At one point in time or another, just about everyone has gone over the speed limit, even if only by one mile per hour. That one mile over is enough for a police officer to give you a ticket and bring you to court to pay a hefty fine. Claiming you didn't know what the speed limit was or that you didn't realize you were speeding isn't going to do you any good. However, there are a few defenses that will get you out of paying a burdensome fine for speeding and having points added to your license.

You were legally justified in your speeding.

If you were speeding because of one of the following reasons, you might very well use legal justification as a defense.

• Self-defense or defending others
• Necessity
• Coercion
• Entrapment
• Your actions were caused by a law enforcement officer

Imagine looking in your rearview mirror and seeing a police car speeding toward you as it chases another car. You fear for your life and your safety, so you speed to get away from the situation. This is a good defense for speeding in a court of law.

The driver of your car is unknown.

You cannot be convicted of speeding if the prosecutor cannot prove that you were the one driving the vehicle in question. Identity is only established if the defendant was the one proven to be in control of the vehicle before police arrived on scene or if the defendant stated that they drove the vehicle to a location where it was later found. However, an eyewitness can also testify that you were driving the vehicle on the date in question. It is important that you know what you are dealing with when trying to defend yourself in court.

The officer wasn't in the proper jurisdiction.

Officers have certain areas they can operate in. A police officer for one city cannot wander into another city and start giving people tickets. However, state officers are different, so this is something to bear in mind. The same applies to county officials. They can go anywhere within their county, but they can't start patrolling in other counties and tagging people for speeding. The only exception to the rule is if the officer was in pursuit of an individual and had to follow them into another jurisdiction to apprehend them.

A criminal traffic attorney can help you figure out which defense is going to work the best for you and your case to make sure you are taken care of every step of the way.