It will depend upon state and county laws as well as jurisdictional decisions if there will be extra fees if you fight a traffic ticket and lose.
We have read about extra court costs, such as a $15 fee in Iowa for the court reporter, that some states, counties or jurisdictions will tack on to your fine if you have fought your ticket in court and have lost. These are usually administrative fees or court fees to help pay for time of those that were there for the court appearance.
Many state or county traffic courts list what the steps are for fighting a ticket and if there are any associated fees. For example the Orange County Superior Court of California notes that if you are found guilty, your bail deposit will be applied toward the fine imposed. If the fine is suspended or if you are found not guilty, your bail is refunded by mail within sixty days and is returned to the depositor at the address listed on the case.
The bail on a citation is the amount of money required to guarantee your appearance in Court. If you choose to pay the bail on the citation without going to trial, it is a bail forfeiture. The citation is deemed paid, and the resulting conviction will be reported to DMV if you were cited for a reportable violation. Some violations, however, require a mandatory court appearance and cannot simply be paid.
Fees may be added to your bail or fine in Orange County, California for:
- Continuances
- Dismissal of violation
- Court security
- Establishing payment plan on fine
- Extension of fine payment due date
- Failure to appear
- Failure to pay fine
- Failure to comply with a court order
- Warrant or civil assessment fee
- Prior convictions
To find out if there could be extra fees or fine amounts added to the traffic ticket amount if you decide to fight the citation in court instead of pleading guilty and sending in the fine amount contact the court listed on your ticket. The clerk of the court should be able to advise you about what steps to do in order to take the ticket to court and if addition monies will be due if you lose and are found guilty of the offense by the court.
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