Q: I showed up to court for a speeding ticket and was told the ticket wasn't in the system yet. Can I get it dismissed?
They blamed Covid, but there was no notification and I missed work to be at court. I disagree with the ticket and now will need to take more time off whenever the ticket is entered and they set a new date. Am I guaranteed a speedy trial and if so, can I get this ticket dismissed. Had I missed the court date, they would have entered a guilty plea on my behalf.
A:
No, you can't get your ticket dismissed based on what you have stated. If you had missed the court date, the court would have mailed a letter to you to remind you that you missed your court date and would have re-set your court date on a future date. If the Prosecutor hasn't filed the ticket, or if the court clerk hasn't put your case on the docket, there is nothing the judge can do because the ticket doesn't technically exist yet.
In St. Louis County Circuit Court, it has been taking several months for tickets to get filed. You can hire an attorney to get your ticket amended to a non-moving, no-point infraction. If you choose that option, you won't have to appear in court at all. Your attorney will monitor the ticket so you won't have to worry about whether it's been filed or not.
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