if she said no, it means no.

x2

My friend had an unpaid ticket and we wanted to head to a Seahawks game. I looked him up on a Washington state site and found out he had a warrant issued and his license flagged for suspension due to an unpaid ticket. Thus he wouldn't be able to cross the border without being held until the fine was dealt with.

He called the a number on the site and got directed to the proper district where his ticket was issues. he was able to arrange payment on the fine without any further issue. They even waived many of the additional fees. We crossed the border the next day without issue.

For the record OP you add to the misinformation and hearsay on this forum. My advice above is from a real experience, albeit not one where a court case had been issued so you're in a little deeper trouble.

Since you have a court date you should be able to contact the court and find out who the prosecutor is. Talk with them to arrange a settlement without requiring a court appearance, most courts are backed up so if they have a chance to settle out of court they'll take it. This is common for any court case, Canada or the US. You don't need a lawyer to do this, although many people feel they do cause they are intimidated by the process.

Yes, yet its not as serious as you think. You've been charged with DWLS 3rd degree, which is typically just a fine. You can help your case by getting your ticket paid so your license is reinstated before talking with the prosecutor.

What would you suggest they do to collect unpaid tickets? Issue more fines not to be collected? If you did the crime, pay the fine.

I went through this exact thing a few years ago. Figured I could not pay a ticket and it would dissapear. Sure enough I got pulled over for going a bit over the limit only to find out I had a suspended license in WA. Luckly I was close to the border and he let me go and said to take care of it. I paid WA DMV some money for the ticket and they re-instated my license.

IIRC there is no such thing as a "mandatory" court date for a Canadian in WA for traffic related stuff. Normally they just want your money, but I could be wrong.

This is exactly what I did. Took a week or so to clear off the warrant list and I was good to go.

Does anyone know if these expire over time?

Don't quote me, but I recall hearing it was 7 years from a friend who refused to pay his ticket on principle of how he got ticketed. So every time he goes down to Washington, he always has to switch into the passenger side and his wife drive's across the border and into the US. I'm not sure you get detained by US customs, but if you are lucky enough to get pulled over with an unpaid ticket then they can throw you in jail.

wait im so fucking confused.

I'm hearing 2 sides.

1 guy is saying that you can not miss your court date.

the other side is telling me to call the county (whatcom in my case) and pay my ticket) and then this criminal ticket I got (driving while license suspended) will disapear? or settle with the prosecuter on the phone (I'm assuming by calling the court number?)

just call the court and find out your options plain and simple!!!

If you do B, you may be able to avoid A. But then again, it is not certain until you do B that you can figure out if you can avoid A.

In other words, call and find out if they are willing to settle outside of court. If they are, the case is dropped and you will not need to appear. But this is ONLY if they drop it.

No. The 10 day mandatory sentence is if you're charged with DWLS 1st degree.

You've been charged with DWLS 3rd degree which is the least severe. You can get up to 90 days in jail but that's unlikely. Just a fine, most likely.

If you get a lawyer, then 99.9% you'll avoid jail and the fine will be minimized and likely the charged reduced to traffic ticket (instead of a criminal charge).

If you can't afford a lawyer, then what i'd do is pay the outstanding ticket immediately, then call and confirm with the WA DMV that your license is reinstated. Then call the courthouse and see if they'll cut you a break. Sometimes they'll downgrade the charge right away and you'll pay a minimum fine without having to go in front of a judge (like others have said).

If that's not offered to you, then you'll have to attend court and explain to the judge you're sorry and hope he/she lets you off easy.

But the most important thing is pay off the ticket right away and get your license reinstated. Then call the court and find out your options. Or call a lawyer and then he/she will solve this for you.

LOL, I know right? Common sense is anything but common.

its sunday morning at 1 am. Courts dont open on weekends. I need to know my options now becuase I'm leaving for LA on the 8th for school!

Good luck since it's Memorial Day Monday. You will have to wait until Tuesday. I honestly don't feel bad about this at all. You know you got the ticket, you received a letter in the mail and now you freak out about it? Hopefully you have cash cause that's the only thing that's going to actually make this go away for you.

wtf? did I say anywhere I was innocent. I am saying what I did, and I'm trying to find a way to deal with this without going to the mandatory court sentence. I'm dealing with a legal system that I was not raised in and is not my host country. So fuck off if you don't think i'd obviously have questions.


thread solved. Talked to a seattle officer and told me all the info I need to know.

I can just call them prior to the courtdate and settle and tell them im canadian and I have no way of attending.

you had a speeding ticket from the US that you didnt pay and had the balls to go back down there???

yea man, call up a few lawyers, but expect a big bill after...

any more info on this? I'm just curious.
So you can't settle the ticket now?

Do you mind sharing how much the fine + fee's were?

I was also wondering. Say you get a ticket in WA. Can you call in and negotiate the ticket? ie. settle on a lower amount by just calling in?

I'd still call Whatcom County on Tuesday just to make sure. I'm sure the rules/regulations are similar to Seattle (King County), but they would have the final say in the matter. It's kind of like calling Surrey RCMP for something issued by the VPD.

Call in and try it ?

What site did you look this up on?

You've been on RS HOW many years... and you just figured this out now?? :IDL

I've never gotten a ticket in the states (knock on wood). So I was just curious.

Exactly what I said. :p

It seems like you have no experience with going to court. This will be a good life lesson if you ever have to go to court again. It never hurts to call the prosecutor and ask for the case to be settled out of court and see what they offer - as long as you don't admit any guilt. If the offer is good, take it - which in this case the offer should be to dismiss the case once you to pay your fine plus any fees.

I forget, yet it was not hard to find when I was looking. The hard part was finding my friend cause the site only referenced him by his last name, and there were several.