Wrong Court Date Set

My question involves traffic court in the State of: Texas

I received a speeding ticket on November 23, 2009 and I had signed the ticket stating that I would appear in court on the given date. I didn't read the date closely when he issued it to me, I was more concerned with not going to jail than actually reading the ticket. The date set on the ticket is January 13, 2009.

I have not signed the ticket stating I am guilty. I am a little concerned with them confusing the date on my ticket and issuing a warrant for my arrest, which is not what I want.

Will the court void the ticket or simply change the date? If it is the later, how will they notify me?

As far as I can see, there are four possible scenarios:

1) Someone in the Clerk's office will notice the wrong date and send out a new hearing notice; or

2) You call the Clerk of the Court. They will probably chuckle a little and send you a new notice with the date corrected; or

2) You simply show up on Jan 13, 2010, and proceed with your hearing; or

3) You ignore the ticket. On Jan 13, the judge will probably enter an FTA order and a default judgment. If that happens, the DMV will suspend your license. You will eventually have to pay the fine as well as a restoration fee to get your license back. You might be able to file a motion to set aside the judgment and reopen the case, explaining that the court date was listed as Jan 13, 2009. But, the judge will probably just say something like, "Well, you missed that one, too!" and deny the motion.

If it were me, I'd call the Clerk's office, if I really wanted to contest it, or just pay the ticket.

Barry

Unfortunately the municipal court's phone number is a machine and they will not answer the phone for anyone.

I am most likely heading into the court today to make sure that the dates are fixed. I just needed to know what to prepare for

take a look at this thread where a similar situation came up: http://www.expertlaw.com/forums/showthread.php?t=85223

I don't know the exact procedures for TX, but I wouldn't contact the court at all and just keep quiet. Instead, check your mail very dillegently. It may be possible that the error may get noticed when the citation gets entered into the courts systems and a notice of correction will be served to you stating the new date. Otherwise, it's the District Attorney's job to make sure your case gets prosecuted, not yours.

You mentioned fear of going to jail... Is there something else going on or was the trooper just being overly belligerent?

Quote:

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Quoting warmwaffles

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My question involves traffic court in the State of: Texas

I received a speeding ticket on November 23, 2009 and I had signed the ticket stating that I would appear in court on the given date. I didn't read the date closely when he issued it to me, I was more concerned with not going to jail than actually reading the ticket. The date set on the ticket is January 13, 2009.

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To my knowledge, State of Texas traffic citations do not give an exact date and time for appearances. Re-read your traffic citation. It probably says "On or Before" without a specific time specified. It may be wise (others are doing this) to go BEFORE the date indicated (Today). Go on a day and at a time when you know the Magistrate will not be there. Have the Court clerk stamp the citation to verify your appearance and compliance with Texas Statutes. You appeared as promised by your signature, case closed, no fine. Your signature does not bind you to two appearances.

BTW. Texas Statutes state that an officer is to write an exact date and an exact time for an appearance on a traffic citation. Failing to do so, the officer is to be immediately removed from office (or words to that effect). Check your State Statutes, I believe it is in the 200ish section. But that's a different story.

Wow! You're right!

Quote:

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Quoting TX Transportation Code, Title 7, Subtitle C, Subchapter A

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Sec. 543.006. TIME AND PLACE OF APPEARANCE.

(a) The time specified in the notice to appear must be at least 10 days after the date of arrest unless the person arrested demands an earlier hearing.

(b) The place specified in the notice to appear must be before a magistrate having jurisdiction of the offense who is in the municipality or county in which the offense is alleged to have been committed.
...

Sec. 543.008. VIOLATION BY OFFICER.

A violation by an officer of a provision of Sections 543.003-543.007 is misconduct in office and the officer is subject to removal from the officer's position.
...
Sec. 543.009. COMPLIANCE WITH OR VIOLATION OF PROMISE TO APPEAR.

(a) A person may comply with a written promise to appear in court by an appearance by counsel.

(b) A person who wilfully violates a written promise to appear in court, given as provided by this subchapter, commits a misdemeanor regardless of the disposition of the charge on which the person was arrested.

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Hmmmm. This creates a dilemma in my mind. What to do, what to do. The "time" specified in your citation is obviously NOT "10 days after the date of arrest". But the law says it MUST be. So, does that make the citation void? I don't know. It's a misdemeanor for FTA -- so I'm still not sure I'd ignore the ticket.

Interesting....

Barry

Unfortunately I went into the court before reading this page again. Wish I would have.

But apparently the clerk has said that the date is correct in the system meaning January 13, 2010 but my ticket states 2009. I asked if a letter has been mailed to me. She replied, that it should have been mailed this week.

I still have not signed that I was guilty of any crime.

Back to the ticket, the police officer wasn't belligerent. He was quite nice to be honest but that is besides the point. Everything else on the ticket is correct but my court date.

Just fyi, I am a college student barely getting by on bills. I got this ticket on my way to class...oh the irony.

EDIT
What should I do? Take the defensive driving and admit to guilt or hang onto the ticket and wait for the court date and complete defensive driving irregardless?

EDIT 2
I did not get the clerk to stamp the ticket stating that I was there. Should I go back again and have them do so? Will this cause me to admit guilt

Quote:

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Quoting warmwaffles

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EDIT 2
I did not get the clerk to stamp the ticket stating that I was there. Should I go back again and have them do so? Will this cause me to admit guilt

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In my town the Magistrate is only in his office Thursdays and Fridays. Your citation states "On or Before". Pick a day (Before) when the Magistrate is not there and go. Have the Court clerk stamp the citation to satisfy the appearance required by your signature. This is not an admission of guilt. You appeared as required, now leave. Done deal.

If the Magistrate is not in his office when you appear pursuant to your citation (On or Before), it's not your problem. The State of Texas should follow their own Statutes. You are not going to help them prosecute you. What happens when a police officer fails to show? Case dismissed! The same is true with a Magistrate.

Quote:

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Quoting Stevo

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In my town the Magistrate is only in his office Thursdays and Fridays. Your citation states "On or Before". Pick a day (Before) when the Magistrate is not there and go. Have the Court clerk stamp the citation to satisfy the appearance required by your signature. This is not an admission of guilt. You appeared as required, now leave. Done deal.

If the Magistrate is not in his office when you appear pursuant to your citation (On or Before), it's not your problem. The State of Texas should follow their own Statutes. You are not going to help them prosecute you. What happens when a police officer fails to show? Case dismissed! The same is true with a Magistrate.

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I live outside San Antonio in a different county to be exact. How would I go about finding out when the magistrate is not in court?

This is honestly my first time actually having been to a court. The other two tickets I received a while back I was clearly guilty, and sent in paperwork.

Call His Office:

San Antonio City, Municipal Court Department, Detention Center, Magistrate Office
100 Military Plaza,
San Antonio, TX 78201
(210) 207-7532

Bexar County, Court Clerk Criminal Magistrate, Criminal Law Magistrate
100 Dolorosa, San Antonio, TX 78201
(210) 335-2901

And next time you get a citation go directly to the Magistrate the same day. Do not pass Go and do not Collect $200. If the citation is not in their system yet, guess what? It-Is-Not-Your-Problem (It's theirs). Your citation states "On or Before" such-n-such date. You are legally complying by appearing.

Good Luck