Parking tickets are usually paid directly to the city issuing the ticket. Violation fines are detailed under IA Code 805.8A.
Paying Fines: To pay fines online for tickets or court costs, try: Iowa Courts Online Payment. Read the ticket to determine where and how to pay or plead the ticket. Do not ignore the ticket, as failure to pay for a ticket can lead to a suspended license.
Lost Ticket: If you have lost your ticket, you can get a copy by writing to the Iowa DOT (include written signed request including date of ticket, address, and Driver’s License Number and a fee of 50 cents):
Office of Driver Services
Iowa DOT
6310 SE Convenience Boulevard
Ankeny, IA 50021
IA Traffic Laws: IA Traffic Laws are in IA Code section 321.
Speeding: Speeding violations are considered simple misdemeanors (defined as not more than 30 days jail and fines of $65-625 (inflationary increases yearly) (not more than $100 if under 18)). However most speeding violations are scheduled violations with specified fines (IA Code 805.8A) as follows:
Less than or equal to 5 mph =$10
Greater than 5 but less than or equal to 10 mph =$20
Greater than 10 but less than or equal to 15 mph =$30
Greater than 15 but less than or equal to 20 mph= $40
Greater than 20 mph= $40 plus $2 for every mph over 20 mph excessive speed.
If the speed zone has a speed limit over 55 mph, a different schedule applies for the following:
Less than 5 mph= $20
Greater than 5 but less than or equal to 10 =$40
Greater than 10 but less than or equal to 15 mph =$60
Greater than 15 but less than or equal to 20 mph =$80
Greater than 20 mph over speed limit= $90 plus $5 for every mph over 20 mph excessive
Road work zone= double fine schedule
The defendant can be sentenced to a Driver Improvement Program if speeding greater than 25 mph or less than or equal to 29 mph over speed limit or for habitual traffic law violation in lieu of license suspension. However, a person cannot be assigned to the program more than once in 2 years.
License suspension for 30 days to 1 year can occur if the defendant is a habitual offender or committed a serious offense.
Since speeding is a simple misdemeanor, the defendant can have an attorney represent the defendant in court, and the defendant need not appear in person if represented. However, an indigent defendant is not entitled to an attorney unless there is a possibility of being sentenced to jail time. Since speeding is a scheduled violation, no jail time is involved unless there is another offense associated with speeding that could lead to jail time.
IA Code 321.285: “…careful and prudent speed not greater than nor less than is reasonable and proper, having due regard to the traffic, surface, and width of the highway and of other conditions then existing, and no person shall drive any vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than will permit the person to bring it to a stop within the assured clear distance ahead…”
Unlawful speeds in excess of:
20 mph in business district
25 mph in residence or school district
45 mph in suburban district
55 mph for other areas
Reasonable and proper but not greater than 55 mph between sunrise and sunset on secondary roads unless county board of supervisors determined based on engineering survey different speed limit and properly posted
65 mph on controlled-access, divided multilane highways unless lower speed posted in metropolitan areas.
Speeding Defenses: Most tickets are accurate and the officer correctly calculated the speed. Thus it can be an uphill battle to defeat a speeding ticket. The defense starts at the traffic stop.
At the traffic stop: Pull over in a safe location.
The officer will often ask you about your speed when you are stopped. If you admit speeding, that admission can be utilized as evidence in court. You have the right to remain silent. Do not admit speeding. Be polite to the officer. If you are hostile, the situation can escalate into more serious charges, or at a minimum, the officer will clearly remember you in court.
The officer may also ask you for permission to search the car. Never give permission to search the car. If the officer has probable cause to search the car, he will anyway, but don’t give him permission if he doesn’t have probable cause. Keep a low profile and don’t argue with the officer. If you argue, the officer will undoubtedly remember you and the situation clearly and will make a better witness.
Gather information about your defense. Note the weather and lighting conditions, passengers, your clothes, characteristics of your car, exact locations where stopped and where officer had been located when clocked for speeding, officer name and vehicle, traffic conditions, what the officer said. Gather names of witnesses.
