Being shafted in NJ.....Help

[MyZinc03]

I recently moved to NJ from NY and just had my first incident with the law. Here is what happened....I woke up in the morning, got dressed for work and went into the garage to get into my car and go to work. Well as luck would have it, my 03 cobra with 300 miles on it had a flat tire. I was already late for work and had a very important meeting that day at the office. One that I could not miss nor be late too. There were people there from all over the US and Europe. Changing the tire was not an option at the time. I have another car that I used before I got my cobra that had an expired registration and insurance sitting in my driveway...I said to myself 'Hell with it', if I get caught it will still be better than missing that meeting. I'll pay the fine and go on with my life. The plates on the car expired about 2 months ago along with the Insurance. Well needless to say I got pulled over that day for nothing. Maybe the officer saw the expired sticker on the plate. Things went from bad to worse from that point. They inpounded my car and gave me the following tickets. No Registration, No Insurance, Fictitious Plate, 60 touring. I have no problem with the Reg and Insurance and would be happy to pay the fine. But Fictitious plate????? What the hell is that?? The plates have been on the car for years!!! I told the officer and he said you will have a chance to explain in court. The 60 day touring I got because apparently I dont have the right to hold a NYS license and live in NJ. Another crock of shit!! I went to court and the judge informs me of my rights and asks if I can afford an attorney. I say that I would like to plead guilty to most of the charges and pay the fine. He says it would be in my best interest to get an attorney. What the hell is going on here??? In NY I would pay $45 for no reg, $45 for no insurance and be on my way!!! Here in NJ they are treating me like I just stabbed someone!! Anyone here from NJ?? I need some advise about this damn state. What can they do to me?? I still have a NY license!!
And yes I still have my old registration card that shows the same plate that is on the ticket. Proving that there is nothing fictitious about it. I dont know this state and am afraid that they will find a way to get me for something I am not guilty of. HELP!!!

 

[FordSVTFan]

Originally posted by MyZinc03
I recently moved to NJ from NY and just had my first incident with the law. Here is what happened....I woke up in the morning, got dressed for work and went into the garage to get into my car and go to work. Well as luck would have it, my 03 cobra with 300 miles on it had a flat tire. I was already late for work and had a very important meeting that day at the office. One that I could not miss nor be late too. There were people there from all over the US and Europe. Changing the tire was not an option at the time. I have another car that I used before I got my cobra that had an expired registration and insurance sitting in my driveway...I said to myself 'Hell with it', if I get caught it will still be better than missing that meeting. I'll pay the fine and go on with my life. The plates on the car expired about 2 months ago along with the Insurance. Well needless to say I got pulled over that day for nothing. Maybe the officer saw the expired sticker on the plate. Things went from bad to worse from that point. They inpounded my car and gave me the following tickets. No Registration, No Insurance, Fictitious Plate, 60 touring. I have no problem with the Reg and Insurance and would be happy to pay the fine. But Fictitious plate????? What the hell is that?? The plates have been on the car for years!!! I told the officer and he said you will have a chance to explain in court. The 60 day touring I got because apparently I dont have the right to hold a NYS license and live in NJ. Another crock of shit!! I went to court and the judge informs me of my rights and asks if I can afford an attorney. I say that I would like to plead guilty to most of the charges and pay the fine. He says it would be in my best interest to get an attorney. What the hell is going on here??? In NY I would pay $45 for no reg, $45 for no insurance and be on my way!!! Here in NJ they are treating me like I just stabbed someone!! Anyone here from NJ?? I need some advise about this damn state. What can they do to me?? I still have a NY license!!
And yes I still have my old registration card that shows the same plate that is on the ticket. Proving that there is nothing fictitious about it. I dont know this state and am afraid that they will find a way to get me for something I am not guilty of. HELP!!!

First off, let me welcome you to the great state of new jersey! Where are you living? Knowing that would make things easier for me to understand and offer any type of help.

