If you are thinking about hiring a Washington ticket lawyer, please contact us well before your hearing date.  Hiring a WA State traffic attorney after you have already gone to court and lost the hearing is a bit like trying to unscramble an egg.  No matter how hard we may try, it’s very, very hard for us to get that toothpaste back in the tube.

At this point, the damage has really already been done.  We can often do a lot to help keep a ticket off of your record if you hire us BEFORE the hearing.  Unfortunately, if you hire us afterwards, everything becomes much more complicated.  

One of our Washington traffic attorneys will be forced to try and figure out what evidence was put into the record, whether any objections were properly made, and what the testimony was allowed into the record.  We will also have to review the judge’s specific findings and rulings.  We are also extremely limited on what we can argue during an appeal. 

An appeal is not an entirely new trial.  Only certain aspects of the original trial can be re-argued.  It is also very expensive – both in terms of time and in terms of filing fees.  Generally, it is very cost prohibitive to hire an attorney to appeal a Washington traffic ticket.  The one exception to this rule is where the conviction will result in a license suspension.  In such situations, it may make sense to have an experienced Washington traffic lawyer file and argue an appeal.

Here’s the moral of the story:  An ounce of prevention is far better than a pound of cure.  If at all possible, hire a WA State traffic lawyer as soon as possible after your are issued a ticket.

Our Seattle traffic ticket attorneys see people getting pulled over for speeding all the time on the freeway.  I’m sure you do too.  Often, the person about to be issued a WA State speeding ticket is in the left lane.  So, they often pull over to the left hand shoulder – some are even specifically directed to do so by the officer. 

Recently, however, we encountered a ticket a gentleman received for pulling over to the left hand side when being stopped for speeding.  Incredibly, the Officer felt it was necessary to additionally charge him with RCW 46.61.210 (failure to yield to emergency vehicles) which requires you to pull over to the right side when an emergency vehicle approaches you with a siren on.

(1) Upon the immediate approach of an authorized emergency vehicle making use of audible and visual signals meeting the requirements of RCW 46.37.190, or of a police vehicle properly and lawfully making use of an audible signal only the driver of every other vehicle shall yield the right-of-way and shall immediately drive to a position parallel to, and as close as possible to, the right-hand edge or curb of the roadway clear of any intersection and shall stop and remain in such position until the authorized emergency vehicle has passed, except when otherwise directed by a police officer.

Frankly, our Seattle traffic lawyers were appalled.  We think it is ridiculous to receive a $1,062 ticket for pulling over safely to the left rather than cross two or three lanes of traffic on a busy highway.  It appears clear that statute was intended to apply in situations where the officer is trying to pass you rather than pull you over.  Nevertheless, pull over to the right unless the officer specifically directs you to the left.  Otherwise, you might be issued very expensive Washington ticket.

Many people do not realize that it is perfectly legal to take a left turn on a red light from a two-way street when you are turning onto a one-way street.  This kind of turn is specifically authorized by statute. 

RCW 46.61.055 (3)(a) states as follows:

However, the vehicle operators facing a steady circular red signal may, after stopping proceed to make a right turn from a one-way or two-way street into a two-way street or into a one-way street carrying traffic in the direction of the right turn; or a left turn from a one-way or two-way street into a one-way street carrying traffic in the direction of the left turn; unless a sign posted by competent authority prohibits such movement.

Our Seattle traffic ticket attorneys almost never see people utilizing this little known but extremely handy traffic law.  It seems that many people who are aware of the law are actually worried that an officer will not know the law and will pull them over when they make that left turn.

Our Washington traffic lawyers are frequently asked about vehicle registration and its importance.  Our answer is always the same.  It’s very important, especially if the cop who pulled you over is in a bad mood.

Officers regularly ask for your license and insurance.  And, you can actually get a ticket if the registration is not signed.  We have seen many of these tickets over the years, especially if the officer perceives you are being rude and uncooperative.  Now, these tickets not pop up very often because most officers are reasonable. 

But you need to be aware that they can and do come up.  The bottom line is that it’s a citable offense, and an expensive one.  Don’t let yourself become one of our WA State speeding clients who is also issued a Washington traffic ticket for an invalid registration.  It’s not worth it.  Just make sure that your vehicle registration card is current AND signed.

Being issued a Washington traffic ticket is always very frustrating and extremely irritating experience.  And, at times, it can also be extremely upsetting.  Despite this, it is absolutely imperative to remain calm both during AND after the stop. 

Being rude and angry with the Officer issuing you a WA speeding ticket is not going to help your situation.  It’s only going to make matters worse.  And, it may also lead to your being cited for additional infractions, even if they are unfounded.  The Officer is also going to include in his narrative a specific section detailing that you were extremely rude and uncooperative.

As you can imagine, judges and prosecutors don’t like to see these kinds of notations.  Our Washington traffic attorneys have also even seen specific notations in the citing officer’s reports requesting that the judge and/or prosecutor handling your WA State speeding ticket should not cut you any breaks. 

Even worse, I have seen incidents where people speed off after being issued a Seattle speeding ticket only to be pulled over immediately again by the very same officer and issued ANOTHER ticket.

When you get into an accident, try to take pictures of everything afterwards, especially if you have inappropriately been issued a Seattle traffic ticket for Failure to Yield, Following too close, or Failure to Obey Sign.

Take pictures of the road, the signs, the cars, and anything else that might be relevant in fighting your infraction.  Most people now have cameras with their phones.  So, it is easy to do.  This could help with both your insurance claims and also with defending against any possible WA State tickets that were issued as a result of the accident.

A series of photos is going to hold a lot more weight in traffic court in proving what actually happened, as opposed to one of our Washington traffic attorneys simply calling you testify.  This often results in a situation where it’s simply your word against the word of the other driver, who want to see you convicted so they can move forward with their personal injury claim.

Washington “speed traps” appear to be alive and well.  The Judge one of traffic attorneys appeared in front of today made some very interesting observations regarding where cops issuing Washington traffic tickets like to hide.  Often, a King County speeding ticket officer will sit right on the edge of areas or zones where the speed limits changes.  This is no surprise to anyone who has been issued a WA State speeding ticket.  It’s one of their favorite hunting zones

For example, if the speed jumps from 35 to 55 mph, many Washingtonians will begin slowly speeding up before they reach the actual 55 mph speed post sign.  An officer will just sit there and then nail drivers in that small zone right before the speed limit has actually formally increased.  And, the same can also be said in areas where it drops from 55 mph to 35 mph.  Many drivers will not have slowed down enough prior to entering the new zone, as a result, the cop happily issues them a Seattle speeding ticket.

Here’s the moral of the story:  Be very, very careful when the speed limit changes!  The chances are good that someone is watching you.