Seattle Traffic Tickets-Here’s What You Do

Posted Friday, November 17, 2017 by Andrew Charles Huff

If you are ticketed by a Seattle Police Officer, your matter will most likely be filed in Seattle Municipal Court. You need to first check the “Contested Hearings” box on your ticket and mail it into the court within 15 days. But instead of immediately setting your case for a Contested Hearing, this court will first set your matter for a Pre-Hearing Conference. It’s important to understand that if you choose to handle the ticket yourself, the Pre-Hearing Conference will only allow you to mitigate or seek a lower fine but not have your infraction dismissed. This is what the Contested Hearing is for. Once a client retains me for a Seattle ticket, I routinely file a waiver of the Pre-Hearing Conference and request the case be set for a Contested Hearing, which is the proper forum to challenge your ticket and keep it off your record. So don’t waste your time sitting at a Pre-Hearing Conference if you truly want to keep this ticket off your record. Instead, call my office at 206-729-3477 and let me take care of your ticket for you.