Second, you know you "F'd up before you even did it.

As for your tickets, New Jersey is very tough on motor vehicle laws especially no registration and no insurance. the reason being that those two offenses are the main factors for us having the highest insurance rates in the country. Thus the fines are very high and meant to be a significant deterent.

You didnt get pulled over for "Nothing," you got pulled over for expired tags. That led to your downfall, but then again you knew that before you pulled out from the driveway.

Fictitious plate was issued because when the officer ran the plate through the system it came back as not a registered plate. Reason being, most likely NY removed it from their system as you were 2 months or more out of registration. Hence the plate really doesnt belong to that automobile any longer and technically the plate belongs to the state of New York.

According to NJ law, if you reside in this state on a permanent basis or the majority of your time(if split between residences) you must possess a NJ license and register your vehicle here as well. You have a 60 day grace period. And actually if I remember correctly, if an automobile is kept within the state for 30 days or longer, it must be registered here after that time as well. There are exceptions, but not many.

The judge gave you the best gift. Get an attorney that practices within that municipality, preferably one that goes to that court a lot and is familar with that judge.

Good Luck, you will definitely need it:shrug:

 

[Ryan]

Re: Re: Being shafted in NJ.....Help

Adam,
from what i know this is true in most states...but what if, say your car is non-running (ie. The GoCart) and requires safety/emission inspections which obviously you can't do?

My car has been sitting for the last 2 1/2 months, and the tags expired at the end of Sept (IN tags) you think there will be a problem??

Originally posted by FordSVTFan



And actually if I remember correctly, if an automobile is kept within the state for 30 days or longer, it must be registered here after that time as well. There are exceptions, but not many.

 

[MyZinc03]

The car I was driving did not have NY plates. It was registered in NJ and had NJ plates. That registration expired 2 months prior to the offense but the NJ plates have been on there for over 3 years. They were just expired. This happened in West Windsor. What kind of fines am I looking at?? On the back of my summons, it says that the fine for an unregistered vehicle is $45. I could not find the penalty for no insurance so I dont know what that is. What type of fines could I possibly be looking at here and is this worth an attorney?? Another thing, does the state of NJ have the ability to take action againts my NYS license? I know that I knew what I was doing when I got into that car. To be honest, I would do it again under the same conditions. This is a great pain in the ass, but my job is much more important. Thanks again for your help.

 

[FordSVTFan]

Re: Re: Re: Being shafted in NJ.....Help

Originally posted by RTStabler51
Adam,
from what i know this is true in most states...but what if, say your car is non-running (ie. The GoCart) and requires safety/emission inspections which obviously you can't do?

My car has been sitting for the last 2 1/2 months, and the tags expired at the end of Sept (IN tags) you think there will be a problem??

No problem unless they are patroling your parking lot.

Most of the time it is recommended that the vehicle be moved to private property for storage. But, if a vehicle is on a public road or public access area, such as a parking lot they need to be possess valid registration and insurance.

Ryan, the main thing is that if you have plates on the car and it is not registered for whatever reason, that is illegal. And you will be subject to fines and possibly being impounded.

And yes in NJ, if your car even has valid out of state tags and is in the state over the prescribed period of time, you need to register it here.

 

[FordSVTFan]

Originally posted by MyZinc03
The car I was driving did not have NY plates. It was registered in NJ and had NJ plates. That registration expired 2 months prior to the offense but the NJ plates have been on there for over 3 years. They were just expired. This happened in West Windsor. What kind of fines am I looking at?? On the back of my summons, it says that the fine for an unregistered vehicle is $45. I could not find the penalty for no insurance so I dont know what that is. What type of fines could I possibly be looking at here and is this worth an attorney?? Another thing, does the state of NJ have the ability to take action againts my NYS license? I know that I knew what I was doing when I got into that car. To be honest, I would do it again under the same conditions. This is a great pain in the ass, but my job is much more important. Thanks again for your help.

