My Speeding Ticket

I am writing this note at 11 PM, having just arrived back home after a very long day. A little over 12 hours ago, I left Tupelo with B. J. Lundy who graciously agreed to come along for the ride. All told we drove 10 out of the 12 hours, from Tupelo in northeast Mississippi, driving almost the full length of the state, all the way to Saraland, Alabama, a few miles north of Mobile. We made the trip so I could pay for a speeding ticket I got last month when Alan and I were driving to Gulf Shores. When I got the ticket, the officer said that I didn’t have to go to court. Just send the money to the court and that’s all that was required. But twice when I called, I was told I had to appear. So that’s why B. J. and I spent virtually all day in the car. We left Tupelo at 10:40 AM and arrived at the Municipal Court in Saraland at 3:15 PM, just ahead of the 3:30 PM starting time.

I was surprised to see almost 300 other people gathered for the same court session. We spent a long hour filling out paperwork and listening to instructions from the clerk ("If you are pleading guilty, use this form. If you are pleading not guilty, use this form. A-L form a line here, M-Z form a line there. If you take a pen from the court, be sure and give it back. Don’t leave any lines blank. No questions please. This is an arraignment. You’ll get a trial date later. You can’t plead guilty and not guilty to the same charges."). At one point they called a long list of names that didn’t include me, whereupon B. J. leaned over and said, “I’m glad it was you and not me who got the ticket.” He then loaned me his reading glasses so I could fill out the form. I signed the part that said I was guilty (this wasn’t an episode of “Law and Order") and later stood in line to turn it in.

When the judge entered a few minutes before five, things started popping. He gave up a quick talk about our basic rights, and then admonished us to turn off our cell phones. “If I hear your cell phone go off, you’ll go to jail for five days—no questions asked.” When my name was called, I stood in line behind several people who were in court for things like not having an insurance card or driving with a suspended license. My time at the bar of justice lasted perhaps 15 seconds. He called my name, asked for my plea, assessed the fine, and that was it. I paid the money, got my receipt, and then we left the courtroom at about 5:30 PM. Five hours later we were back in Tupelo.

So it’s been a long day. I want to thank B. J. for going with me. After he made that crack about being glad it was me and not him that got the ticket, I told him that I would say I was sorry to put him through the long trip, but what are friends for anyway but for days like this?

During the long hours on the road, we solved a few of the world’s problems, tuned in to the radio broadcast of the U.S. Open playoff between Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate, and we listened to two excellent messages by Joel Hunter.

I’m back home tonight, very tired but in reasonably good spirits after a long day in which we drove many hours and spent almost half as much on gas as I did in paying the ticket. As Marlene pointed out when I got back home, the long trip will remind me not to go over the speed limit next time. Meanwhile I’m glad my cell phone didn’t ring in the courtroom or I’d have a lot more explaining to do tonight.