I paid someone's court fees today.

"Honeybunchesofgoats" (honeybunche0fgoats)
08/04/2016 at 14:15 • Filed to: None

I also paid my own $600 speeding ticket and lost my license for fifteen days (side note: does anyone know how license restoration works in New Jersey? I can’t seem to find any information about whether I can just pick up my license on the 19th, or if I have to wait for a notice in the mail, which could apparently take as long as two weeks after the suspension to arrive).

While I was sitting in court, this younger black guy went up in front of the judge. I wasn’t really paying attention—because my lawyer had just informed me that he was able to get the prosecutor to drop most of the charges, except for the speeding ticket, for which he was able to get the suspension dropped from 30 days to 15—so I’m not sure what his charges were, but my ears pricked up when the judge started discussing money with him.

“You owe $200. Are you going to pay this today?”

“No, sir.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t have it.”

“Your license will be suspended if you don’t pay. Do you have a job?”

“Yes, sir.”

“How much do you earn?”

“$12 a hour”

“That’s $480 a week full time. Do you work full time? Why can’t you pay this?”

“I work part time, and after food, gas, rent, and child support, I don’t have anything left over.” He then noted that he was expecting to hear back from Walmart shortly after they finished their background check.

At this point he was sent out to arrange a payment plan with the cashier.

A group of people went up and left, then I went up. I never said anything besides “yes, your honor,” since my lawyer was there and he did all of the talking about how sorry I was and how I’d never speed again.

Then I went out to pay my ticket. There was a woman in front of me with an adorable kid asking if she could reschedule her court date, since it was very crowded inside and she had a job interview that day that she didn’t want to miss, because she had been out of work. No luck.

I went up to the window to pay when I noticed that the same guy from earlier was at the other window.

I said to my friend (who came since I figured that I might need a driver) “that’s pretty shitty that he could lose his license over such a small amount of money.”

“Yeah.”

“Should I pay it? Do you think they’ll let me pay it.”

“I guess, I mean that isn’t right.”

So I went over to the other window.

“Can I pay his fine?”

“What?”

“I mean, is that a problem if I pay his fine?”

“Um, you can, that isn’t a problem.”

At this point, the woman at the other window starts shouting at the woman at that guy’s window that I can’t pay at two windows. I think the woman in that’s guy’s window must have thought it was a really nice gesture, because she started shouting at the woman in my window and telling her to be quiet.

I’m about two hours into what might be two weeks of day drinking (although I’m considering flying to Montreal next week, since I evidently have nothing to do and I like jazz and bars, and this way I won’t notice the suspended license). But I can’t help feeling like we have an incredibly shitty system that really screws over poor people. I mean, this one kid in front of me, a student, pleaded to the same speeding violation I did (but without getting three other violations tossed out) but ended up with a 30 day suspension.

It’s kind of screwed up that I ended up getting off pretty easy, because I hired a very expensive lawyer (who went to the same very expensive university as me) and could afford to pay a very expensive ticket with a suspension that nearly overlaps with an unpaid vacation of my choice while I switch jobs. Meanwhile, the system just drains money from people out of work or underpaid and actively militates against their ability to actually improve their lives. It’s also kind of screwed up that all things considered, I don’t think I should even have to deal with the inconvenience of a suspension, considering the amount of money I’ve paid out.

This post was brought to you by the letters G & T, which I note had nothing to do with any of my tickets.

DISCUSSION (41)

Party-vi > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:21

holy shit what did you do for that ticket, piss on a cop car as you drove by?

Dru > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:24

Some people just need a break once in a while, thanks for giving that guy one.

Nonster > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:24

Good for you dude for helping that guy out. I’m curious to what you did to win such a hefty prize though

fintail > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:24

Those bennies aren’t gonna fund themselves, you know. It’s an industry.

RiceRocketeer Extraordinaire > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:25

Very noble of you.

My wife recently had a ticket dismissed after I hired a traffic lawyer covered by a legal plan through my employer. Her employer doesn’t have that kind of benefit and her coworkers were amazed such a thing existed.