That is even worse. You have a NJ registered vehicle with lapsed registration and no insurance, the computer will pick that up right away and those are actually pretty serious. That is again where the fictitious plates comes in, you are possessing plates that are not registered to that vehicle. Although they might have been at one point in time, they no longer are.

Yes the state of NJ has an agreement with the state of NY. They report back and forth to each other. Believe it or not, although you do not possess a NJ drivers license, they can suspend your driving privilege here. That means that no matter what state license you possess, you may not legally drive in NJ. Plus they will report the offense to NY, which in turn will most likely revoke your license and your privilege to drive there as well.

You say you would do this again! That sounds kind of stupid to me as you obviously missed your very important meeting, due to the traffic stop and impounding of your car. Doesnt that impact your "important" job more than anything?

Changing the tire on the 03 would have been the easiest thing to do with the most time saved.

Let me pose this to you. Had you been involved in an auto accident, all of the costs of the accident would have been paid by you, including the following law suit. Can you afford that?

good luck, but as the judge said "Hire an Attorney." He said that because he knows what the outcome would be if you plead guilty or tried to handle this yourself.

 

[MyZinc03]

I did not miss my meeting. This happened on the way home. I say that I would do this again because I got a promotion due to the outcome of this meeting. And yes I would do it again. So as I see it an expired registration and insurance in NJ is a serious offense? If this is the case, why is the fine only $45 on the back of my summons??? I dont understand this state. An expired registration gives you a fictitious plate??? What if I forgot to renew it?? Stranger things have happened to people you know. Why is it that in NY I would get a $45 summons and here I am being treated like a criminal?

 

[Ryan]

technically you are

just my .02

been there before tho man. I was driving my SHO back from IN to SC after being deployed to Japan for 7 months, went to register it at the BMV BEFORE deployment, and they assured me they would send my stickers to my home in IN. Well, they DIDN'T, and in Columbia, SC I got pulled over and given a ticket, I explained it to the PO, but he was just doing his job...and I got a $50 ticket.......boy was I pissed when I went back to the BMV.

Originally posted by MyZinc03
I am being treated like a criminal?

 

[FordSVTFan]

Originally posted by MyZinc03
I did not miss my meeting. This happened on the way home. I say that I would do this again because I got a promotion due to the outcome of this meeting. And yes I would do it again. So as I see it an expired registration and insurance in NJ is a serious offense? If this is the case, why is the fine only $45 on the back of my summons??? I dont understand this state. An expired registration gives you a fictitious plate??? What if I forgot to renew it?? Stranger things have happened to people you know. Why is it that in NY I would get a $45 summons and here I am being treated like a criminal?

As Ryan aptly put it, you are a violator. You did something blatantly illegal and you knew you were doing it, how else would you like to be treated. Maybe they could have brought you to Starbucks and offered you a Latte and Croissant:shrug:

I dont know what they would exactly do in NY. How do you know, has it happened to you in NY before?

Good Luck

 

[MyZinc03]

I understand that I am at fault and am more than willing to pay the fine. In NY I would just send the tickets in with my $45 and be done with it. Yes it has happened to me in NY when I forgot to renew. Here I am forced to go to court and slapped with a fictitious plate summons because my tags and insurance were expired.
RTStabler51 got a $50 summons in SC and was done with it, Why in NJ do we not go through the same thing? I know I am guilty, and will gladly pay. This is just ridiculous I think.

 

[Ryan]

gotta remember man...SC is backwoods..... ;-)

 

[FordSVTFan]

Originally posted by MyZinc03
I understand that I am at fault and am more than willing to pay the fine. In NY I would just send the tickets in with my $45 and be done with it. Yes it has happened to me in NY when I forgot to renew. Here I am forced to go to court and slapped with a fictitious plate summons because my tags and insurance were expired.
RTStabler51 got a $50 summons in SC and was done with it, Why in NJ do we not go through the same thing? I know I am guilty, and will gladly pay. This is just ridiculous I think.

