Speeding ticket advice??

[pup_on_the_mountain]

I got cited for 70 on 60 mph road (Hwy 26, soon after getting on to it Eastbound from I-90). There was a passing lane, and I was actually overtaking another car (with the intentions of going on a cruise after passing him - that section of Hwy 26 is notorious for cops, and I usually never go more than 7 or 8 above the limit). The cop said the other car was already going fast, and hence I had no need to overtake, since there were two lanes. He claimed he clocked me at 78 mph on his radar, but cited me only for 70 mph.

 

What makes this ticket interesting is my driving license though. I used to live in North Carolina before moving to WA in August 2004, and I still have my NC license (valid till April 2008). My car is registered in WA though. I have no violations on my NC record currently - the last speeding ticket was in 2001 or 2002, and I know that they keep these things in record only for three years. When the cop asked me for license and registration, I pulled my license out of my wallet, and reached for the registration in the glove compartment. By mistake, I handed him the old registration card from NC (it expired in 2005), but the cop did not question it! I realized this mistake only after he gave me back the ticket+license+registration. The cop of course could see my number plate, and may be he pulled up the car on his computer, may be not. He put my old NC address (in my license and in the expired registration) on the ticket, which makes me want to think that he did not check my car license plate on his computer (my current WA registration has my current address as well).

 

So, here is my question. Should I just pay the fine ($113), and hope that the powers-that-be will not keep it on the records, since its an NC driver's license? Of course, I was planning to get my WA driver's license soon. Will I start with a "clean slate" when I get my WA license? Or is it the case that they will track me down using my car number plate (registration), and add the ticket/points on to my WA license record once I get it?

 

As I mentioned, I do have a clean record. I had gotten four tickets in four different states, but those were all ages ago , and only one of them went into my NC record for a 54 mph on a 45 (no insurance points in NC). So, should I go to court and try to get a deferment, or seek some other kind of merciful pardon instead?

 

Any advice would be much appreciated!

[kurthicks]

pay the ticket, of course. you may or may not get it put on your record or insurance. I got a ticket in Maine once (while I had an OR license), in a rental car, and it didn't go on my record in OR (or WA, when I got a license here)...but I think I got lucky. In your case, I probably wouldn't go to court because they may ask you for the reg/ins info again and then cite you for not getting a WA driver's license when you moved here (which you have 30 days to do legally).

 

this may help too: http://www.dol.wa.gov/driverslicense/

 

my best advice though is to slow down and not have to worry about tickets in the first place, especially after long days in the alpine.

[olyclimber]

Pay the ticket, but get one of these stickers for your car for next time:

 

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/specials/undueinfluence/326602_favorsbear07.html

[ClimbingPanther]

I've always been peeved by tickets while passing, though I haven't had one yet. Does the law really say anything about a "need" to pass? I know the law DOES condone speeding to pass on a 2-lane road. I also know sometimes people speed up just when you pass them, so a cop might think you're passing unnecessarily but you're really passing a jerk who used to be going slow and just sped up. What to do?