Traffic violations suck and are a large part of why I’m seriously considering taking more public transportation.

wkiernan > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:26

That was good, you’re all right.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Party-vi
08/04/2016 at 14:27

Legally, I did 89 MPH in a 65 MPH zone. Let's just say that Jaguar speedos only mark every 20 MPH and that there's still a lot of torque left over when you floor the pedal at 70 MPH.

crowmolly > Party-vi
08/04/2016 at 14:29

Side note, if it was Jersey they offer a knockdown to “Unsafe driving” which is no points (to save you the insurance hit) but the fine is $$.

That way the township gets the cash, not your insurance company.

Not sure what HBG did though.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Nonster
08/04/2016 at 14:32

I assume it doesn't matter, since my plea has been accepted, but I don't know enough about the law, so it makes me nervous (I got the ticket in February, but didn't want to mention it online). Let's just say I was closer to twice the speed limit than I was to the speed limit.

JGrabowMSt > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:37

Ouch. Where are you in Jersey?

Also, good on you for paying that guys fines. I mean, it’s not always through the best circumstances, but hey, you helped someone else out.

Isn’t that the important part in life?

Tekamul > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:38

Being poor is really expensive. Good on ya.

Honeybunchesofgoats > crowmolly
08/04/2016 at 14:43

I was positive I would get that option, but for whatever reason, that wasn't even on the table.

Monkey B > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:44

very correct about the system being such that it keeps the less fortunate in trouble and deep in fines because they can’t pay, a vicious cycle. I’ve read some stuff on this and witness it first hand with people I know.

Good on you for the random act of kindness, I often wish I was in the position to do similar things on a regular basis. So to pay it forward on the strangers behalf, I offer you to drive to DE (you live in NJ right?) and I will professionally refurbish your leather seats as per yesterdays discussion and will repair and redye any areas that may need so after cleaning...after you get that license back...

Honeybunchesofgoats > Tekamul
08/04/2016 at 14:46

It really is, and that's super fucked up.

crowmolly > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:46

Wow, you got $600 straight-up?

Construction zone or enforcement zone?

Noah - Now with more boost. > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:49

So... by my state’s ticket cost rules, if that was a speeding ticket, you were doing at least 60 over?! I’m not sure if I should congratulate you or tell you to be more careful? I guess I just did both

Honeybunchesofgoats > crowmolly
08/04/2016 at 14:49

65 MPH zone, so fined were doubled.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Noah - Now with more boost.
08/04/2016 at 14:51

I wasn't doing sixty over, but I probably could have reached out and touched it.

Noah - Now with more boost. > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:55

I bet that officer was reaaaal happy with you haha. Unless you were doing that in a “reasonable” place - I’ve been let off for excessive speeding before because I was somewhat responsible about it

Batman the Horse > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:56

You did a good thing and you should feel proud.

E90M3 > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 14:56

That is one thing I really like about BMWs with idrive, you can set a waring to go off at a certain speed. It’s an audible warning so it’s almost impossible to miss, which has kept me out of trouble at times. Get pissed and put your foot down without looking at the speedo. Hear the warning and I know my car says we’re going 92, which is actually 89, so I don’t get too far outside out the legal limit. 89 is only 14 over in most places in Texas.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Monkey B
08/04/2016 at 14:56

Thanks!

It’s kind of dumb, because that aspect of the legal system never really clicked with me before, but I was sitting there for an hour and a half just seeing so many cases that wouldn’t be such an issue in the first place with money, and just made money problems worse. It's really counter-productive and shitty.

It honestly felt really good. I think if I were rich, I’d probably hang around court houses paying people’s fines.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Noah - Now with more boost.
08/04/2016 at 15:02

I’m such an idiot. When he pulled me over, I did everything you’re supposed to do, like putting the keys on the dash and turning on the interior lights and keeping my hands on the steering wheel, and I genuinely could not understand why he seemed so pissed off. Then I was talking to a friend of mine who was a cop and he said he problably would have arrested me.

Honeybunchesofgoats > E90M3
08/04/2016 at 15:05

I have to admit that having something tell me to slow down would probably work.

It doesn't help that I've spent years driving a Town Car, so I'm used to floor the pedal and not even shifting out of overdrive.

RacingShark > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 15:19

Read about Philando Castile’s tickets. His license was suspended many times for unpaid tickets. He then got more tickets for driving on a suspended license.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetw…

I’m sure there are many many many more just like him.

