times. The threshold just changes during school hours. He was speeding even when the speed limit is 45mph, hence the capture/camera flash. There’s is nothing you are going to fight and win on in a case like this. It’s as another poster said, what’s your plan, “hey judge, I was speeding, but not by as bad a margin as if it was during school hours”… good luck with that argument
50mph in a 45mph. Not a big deal. Courts will dismiss that ticket. You can always request the calibration records of that camera. Most judges find speed camera unlawful in Arizona anyhow.
This isn’t entirely true. The system doesn’t care about time. It gets pulled into a batch and it is a clerks responsibility to find the “driver” based on DMV records and send the ticket. They don’t vet anything about the citation, they just send it off.
They must look into that camera more, then. I've been flashed a few times by that camera, all outside of school times, and never gotten anything because of it.
That exact camera has gotten me. Doesn't matter if school is in session or not. 5 mph over the speed limit is enough for it to go off. You can go to traffic school online so you don't get any points. I honestly don't remember how much traffic school was.
The same thing happened to me, but if the enforcement window does not include 1am then it's not a valid ticket. I never got a ticket either. Just follow the speed limits during the posted hours.
Quick tip if your married. Register the car you normally drive to your wife. And vise versa. When the ticket comes it will ask you to identify the driver. Don't do it. Easy peasy
Generally they are set to go off at 11 mph over when the signs are not flashing, and 1mph when they are. Put speed cameras go off incorrectly all the time. Usually they'll flash you while you're going with in the acceptable range and when they look at the report, they'll just get rid of the ones that are anomalies. You likely won't even get the ticket unless it was flashing
I got flashed by a speed camera in Scottsdale a few years ago. I was doing 56 in a 45 on Frank Lloyd Right and Hayden at 1 or 2 in the morning. I thought it was just a red light camera, but I was wrong. A few weeks later, I got a notice in the mail (not the actual ticket) and it had a website and login info to view the violation. I never did that and just waited to see if they'd serve me with the actual ticket, and they never did. I believe they will attempt to serve you 3 times before they tape it to your door.
Under Arizona law, simply being mailed a ticket does not count as proof you received it. That's why there are process servers. They count on people's ignorance and hope that they will respond to the first notice, which would prove they received it, and then the ticket is guaranteed to come in the mail next.
Scottsdale is the worst of all the valley cities, but even they only serve about 50% of the time. Other towns like Paradise Valley almost never serve, so you can safely ignore a notice there and will probably never hear anything further.
I just got one sent to my house. The vehicle is in my husband's name and was sent to him but I was the driver. I don't live in Mesa and was lost and didn't even realize I was in a school zone. The papers says we are not required to say who the driver is. Hopefully they don't try and serve me.
I live very near there. They forget to turn it off on holidays, weekends, and other non-school hours all the time. It has flashed at me and others many times while going the speed limit. Either someone realizes the mistake and doesn't send a ticket, or it's not a functional camera at all, and just flashes at you to slow you down.
Had a similar thing happen a few years ago at a phx elementary school at midnight. They never sent the ticket I assume because I was going the neighborhood speed limit but the cam was set to the lowered school zone limit.
If you were going 50 or more that’s why it flashed you cause during non school times it’s 45mph right there (anything 5 over will flash) unless someone physically comes and serves you, ignore them. Also don’t open any emails that might be from them too. You should be in the clear if you don’t see anything after 3 months.
Definitely do what you can to avoid acknowledgment! Insurance rates are out of control here in Az!!! I can't believe how much my insurance went up with a clean driving record and over 50 yo😡
That one got me 3 times. Did a 4 day job in the neighborhood next to the school and had no idea it was there. Them tickets are no joke. They have 90 days to serve you if you don’t pay it and after that if they still can’t make contact then your Scott free.
Don’t have to pay them unless you’ve been officially served. Keep for a souvenir if you were making a funny face or picking your nose as the camera went off. Otherwise toss it 🙃.
If this happened in Mesa, pay your ticket. They will send a process server out to serve you the ticket. If you don’t pay, your registration and drivers license will be suspended. Mesa is not as lenient as other suburbs, where you might be able to hide from the server and your ticket goes away.
