My question involves insurance law for the state of: California

When I was pulled over, I was asked for proof of insurance. At the time, I did not know that I was uninsured, I am not sure what type of defense it amounts to, but I am a typical College Student living at home, going to class full time. I was under the assumption my parents were taking care of the insurance =/. Anyways, I was taking too long to find the insurance that did not exist, so the officer issued me the citation and took off. I acquired insurance a week after the incident. I recently received the letter to appear in court with the (absurd) bail amount, and being a student with no money, I cannot see how I will be able to pay this amount.

My questions are the following, Can I get the case against me dropped by presenting my insurance even though I was covered after the citation? If so, are there any precedents or something to that nature that I can cite? I have heard of some judges that will drop the charges if insurance was obtained after the fact in a timely fashion, I just could not find any actual cases where it occurred.

Second, If all I am able to do is plead guilty, what happens because of my inability to pay? Is there anyway I can get this switched to community service or something?

Thanks for reading my story, I hope to hear from you guys.