New Jersey Law

[Christihess]

Hoping someone can answer this question for me. My son and a few friends are vacationing in New Jersey. In an act of stupidity, my son decided it would be a good idea to hang on the side of his friends car while on a bicycle while the car was going down a back street. A cop pulled them over and issued them a citation with a court date listed (the box is checked for court appearance). My son and the driver (the driver was given the same citation) knows he's guilty and since we live out of state, is it possible to use the plea by mail option? I've been looking all over the NJ websites and some say you need to go to court no matter what if that box is checked, and others say you can use the by mail option if you're out of state.

 

[HighwayMan]

Contact the court and ask a clerk.

 

[xylene]

Get your son a lawyer.

Court isn't about "I know I'm guilty"

You want to have crazy insurance out of some moral duty? Don't be silly.

 

[Christihess]

Taken care of

I spoke to the clerk at the court. The reason a court date was issued was because this is not a common charge for a traffic citation. She recommended sending in the plea by mail form and including a letter from me. The fine runs about $50 so I'm glad I didn't spend hundreds on a lawyer!

 

[Zigner]

I spoke to the clerk at the court. The reason a court date was issued was because this is not a common charge for a traffic citation. She recommended sending in the plea by mail form and including a letter from me. The fine runs about $50 so I'm glad I didn't spend hundreds on a lawyer!

That's interesting particularly since the clerk of the court isn't allowed to give out legal advice. There really is no reason for you to send a letter, nor is it appropriate. One has to wonder why the clerk would even have suggested that...in fact, that statement alone is enough to make all of her "advice" suspect.