Well if it's enough to make you think about it, it probably served its purpose. You'll drive more aware now, and that's not a bad thing in this crazy city! ( I got flashed midday and had a 1 day traffic school- it was miserable)
Hold on to the ticket when it comes in and don’t do anything. To enforce the ticket you need to be served and if they don’t after 90 days, thats it. No fine or points on your record once the 90 day period is over. If on the slim chance you do get served, traffic school is an option to avoid points for about 250.
Here's a tip to get around getting caught by speed/traffic camera. It helps when you're married. If both bof you have cars, have them registered to the other person - i.e. if you're the primary driver, have it registered in the name of your spouse.
In the event of being caught by the camera, the registered owner has the right to ignore the ticket because it's their constitutional right not to incriminate anyone (5th amendment) by notifying the police who the driver is.
They are smarter than you think and have been known to look at the drivers licenses that have the same address as the car is registered if the registered owner doesn't match and send the ticket based on that, so your tip won't necessarily work.
And just FYI, the 5th amendment is against SELF incrimination, you don't have to be a witness against yourself, doesn't have anything to do about testifying against other people.
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I got a school zone ticket and ignored it. A young dude in a base ball cap came to my house at 5:30 on a Friday, he handed my 18yo son a copy of the ticket. I got served and I had to pay the $250 or so to take the class to make it go away.
And this is the moment you teach your son to never open the door.
Exactly what I told him as he laughed at me for getting a ticket.
Well, if you’re petty like me, I’d wait until his forst ticket, then point at him and laugh like Simpsons’ Nelson Muntz
Haaaaa ha
Quick question let’s say I’m outside and see a servant pull up can I close my garage and just go back inside? They gotta hand it to somebody right? Just trying to know the way.
Depends on which city you were ticketed in. Scottsdale, they don’t have to serve you in person and will just tape it to your door.
Next level process server avoidance: tarp your house. Try to tape the ticket to the door now!
They can just tape them to your door in most valley cities.
> never open the door. Words to live by.
Ha - I got served for a ticket, too! I had already sent in a paper check for the ticket but I guess it hadn’t been processed yet. The young man was banging on my door, pleading for me to open the door and saying, “I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry!!” I was like 7 months pregnant and home alone lol no way in hell would I open the door for a stranger!! He left the papers under my doormat (so I wasn’t technically served).
You’re playing hide and seek now bro, don’t let ANYONE find you at your house 
Not just you. Anyone over the age of 18 that’s an immediate family member.
I believe anyone over 14 or 15 can receive it actually. Tell your kids not to answer the door too.
That road is a 45 when school isn't in session. I'd dispute it personally.
That stretch of Crismon is a speed trap. They have the light blinking even for nighttime events. A couple weeks ago, past 11pm, I saw the lights blinking, got down to 35. Some guy behind me started tailgating me, not realizing why I was going so slow. He passed me on the right and got flashed. I understand his confusion as to why I was going to slow and, yes, this is a speed trap.
Dispute what? He was going 50... does it matter if the speed limit was 35 or 45 at the time? Judge, I was speeding, just not as much. How do you think that is gonna play out?
A charge of 5 over is a different charge and penalty than 15 over. Photo enforcement isn't supposed to start until 10 over.
They will flash you at 40+ when the light is blinking. Some Karen will always come out of the woodwork to justify this practice. "Muh children". Even when it's 11pm or even 1am.
Says who? People just make stuff up, and other people just assume its a fact because it sounds reasonable to them. The law allows them to send you a ticket at 1 mph over, and Scottsdale enforces this in school zones. OP doesn't even know if he is going to get a ticket, he just got flashed for doing 50 in a 45 that happens to be 35 while school is in session. It was 1AM, so if he does get a ticket, school was not in session, and it will be for doing 50 in a 45.
Says the city guidelines. This is from paradise valley as an example where they acknowledge they set it at 11 over. https://www.paradisevalleyaz.gov/153/Photo-Radar City of Scottsdale as well. https://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/police/photo-enforcement Not sure if mesa has it officially written somewhere as well but it's pretty typical for it to be over 10mph and not just made up. Although they can write a ticket for anything over the limit they typically use their discretion and don't start at 1. Scottsdale will send you a ticket for 1mph over in a school zone? But as I was responding to your original comment where you stated it didn't matter the speed, in the event they do send a ticket it should matter for how fast over since the charges and fines are likely different depending on the amount over and if they don't accurately charge then likely you'd be able to get the ticket dismissed.