Sneaky Pete > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 15:37

Nice of you to pay his fine, but at the same time...if you can’t afford a $200 ticket, you probably should be driving in accordance with the laws to prevent being given said ticket.

E90M3 > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 15:40

It’s more of you’re conscious of what you’re doing, instead of the oh shit how fast am I going. Even in 6th, at highway speeds, put your foot down and you get to autobahn speeds in no time.

Noah - Now with more boost. > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 15:41

Scary stuff... I don’t want to find out what happens when you’re arrested for speeding.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Sneaky Pete
08/04/2016 at 15:58

Fair enough, although, at the time time, if you asked me back in February if I thought I could afford to lose my license for two weeks because of speeding, I definitely would have said no.

this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata > Sneaky Pete
08/04/2016 at 16:02

$200 could easily be for like 10 over. I often have to go that fast just to keep up with traffic and be safe.

Monkey B > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 16:04

whenever I find myself in court I see many repeat offenders, half just stupid, half stuck in this cycle.

I always said if I hit the powerball I’d stuff a good life in the bank and give the rest away to friends, because being rich alone is boring, and to random people who really just need a break.

Sneaky Pete > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
08/04/2016 at 16:06

Priuses (Prii? Prius?) Drive 10 under in the fast lane all the time.

jimz > Sneaky Pete
08/04/2016 at 16:06

DWB might factor into it.

this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata > Sneaky Pete
08/04/2016 at 16:07

Yeah and I’m sure their odds of being creamed by a frustrated bimmer (or Prius taxi driver) passing on the right go way up.

Master Cylinder > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 16:42

It is a shitty system. My wife is an attorney who once worked at a firm that handled traffic cases. The stories I’d hear made me cringe. College kids getting off on DUIs basically because their parents were rich and were buddies with the judge. Dudes getting caught doing 140 in a 35 zone (!) and not losing their license because they had enough money to hire a good lawyer who was able to negotiate a good deal.

Meanwhile the dude who delivers pizzas gets a speeding ticket and it wrecks his life.

Good on you for helping someone out when you were able to. Lots of people would just look the other way. Probably myself included, if I’m honest.

PotbellyJoe and 42 others > Honeybunchesofgoats
08/04/2016 at 16:47

I am a deacon at my church and we assist members, regular attenders and sometimes randoms who walk through the church’s doors. We have guidelines and such so it’s not likely that we’d pay the mortgage for a guy who just shows up, but we might consider hearing it. One thing I have seen time and time again over the 4 years that I have been in the role, the system is punitive and heavy fisted on individuals who cannot afford to play its game.

We have had numerous families that we support in small ways for towing fees due to lapsed registrations, or fines on vehicles because repairs weren’t made. It’s all fines on top of not having the money in the first place. Then it compounds. If you don’t have the money to pay the tow and impound it stays in impound and gets harder to pay.

Many times we have a discussion with the people who have been helped more frequently, that as soon as they find out there is going to be an issue, come to us, not once it’s in the works and hours mean dollars.

It is a very frustrating system, I have learned a lot by dealing with it, one being how fortunate I am to be a college educated white guy with a good job. I’ve been out of work at times and it was hard for those months that I was, but I never was thousands of dollars behind in the legal system.

Thank you for helping that man today.

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > Honeybunchesofgoats
10/06/2016 at 20:34

That’s a big ticket fella. How fast ?

Honeybunchesofgoats > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches
10/06/2016 at 20:55

Well, I pleaded to 89, got clocked at 104, and peaked at 110.

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > Honeybunchesofgoats
10/07/2016 at 08:50

Yeesh. That’s no fun. I could get in so much trouble so quickly in the S600. It’s dangerously smooth.

Honeybunchesofgoats > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches
10/07/2016 at 09:46

Pretty much the same in the Jag. I have to say that considering it’s ridiculously un-aerodynamic, it’s one of the most stable cars I’ve ever driven at high speeds. It just flattens out above 80.

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > Honeybunchesofgoats
10/07/2016 at 10:00

It’s the same in the S. Although the drag coefficient in the S600 is actually on par with a BMW i8. I genuinely don’t know how the designers did it.