Sign the citation (this is not an admission of guilt, but an acknowledgement of receiving the citation). If your appearance will not be in the county seat, ask the officer if you can change the court appearance to the county seat. If so, do so. If the officer refuses, ask him to annotate the request on the citation.
Ask the officer if you can see the radar read out. If allowed, note the manufacturer or model number. Do not ask about the tuning fork. Make notes immediately but for only a couple of minutes and leave before the officer does.
Pull away from the stop calmly and do not make a scene.
After the stop, take photos of the area of alleged speeding. Include photos from the officer’s point of view, and from the driver’s point of view. Take pictures of signs (especially speed limit signs), utility lines, and power stations as these can affect radar units. Take pictures of your vehicle and similar vehicles to have the officer identify your vehicle in a lineup. Take pictures of similar traffic conditions if the traffic was heavy at the time. Take pictures at the same time of day, same day of the week, and similar weather and lighting conditions.
General Defenses: Generally lack of knowledge of the speed limit, broken speedometer, or lack of knowledge of speeding are ineffective as speeding is a strict liability offense—that is violation of the offense doesn’t require intent to speed so the defendant’s reasons or emotions are not significant. Thus to win at court, the defense must be on legal technicalities. Some of these legal technicalities can be difficult to prove. Just fighting the ticket by stating that the officer is wrong will not win as the court will typically believe the officer over the defendant.
Following along with the speed of traffic which is travelling over the speed limit is not an adequate defense since it involves admitting to speeding. Also, a defense of necessity to speed (had to get to the hospital, etc.) will not usually work unless there is a true life or death situation. Speeding to avoid a hazard or traffic will not succeed. Remember that there are default speed limits listed above and you can not exceed these limits even if not posted. If the speed limit is not posted or improperly posted and is different from the default limits and the speed is reasonable and proper (no posting needed if the conditions warrant a lesser speed), signage visibility, frequency, condition of signage may be a defense. Also an engineering survey by a certified engineer is required to prove a lower speed than the default limits. The State Code lists the requirements for a valid survey. An accurate survey helps defeat the “speed trap” defense, but if the survey is out-of-date, inaccurate, or not according to the state code, a “speed trap” defense can be utilized.
All documents in court should be originals or certified copies and foundation for the documents needs to be established or the documents may not be admitted by the court as evidence.
Read the procedures on the back of the ticket. These procedures are important. In some jurisdictions, failure to follow the instructions can eliminate defenses or even put the defendant in a position of failure to appear (another charge). The instructions also tell how to pay the ticket by pleading guilty and sending the fine to the clerk of court.
The prosecution bears the burden of proof of the guilt of the defendant. To prove the offense, the prosecution must prove that the defendant did the offense beyond a reasonable doubt. Thus, the identity of the driver must be established, jurisdiction, time and date of the offense, and proof that the offense was committed (driver was speeding) must be established. Review the code section (IA Code section 321) to determine the elements of the offense that must be proven.
The identity of the driver must be established. The defendant must have been established to be the driver at the time of speeding.
The identity of the vehicle must also be established as the vehicle that was speeding. This is important in cases where other vehicles may have possibly been the speeding vehicle. Minor errors on the ticket are not enough to defeat the ticket.
If the speed limit was different from the statute speeds listed above, then evidence of signage must be presented. However, if the speed was not reasonable and proper under the circumstances, no actual speed or signage evidence needs to be presented.
Serious or numerous errors on the ticket might be a defense. However a single error such as misspelled name will not succeed. The prosecution or the court can change minor errors at court. Fatal errors though can defeat the ticket since they cannot be amended at court. Fatal errors include the officer not signing the ticket, the identity of the driver is incorrect, or the wrong location is indicated on the ticket. Fatal errors should be indicated at court not prior which might allow correction of the error.
The defendant has a right to confront his accuser. Thus if the officer does not show up, the case might be dismissed. However, the officer may have notified the court prior and the prosecution may request a continuance. In some jurisdictions, the defendant must request that the officer be present by following the instructions on the ticket. In these jurisdictions, failure to follow the instructions can lead to acceptance by the court of an affidavit sent by the officer and the defendant cannot dismiss for lack of the witness. Failure of the officer to show could be a defense and allow the court to dismiss the case.
