Depending on the crime you commit, you may be required to go to trial. However, if you receive a minor traffic ticket such as a speeding ticket, you will have the option of prepaying your ticket, avoiding a traffic court date, and getting on with your life. However, there are downsides to taking this approach.

Paying Your Traffic Ticket

In many cases, you can pay your traffic ticket shortly after receiving it and avoid a traffic ticket court date. However, this might affect your driver's license demerit system. For traffic infractions, you will receive demerit points. The more serious the traffic infraction, the more demerit points you may receive.

Past a certain point, you may receive a warning informing you that you have accumulated too many demerit points. A few more points and you may be required to participate in a driver improvement course. Further points could lead to you having your license suspended and being forced to take further driver improvement courses.

Probation and Bond Complicate Matters

If you are on probation or have been bailed out of jail, you will need to report your traffic infraction. In either situation, you might face consequences. A probation officer might treat the traffic violation as a violation of your probation. If out on bail, your bond might be revoked. In either case, you might go back to jail.

Speak with a Traffic Lawyer Instead

There are many ways you can beat a speeding ticket and a traffic lawyer can help you. You might be surprised at how easy it is to win a speeding ticket case. For example, the officer who issued the ticket must testify and some officers will not show up to the hearing.

You may delay the hearing and increase the odds that the officer will not show up. Delaying the hearing will also give you more time to work with your attorney to gather the evidence necessary to prove that you were not actually speeding.

Other Common Defenses

Oftentimes, the police officer will make a mistake. For example, the officer might include incorrect information on the speeding ticket such as your driver's license number. There might also be inconsistencies in the statement made by the officer. 

Make sure to write everything down including what the officer said so you can make sure that your speeding ticket can be dismissed. Then, you can avoid the common consequences of a speeding ticket.

For more information, contact a local traffic lawyer.