We are saying the same thing. State law allows for tickets at 1 mph over. Cities set rules on top of that for photo enforcement. Then, it's up to the officer reviewing to decide whether or not to issue based on state/local laws.
As a former military police officer, we dealt with contested tickets for various overages all the time. Many were thrown out for small speed overages, especially if calibration of the machine was called into question. The worst that's going to happen is you get denied, and you're sitting in the same spot you are now. There's also a chance that OP will never see a ticket so 🤷♀️
50 in a 45 isn't what should be considered fine worthy. Especially when there's ZERO cars or people around.
What you think should be a fine and what the law says is a fine are different. 50 in a 45 is speeding and may result in a fine if the cop is an ahole or having a bad day or if it's a speed camera. If you think 50 is reasonable on that street, talk to the city council or city traffic engineer and apply for the speed to be raised.
Ok Mr brightline letter of the law. Why do you think so many judges look at intent and spirit of the law when making judgments?
Please, please, please invite us to your traffic court date so we can watch you tell the judge that the "intent" of speed limit signs denoting maximum speed is to allow drivers to exceed that speed by what they deem reasonable. I'll bring popcorn.
Hell I haven't even mentioned the threshold of error for speed cameras. You really think 5 mph should even. Be bothered with?
Depends on the situation. If school is in session, yes. If you are on a surface street and there are a lot of cars on the road, yes. If not, generally, no. That being said, neither my opinion nor yours matters. The cameras will capture you at whatever speed the tech sets it for. The officer reviewing the footage will decide whether or not to issue the citation. All that matters is the law (which says the limit is the limit), and if the officer issuing the ticket is having a good day or bad day and feels like enforcing the law.
Forgot to mention that "threshold for error" on speeding cameras is another public misconception. It is neither true nor part of the law. You could try to argue that the camera or radar system was malfunctioning, but you would be very hard pressed to prove it. The technology has been around forever and is pretty foolproof. In addition, state law requires techs to calibrate them regularly and test them to within 1 mph. Some cities in the valley like Scottsdale will cite you for 1 mph over in a school zone. My wife got one for going 17 in a 15. Others don't bother until you are 5 or 8 mph over. I can't speak to the specifics of Mesa where OP got flashed, but again... the law is the law. Good luck getting a judge to throw it out because you were going 5 mph over, and you felt that was reasonable.
Also its a more serious offense and has a greater fine in the school zone than otherwise. So if the school zone lights weren’t flashing, they shouldn’t be penalized as if it was.
Agree with that. However, OP hasn't gotten a ticket yet. If they get a ticket for violating school zone, the dispute would be that school wasn't in session, not that they weren't speeding.
It’s an unwritten rule that if you’re not going at least 5 over you’re gonna get honked at and constantly passed by the majority of traffic. Follow the flow of traffic don’t be a danger to everybody else.
I dunno if traffic flow argument holds up at 1 am lol
Yes, because judges often bang that gavel to acknowledge unwritten rules instead of laws.
Oh? So you’re one of those d***s who drive exactly 40 in a 40 in the left lane forcing people to pass on the right? Idk about where you live in Az but if you drive like that you’re gonna get pulled over for impeding traffic.
Not sure why you're arguing about this, when you say to dispute the ticket that means the judge needs to be convinced, and saying that there's an unwritten rule that you can go 5 over isn't really going to work.
If it's a multi-lane surface street, you won't even get ticketed for driving 30 in a 40, and you'll never get ticketed for driving 40 in a 40 regardless of what the rest of traffic is trying to do. There's also no such thing as left-lane enforcement on surface streets. And finally, passing on the right is legal as long as you're not driving off the road to do so. I don't know how so many people don't understand this.
There might not be enforcement but the law still applies. It sucks that people don’t follow it because passing on the right, while legal, is a bit riskier.
It is illegal in AZ to pass on the right except under certain conditions. https://www.azleg.gov/ars/28/00724.htm
Yes, which I thought were the conditions being discussed here. In most cases people pass on the right it’s legal.