Radar Defenses:
Since the radar is indicating the speed, it is a crucial piece of evidence to indicate speeding. If the radar evidence is unreliable or faulty, the speed is in doubt and the state cannot prove speeding beyond a reasonable doubt.
Radar can reflect off other vehicles (especially if dense traffic) or other surfaces. Check for reflective or interference items such as electrical power lines or substations, reflective signs, etc.
Proper maintenance of radar unit- need to review maintenance records of radar and tuning forks. If not properly maintained may be able to prevent admission of evidence. Records can be subpoenaed or obtained under Freedom of Information acts. Manufacturing instructions, regulations and maintenance logs are necessary to prove this point and must be for the specific piece of equipment. The prosecution should produce the necessary documents at court to prove the proper maintenance and calibration of the radar, otherwise the accuracy of the radar may be suspect.
Check the technical characteristics of the radar. The radar has a maximum range to be functional. Check the distance alleged to have been utilized. You can also take careful measurements of locations of your car and the officer to determine where your car was when measured to determine if the range made the reading invalid. Check for curves and line of sight for the radar beam.
The radar unit must be tested before and after ticket. Documentation should be produced. Testing at the beginning of the shift and end of the shift is not adequate. The testing should be done before and after the ticket is given.
The radar unit must be tested for interference.
Documentation of accuracy must be presented. The officer should be able to produce documentation of the accuracy of the radar.
The Speed zone may be invalid if not the speed is not a default speed or reasonable and proper under the circumstances, and no engineering survey was introduced into evidence to show the correct speed.
Tuning forks must be of the correct frequency for the specific gun and provided by manufacturer for that gun.
The Officer must be properly trained and licensed to operate radar. The Officer can be cross examined to show lack of knowledge on proper operation. However the officer does not need to be an expert on the radar, just competent in the use of the radar. Kentucky v Honeycutt.
The Officer must testify how he determined that your car was the object tested for speed.
Discovery should be conducted to obtain the following from the police department:
Radar records, manufacturers manual and specification, calibration log, and FCC license to operate the radar unit. Look for frequent repairs (chronic problems) or lack of repair (neglect). Check the unit frequency against the FCC license. Use other materials for cross examination. Maintenance records and calibration records should be introduced as foundation for the officer’s testimony as to the speed.
Tuning fork certificate of accuracy and repair or calibration records. Check for calibration. Calibration should be completed immediately before and after a citation according to Connecticut v. Tomanelli and New York v. Struck. Tuning at the beginning and end of a shift is inadequate. Compare the frequency against the FCC license to see if legally operating. The tuning fork calibration certificate is necessary to show the radar has been calibrated and is accurate.
Police officer arrest record, daily log for the date of offense, radar training record and operator’s certification, and copies of both sides of the citation. Look for a pattern of cars stopped, area that is a frequent location for the officer (could have problems with the area). Look at the daily log to see if same speed tickets were issued (radar locked). Look at the training record to see if it meets the necessary classroom and field training requirements (24/16 established by NHTSA). Look at the original citation to obtain officer notes. The officer must testify by his independent recollection, but will undoubtedly look at his copy of the citation at his notes. This is objectionable. If he has no independent recollection, he is incompetent to testify.
Speedometer calibration certificate, repair and maintenance records for the car and for the speedometer. Speedometers must be calibrated if the patrol car was moving to compare against the radar to prevent shadowing error. Patrol car maintenance records could show electrical problems affecting the radar unit.
If the prosecution denies the request for discovery, then submit a motion to dismiss and if denied ask for a continuance to prepare your defense after obtaining the materials.
Return to the scene later to review the scene and make a diagram of the area if it is relevant to your defense and take pictures.
Airplane Paced Speeding Ticket:
Requires testimony of both the officer in the plane who used the stopwatch to clock the speed and radio to the second officer on the ground. Both officers must testify or half of the testimony is inadmissible. Otherwise, the testimony is hearsay. Both officers must testify as to their own involvement. This is also true if one patrol car ran the radar or laser and another patrol car did the ticketing.
Laser Gun: One defense is that the gun was pointed at another vehicle. This is possible in dense traffic, if similar cars were present, etc.
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