You have the right to fight any type of traffic ticket. Fighting a traffic ticket can help prevent you from having to pay a hefty fine and possibly having your insurance rate increase. However, if you have received a ticket, you may be wondering what defenses a traffic lawyer can use to help get you out of the ticket. Here are a few defenses a traffic lawyer can use if you were cited for running a stop sign.

Disputing the Officer's Account

One of the ways that a stop-sign violation can be disputed is by disputing the officer's account of your running the stop sign. Unless an officer has dash-cam footage that shows that you ran the stop sign, the matter often comes down to your word against theirs. You can tip the scales in your favor by having witnesses who state you did not run the stop sign. This may be a passenger in your car or a pedestrian who was walking by and saw the whole thing unfold. If a traffic lawyer can obtain statements from other witnesses, you may be able to get out of the ticket.

Stating You Stopped Further Back

You have to stop behind the stop sign or the white line painted on the ground. However, some people may stop further back than others. Unfortunately, when stop-sign stings are done, police officers are often hidden down side streets. If you stop further back, the officer hiding down a side street may not have the line of vision needed to see that you stopped and therefore may write you a ticket. A traffic lawyer can take pictures of the line of vision the officer had and prove that the officer would not have been able to see that you stopped further back from the line, thus helping to get the ticket dismissed.

Showing the Stop Sign Was Hidden

The last defense that can be used to get you out of a stop sign ticket is showing that the stop sign was hidden or obscured. In some instances, a tree or bush may be blocking the stop sign or may have it hidden so that you can't see it until the last second, making it unsafe to suddenly stop. In other cases, the sign may have been vandalized and twisted so that you can't read it. Regardless, if you can take pictures of the obscured sign, a traffic lawyer can present them to a court and show that you did not know to stop there.

Traffic tickets can be costly, and they affect your driving record. If you feel you were unfairly given a ticket, a traffic lawyer can fight your ticket, helping to prevent the ticket from going on your driving record and from your having to pay the hefty fine.