21755 CVC HELP PLEASE SOMEONE!?

Question

MESSED UP DAY...SO I LIVE IN CALIFORNIA AND I GO TO WORK ABOUT 3 DAYS A WEEK IN VAN NUYS. SO TODAY I WAS DRIVING ON WEBB THEN I MADE A LEFT ON ROSCOE AND USUALLY LIKE 99% OF THE TIME THERE IS NO TRAFFIC THERE. UNFORTUNATELY THE STUPID CONSTRUCTION THAT HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR YEARS(LITERALLY) HAS MOVED UP TO THAT AREA. I SAW 3 TRUCKS ON THE FRONT AND I WAS ALREADY GOING TO BE LATE TO WORK BY SEVERAL MINUTES. SO I SAW THE RIGHT LANE OPEN AND THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN SO I WENT FROM THE RIGHT, BYPASSING THE OTHER VEHICLES, BUT IN NO WAY PUT ANYONE OR ANYTHING IN DANGER. WHEN I REACH THE NEXT INTERSECTION, I SEE COPS PULLING ME OVER. SO IM 17 AND STILL PROVISIONAL, THE COP PRETTY MUCH HELPED ME OUT BY NOT GIVING ME A SPEEDING TICKET BUT HE GAVE ME THE 21755 TICKET. HE ALSO WROTE SCHOOL AND CONSTRUCTION ZONE WITH CONES PRESENT. AND IN THAT AREA, THERE ARE ABSOLUTELY NO CONES. THERE WERE CONES ON THE INTERSECTION THAT HE STOPPED ME AT THE SCHOOL WAS ANOTHER 5 BLOCKS DOWN. BASICALLY IS THERE ANY WAY I CAN GO TO TRAFFIC SCHOOL OR FIGHT THIS CASE OR HOW MUCH IS THE TICKET?

THANKS IN ADVANCE!

Answer 1

The ticket will be about $150 and you will be wasting your time to try and fight it.

Answer 2

Yup.  You already said that you shouldn't have passed on the right and 21755 is quite specific:

21755.  The driver of a motor vehicle may overtake and pass another vehicle upon the right only under conditions permitting such movement in safety. In no event shall such movement be made by driving off the paved or main-traveled portion of the roadway.

Obviously your perception of a safe maneuver was different than the officers.  You can try to fight it, but in the long run you will most likely lose.  Try throwing yourself at the mercy of the court and opt for an actual appearance to explain yourself.

Answer 3

First, please do not type in all caps.  It is the typing equivalent of yelling, and makes your question very difficult to read.

The statewide schedule calls for a fine of $146 for a violation of section 21755.  However, since you are under 18 you will be going before a juvenile traffic hearing officer, so that fine might be less.  Traffic school will also probably be available to you there.

Answer 4

First, don't just mail in your ticket--appear in court in person, on your court day, if you have that option.  In most states these days they'll reduce the charges just because you made the effort to show up. They did that for me in NJ and PA.  In CA, they reduced my 'Ran a Stop Sign' charge because I agreed to go to traffic school--I don't recall going to court that time, I think agreeing to go to traffic school was enough.  IT should tell you somewhere, probably on your ticket, if you have the option of traffic school. If not, call the number and ask what your options are.    These people are surprisingly nice and helpful.

Then in court, tell the judge that there were no cones present at the time--if it's not too late, go back to the spot and if there are still no cones there and take a photo of that.

But there should be something written somewhere that tells you whether or not you have the option of taking traffic school (which, by the way, in San Jose at least, turned out to be a very friendly, interesting class with a great instructor).

Good luck.