My buddy and I were going to visit a friend at school. Maybe going a little fast. HP cought up to me and cited me for 75 in a 60 and actually confiscated my radar detector. Is that even legal? I mean, it wasn’t even working and hadn’t been used for years. I just happened never to remove it. I’m kind of a hoarder I guess. I don’t really care about that but can anyone tell me about the speeding ticket? I don’t need any points and my insurance is already too high!
It probably goes without saying that the outcome of your case will depend on the specific facts (including your prior driving record, encounter with the officer, traffic that day, etc.), so it’s hard to give you specifics here. However, it is common to reduce these charges either to a non-moving violation (typically no points, no insurance increase), or a lower speed like 9-over (which will avoid a lot of insurance increases in states like NC), or sometimes even to get it dismissed.
Regarding the radar detector, the relevant code section is VA §46.2-1079, which does allow the officer to take the radar detector as evidence, but requires him to return it after the trial. But yes, radar detectors are illegal in VA (and I typically notice the road signs that say as much that are posted at the VA border).
