Felicia
03-25-2010, 02:37 PM
I thought this may be of interest:
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http://www.ocregister.com/news/fine-241024-state-base.html
$20 traffic ticket? More like $150
By ALEJANDRA MOLINA and ANDREW GALVIN
2010-03-25 11:46:01
Craig Lowden says he was twirling his cell phone in his hand last November when he got pulled over in Westminster.
"I got a violation for holding the phone in my hand," said Lowden, 37, a Long Beach resident. "I'm going to fight it."
On a recent Monday morning, Lowden was one of dozens waiting in line at the traffic counter at the Westminster branch of Orange County Superior Court. He showed up to get a court date.
"When I went into court right now she (the judge) basically told me that it's against the law to actually hold it in your hand," he said. The judge said his fine would come to nearly $150. Paying that much would be a hassle, he said.
For a first offense, using a hand-held phone while driving is supposed to bring a $20 fine. But when state-mandated fees, surcharges and "penalty assessments" are tacked on, the total fine comes to more than seven times that amount.
The additional fees have been added by the state legislature over the years as a way to fund state and county programs and court costs.
The most recent increases came last year, when a $35 "conviction assessment" was tacked on to traffic tickets as part of a package of fee increases aimed at raising as much as $5 billion to construct and renovate 41 courthouses across the state
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http://www.ocregister.com/news/fine-241024-state-base.html
$20 traffic ticket? More like $150
By ALEJANDRA MOLINA and ANDREW GALVIN
2010-03-25 11:46:01
Craig Lowden says he was twirling his cell phone in his hand last November when he got pulled over in Westminster.
"I got a violation for holding the phone in my hand," said Lowden, 37, a Long Beach resident. "I'm going to fight it."
On a recent Monday morning, Lowden was one of dozens waiting in line at the traffic counter at the Westminster branch of Orange County Superior Court. He showed up to get a court date.
"When I went into court right now she (the judge) basically told me that it's against the law to actually hold it in your hand," he said. The judge said his fine would come to nearly $150. Paying that much would be a hassle, he said.
For a first offense, using a hand-held phone while driving is supposed to bring a $20 fine. But when state-mandated fees, surcharges and "penalty assessments" are tacked on, the total fine comes to more than seven times that amount.
The additional fees have been added by the state legislature over the years as a way to fund state and county programs and court costs.
The most recent increases came last year, when a $35 "conviction assessment" was tacked on to traffic tickets as part of a package of fee increases aimed at raising as much as $5 billion to construct and renovate 41 courthouses across the state