Lets set something straight here, you didnt register your vehicle, you knew if you wanted to drive it, it had to be registered and insured. You did neither. You had no intention of using the vehicle otherwise it would have been insured and registered. But then came an untimely event(03 flat tire) and you decided to break the law. With that you pay the consequences, which in this case is more than you expected, I guess you should have done your research into the amount of exposure you were willing to risk before breaking the law for your convenience.

Other states have laws that are much harsher than NJ's mostly because those things are more of a problem there. In NJ we have large problem with uninsured and unregistered vehicles being operated on our roads, hence these fines are significant.

The fictitious plate issue once again, is because you choose to hold onto the property of NJ(the license plate) after you choose not to pay for the right to do so. You had no intention of registering the vehicle and it certainly wasnt a timing issue, as your vehicle registration was up two months or more ago. In fact New Jersey notifies you by mail 4 months in advance that your registration is due and gives you options to pay by credit card, over the internet or in person. Therefore you were acting criminally by maintaining the plates on your car to give a false impression of being a registered vehicle even as it sat at your home. There is no confusion here. The only thing you dispute is your punishment. That is too bad, you need to make smarter choices in your day to day life.

Like the judge said, hire an attorney before this gets way out of hand.

Good Luck

 

[Ginsu]

A few key points here:

• When you move to a new state you set up residency. As far as I know every state has a requirement of registering that vehicle with in 30 of moving there.
• Some states cancel your previous tag and/or drivers license when you change residency. And as far as I know all states will cancel your tag after "X" amount of time after the registration expires.

You have already stated that you knew your tag was expired and were willing to accept the concequenses if caught. Certain situations dictate how different states handle it. If it is a cronic problem that needs to be solved then expect to get cracked if you are caught. In GA we can tow the vehicle if it is just one month expired. Most of the time we don't because it takes an officer out of service for awhile, now six months or more then towing is more likely. Oh the fine here is approx. $150 for expired tag. That particular violation can be issued daily, and if I see the same motorist with an expired tag after a reasonable time period then I will. Each charge is a new violation that can not be combined. And if the tag has been expired for more than two months I will probably hit the motorist with an unregistered vehicle (probably equivilent to the ficticious tag)

Your insurance on the vehicle was 2 months expired meaning you the vehicle is not issured. You are lucky you did not go to jail! GA takes no insurance seriously because as stated above, if you had been in an at fault accident then you would have faced alot of civil problems.

Also FordSVTfan has already stated, tag and insurance compliance is a problem in NJ. You are more accustome to a state that is more lienient to that particular violation.

One thing you need to be aware of is that YOU are required to be familiar with the laws associated with operating a vehicle on the roadways in the state in which you live. And YOU are responsible for making sure the vehicle [B}YOU[/B] are operating (whether you own it or not) has a current tag, insurance and all equipment is operationg. I am not meaning to sound condesending but on the road I hear so many people try to use ignorance of the law to excuse their actions which is a pet peeve. And usually the attempts to excuse their ignorance of the law is associated with beligerance, confrontational attitude and insults. That is a great way for a motorist to help themselves! If I was considering officer descression in issuing any verbal or written warnings, well that option is gone! And it is not a P.O.P. ticket but to protect myself and the department from frivolous complaints and smart ass lawyers :loser:. As a rookie I have learned this the hard way by giving bitching motorists warnings.

 

[MyZinc03]

Ginsu, Thanks for the reply. I agree with what you are saying 100%. I know what I did and will take responibility for it. I guess I should have looked into how NJ handles it beforehand. Not that I had the opportunity to do so, but anyway. Live and learn I guess. Considering that I am not farmiliar with this state and dont know what can happen in court, I'm going to go see a lawer tomorrow about this. I made sure this lawyer is a regular in this particular township as well. Thanks again all.

 

[Ginsu]

I have been in your position here and there in the past, meaning to live and learn. Good luck.