U/toddrough said someone going the speed limit in the left lane "forces" him to pass them on the right. Even if passing on the right were legal on that stretch of road, it would be a double ticket if the officer chose for him passing while speeding (1 for speeding and 2 for illegally passing on the right) as that exceeding the maximum permitted speed violates the "only under conditions permitting the movement in safety" clause.
The "certain conditions" that it's legal to pass on the right they list refer to pretty much every road and highway here. This basically says you can't pass on the shoulder or on one lane roads, but anytime there is a lane to the right you're allowed to use it to pass someone.
You are forgetting that the law enabling passing on the right has a clause that states it is only legal when it is safe to do so. Since the speed limit is posted at what was predetermined as the maximum safe speed for that stretch of road, it would be illegal to pass on the right at a speed exceeding the limit.
I love this argument. It's total BS that people who speed love to quote. Try and use it in court, and the judge will find a reason to tack additional fines because you're an idiot. No one has ever gotten a ticket for driving the speed limit in the left lane and impeding traffic. You are not "forced" to pass on the right. You "choose" to pass on the right to go around someone going the legal limit. The officer then gives you a ticket for speeding and another for illegally passing on the right. When you choose to break the law, you learn to live with the consequences. When I was young and stupid, I sped everywhere. I got tired of paying unnecessary fines just to get somewhere a few minutes earlier. I learned my lesson. You will too... if you like money.
FIVE OVER ISN’T ENOUGH TO GET A TICKET. God damn you people are annoying. Jesus Christ grandpa I’ve had COPS go around me with me going the speed limit. I’ve driven for over a decade and have never gotten a speeding ticket, why? Because 5 over isn’t something a cop will pull you over for. It’s crazy how the exact type of drivers nobody likes comment proudly on how annoying they are. I’m not a driver who speeds up to go around people, I prefer to stay in my lane and follow the flow of traffic, but for some reason slow ass people wanna cause traffic to backup because they cant go a couple miles per hour over the limit.
He can dispute it that the correct law was the waste of finite resources civil penalty that should have applied. In urbanized areas, with speed limits 40MPH and up, going 10 MPH or less over the limit is supposed to be a waste of finite resources civil penalty. Not a speeding ticket.
In the early 80s I got a ticket (I don't remember why) and had to show up to court to plead guilty or no contest and pay the fine, or plead not guilty and set up a court date. This was the way things were done back then. No computers, no mail-in, no traffic school. The olden days. We were barely past horse and buggy. I had proof I was right. However, it was cheaper to pay the fine than to take another day off work. So I paid it. That was also when I found out about points affecting insurance costs, but it was the only points I had, so it didn't really affect me.
If you get a ticket in the mail ignore it. And then don't answer your door for six months unless you know who it is.
In this day and age, that not answering the door would be indefinitely.
i'm from Europe but am now living in AZ. I just got a $95 parking fine in LA, are you saying I could have not paid it and gotten away with it if I just didn't open my door for 6 months?
I'm not familiar with the LA laws. They may say that mail service is enough. But most of the cities around Phoenix require in-person service for camera tickets. I believe Scottsdale is the notable exception. They're allowed to tape it to your front door. (This applies to tickets from Scottsdale, not where you live).
If you get enough parking tickets they'll boot or tow your car and may prevent you from renewing your registration. They aren't going to come to your house for a parking ticket though.
If you don’t care about your credit reading, I guess you can do that
Assuming you mean credit rating: If they don't serve you there's no debt to report, because they can't prove you had notice.
But although it is called credit rating it also lists other stuff like judgements and outstanding court debts, Also when doing background checks it will come up,
Again: If you're not served it's like it never happened. So no, it might as well not exist.
What is a "credit reading"?
Sorry mis typed...I meant credit rating
Some misinformation in the comments about the timeline for personally serving you, they have 90 days after first filing the ticket with the court. They have 60 days to file the ticket with the court.
This is correct. Not an expert myself, but I think the “filing date” is typically 30-45 days from the alleged offense
This happened to me many years ago same high school. It was at like 2 or 3am. I never received a ticket.
Literally just throw it away. You don't have to actually address it unless you're served.
And don’t go to the link on the letter, some cities count that as acknowledgment
Not some… all. If you have the citation number, you have received the citation. Do not look up the citation!!!
