Yes you can. The new amendments to the NJ Municipal Court Rules finally standardize the plea by mail procedures and the court form to be used.
In most traffic or parking offenses, a defendant may resolve the case by way of a guilty plea by mail or may plead not guilty and submit a written defense for use at trial by mail. The judge may permit the defendant to enter a guilty plea by mail, or to plead not guilty by mail and submit a written defense for use at trial, if a personal appearance by the defendant would constitute an undue hardship such as illness, physical incapacity, substantial distance to travel, or incarceration.
This procedure shall not be available in the following types of cases:
(1) traffic offenses or parking offenses that require the imposition of a mandatory loss of driving privileges on conviction;
(2) traffic offenses or parking offenses involving an accident that resulted in personal injury to anyone other than the defendant;
(3) traffic offenses or parking offenses that are related to non-traffic matters that are not resolved;
(4) any other traffic offense or parking offense when excusing the defendant’s appearance in municipal court would not be in the interest of justice.
Whether you have received a NJ speeding ticket, NJ careless driving ticket, NJ reckless driving ticket, or NJ uninsured driving ticket, if you can show the court a hardship such as residing 2 hours away from court or your inability to make a court appearance at any time due to your employment, we at Cordisco & Saile LLC can help.
This process does involve some extra paperwork. We usually get permission from our clients, in advance, to go to court, make arguments, negotiate with the prosecutor, and many times resolve the case in the defendant’s favor. We have even done a plea by mail case on an NJ DWI-DUI.
NJ courts now use a standardized form for pleas by mail. You can find the form here: NJ Municipal Court Plea By Mail Form.pdf
If you have been issued a NJ traffic violation call the experienced Municipal Court lawyers at Cordisco & Saile LLC. You may not have to be inconvenienced by appearing in court.
