Politics & Government
Amnesty Offered to Drivers with Old, Unpaid Tickets
Tickets due before Jan. 1, 2009, are eligible for a 50 percent discount.
If you’ve been putting off paying an old traffic ticket, you may be able to settle your debt to society half-price if you pay up by June 30.
Under a statewide amnesty program, unpaid traffic tickets that were due to be paid before Jan. 1, 2009, are eligible for a 50 percent discount. The fine must be paid in full—no payment plans will be accepted. More than 6 million tickets could be eligible statewide, according to the Judicial Council of California.
The program will not only help drivers clear their records, it will provide a temporary boost of revenue for cash-strapped governments.
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“This is a win-win,” Ronald G. Overholt, interim administrative director of the courts, said in a statement. “People have an opportunity to clear their traffic tickets at a reduced cost, and the courts and the counties will get an injection of much-needed funds to help maintain critical services for the public.”
Parking tickets, DUI and reckless driving cases are not eligible.
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To qualify for the 50 percent discount, all of the following conditions must be met:
- You have an outstanding traffic case that was due to be paid in full before Jan. 1, 2009.
- You either failed to appear in court or failed to pay in full.
- The last date you made a payment was on or before Jan. 1, 2009.
- You don’t owe restitution to a victim on any case within the county where the traffic case was filed.
- You have no outstanding misdemeanor or felony warrants within the county where the traffic case was filed.
To find out if a ticket is elligible, contact the Superior Court where the violation occurred.
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