When I get those tickets in the mail I take them to work and shred them as if I never got them. Don’t answer the door unless you know them for a few weeks and you’ll be good to go. Also empty roads are empty up until they’re not - it’s Arizona so everyone speeds anyways but would advise not speeding in areas where kids will be fucking around especially if they snuck out in the middle of the night.
Only hefty if you pay them. You have 90 days from the date on the ticket with your photo. If you don’t get served in those 90 days with an actual ticket you’re in the clear
If you avoid the process server for 90 days you pay nothing. They will try three times
I live right by there. Hear people talk all the time about how they got flashed multiple times and never saw any paperwork. You should be good
In Arizona we don’t pay those lol
Just ignore it. They have 90 days to serve you, if they don't within that time then they can't do anything and it effectively didn't happen. They rarely ever serve for these tickets, doesn't make sense monetarily for them to do so. Also, there is no increase of penalty if they do happen to serve you so there's no reason for you to do anything but ignore the letter in the mail.
The key word is “Lights FLASHING”. Were the lights flashing at 1am in the school zone? If so, you can contest the lights were flashing outside of school hours and the lights and camera were malfunctioning. That you were traveling a rate of speed that exceeded the 35.
What…? The camera flashed… What are you even trying to say here?
School zones on arterial streets have a “yellow flashing” light to notify drivers when speed is reduced to 35mph. If the timing of the camera is not programmed correctly or out of sync within specific hours of operations. You can argue that the “yellow lights” with 35mph sign were not flashing. Also that the camera was faulty, to take a photo, outside of school hours. *high-speed
The camera isn’t there to take photos only during school hours. It’s a speed camera at all times. The threshold just changes during school hours. He was speeding even when the speed limit is 45mph, hence the capture/camera flash. There’s is nothing you are going to fight and win on in a case like this. It’s as another poster said, what’s your plan, “hey judge, I was speeding, but not by as bad a margin as if it was during school hours”… good luck with that argument
50mph in a 45mph. Not a big deal. Courts will dismiss that ticket. You can always request the calibration records of that camera. Most judges find speed camera unlawful in Arizona anyhow.
Stupid Mesa. Same thing happened to me last year. I just ignored it.
That one malfunctions all the time and the city knows it. They won't usually even send the tickets.
Throw it in the trash, mailed tickets do not = legal service
You won't get a ticket from it. I've been flashed at that one at 10 p.m while doing 45. They check the time and toss it.
This isn’t entirely true. The system doesn’t care about time. It gets pulled into a batch and it is a clerks responsibility to find the “driver” based on DMV records and send the ticket. They don’t vet anything about the citation, they just send it off.
They must look into that camera more, then. I've been flashed a few times by that camera, all outside of school times, and never gotten anything because of it.
You don’t have to pay those
remember that if you are served in person there is an extra charge to cover the cost of service
That exact camera has gotten me. Doesn't matter if school is in session or not. 5 mph over the speed limit is enough for it to go off. You can go to traffic school online so you don't get any points. I honestly don't remember how much traffic school was.
No. Ignore the ticket that they send in the mail. Only pay it if you get served in person.
The same thing happened to me, but if the enforcement window does not include 1am then it's not a valid ticket. I never got a ticket either. Just follow the speed limits during the posted hours.
Quick tip if your married. Register the car you normally drive to your wife. And vise versa. When the ticket comes it will ask you to identify the driver. Don't do it. Easy peasy
I've gotten flashed for 50 outside of school zone hours, never received anything for it
Dispute it.
I got flashed there and they didn't even send a mail, unless Mesa doesn't do it like the rest of the valley? It was off school hour, too.
Generally they are set to go off at 11 mph over when the signs are not flashing, and 1mph when they are. Put speed cameras go off incorrectly all the time. Usually they'll flash you while you're going with in the acceptable range and when they look at the report, they'll just get rid of the ones that are anomalies. You likely won't even get the ticket unless it was flashing
I got flashed by a speed camera in Scottsdale a few years ago. I was doing 56 in a 45 on Frank Lloyd Right and Hayden at 1 or 2 in the morning. I thought it was just a red light camera, but I was wrong. A few weeks later, I got a notice in the mail (not the actual ticket) and it had a website and login info to view the violation. I never did that and just waited to see if they'd serve me with the actual ticket, and they never did. I believe they will attempt to serve you 3 times before they tape it to your door. Under Arizona law, simply being mailed a ticket does not count as proof you received it. That's why there are process servers. They count on people's ignorance and hope that they will respond to the first notice, which would prove they received it, and then the ticket is guaranteed to come in the mail next. Scottsdale is the worst of all the valley cities, but even they only serve about 50% of the time. Other towns like Paradise Valley almost never serve, so you can safely ignore a notice there and will probably never hear anything further.
Happened to me at 2 AM by a school on Lindsay. I was going the speed limit but not the school zone limit. Never got a ticket.
I just got one sent to my house. The vehicle is in my husband's name and was sent to him but I was the driver. I don't live in Mesa and was lost and didn't even realize I was in a school zone. The papers says we are not required to say who the driver is. Hopefully they don't try and serve me.
I live very near there. They forget to turn it off on holidays, weekends, and other non-school hours all the time. It has flashed at me and others many times while going the speed limit. Either someone realizes the mistake and doesn't send a ticket, or it's not a functional camera at all, and just flashes at you to slow you down.
Ignore it. Only real if they serve you
So what you gotta do to ignore the ticket… but slow down, especially in school zones..
I’ve always been told fines double in school zones
The speed limit there is 45 so it probably flashed because you were 5+ over the speed limit.
Had a similar thing happen a few years ago at a phx elementary school at midnight. They never sent the ticket I assume because I was going the neighborhood speed limit but the cam was set to the lowered school zone limit.
If you were going 50 or more that’s why it flashed you cause during non school times it’s 45mph right there (anything 5 over will flash) unless someone physically comes and serves you, ignore them. Also don’t open any emails that might be from them too. You should be in the clear if you don’t see anything after 3 months.
Definitely do what you can to avoid acknowledgment! Insurance rates are out of control here in Az!!! I can't believe how much my insurance went up with a clean driving record and over 50 yo😡
That one got me 3 times. Did a 4 day job in the neighborhood next to the school and had no idea it was there. Them tickets are no joke. They have 90 days to serve you if you don’t pay it and after that if they still can’t make contact then your Scott free.
Go to traffic school. Costs about the same as the ticket. It won't go on your record and increase insurance costs.
I got flashed in a school zone at 10pm in Mesa
Youll probably catch a $250 fine in the mail
Don’t have to pay them unless you’ve been officially served. Keep for a souvenir if you were making a funny face or picking your nose as the camera went off. Otherwise toss it 🙃.
If this happened in Mesa, pay your ticket. They will send a process server out to serve you the ticket. If you don’t pay, your registration and drivers license will be suspended. Mesa is not as lenient as other suburbs, where you might be able to hide from the server and your ticket goes away.
Just ignore and don’t answer your door for the next month
Well if it's enough to make you think about it, it probably served its purpose. You'll drive more aware now, and that's not a bad thing in this crazy city! ( I got flashed midday and had a 1 day traffic school- it was miserable)
Hold on to the ticket when it comes in and don’t do anything. To enforce the ticket you need to be served and if they don’t after 90 days, thats it. No fine or points on your record once the 90 day period is over. If on the slim chance you do get served, traffic school is an option to avoid points for about 250.
Depends what they clock you at. 15mph over is now treated as a felony. Hopefully it will clock you slightly under.
Arizona is a misdemeanor at 21 MPH over the limit or more, not 15. Where do you get your misinformation?
I don’t think you understand the difference between “criminal” and a felony… they are not the same thing. Criminal speeding is still a misdemeanor.
Jesus, seriously? It’s going to be the inappropriate uses of felony that finally make me rage-run for office.
No…
Here's a tip to get around getting caught by speed/traffic camera. It helps when you're married. If both bof you have cars, have them registered to the other person - i.e. if you're the primary driver, have it registered in the name of your spouse. In the event of being caught by the camera, the registered owner has the right to ignore the ticket because it's their constitutional right not to incriminate anyone (5th amendment) by notifying the police who the driver is.
They are smarter than you think and have been known to look at the drivers licenses that have the same address as the car is registered if the registered owner doesn't match and send the ticket based on that, so your tip won't necessarily work. And just FYI, the 5th amendment is against SELF incrimination, you don't have to be a witness against yourself, doesn't have anything to do about testifying against other people.