Quote Originally Posted by ggiese
What is a "trial by declaration"? I've never heard of that...
Yeah George, all this stuff varies widely from state to state. One thing they do in Connecticut is for infractions, you can ONLY get a trial in front of a magistrate and if you or the States Attorney's Office don't like the outcome, you can make a motion to the court for a "Trial de Novo" in front of a judge.

Also in Connecticut, if you are given a ticket for an INFRACTION (minor ticket) you DO NOT have the option of a jury trial.

A long time ago, I was given a high dollar speeding ticket, I went in front of a judge and said I wanted a trial by jury since speeding at that level (at the time over 70 mph in a 55 zone, the officer said I was going 72 but he confused me with another car since it was 4:30 p.m. in HEAVY traffic on the Friday Memorial Day weekend) was an automatic court appearance, not an infraction (a mail-in ticket). I had photographs of the heavy traffic and figured I had a great chance to be found not guilty by a jury.

When I requested the jury trial, the prosecutor said, "Your honor, I will substitute charge the defendant with unreasonable speed which is an infraction which means he does not qualify for a jury trial."

Curses, foiled again I was found guilty by a judge because you can't defend yourself against a lying police officer (no offense George but this guy was an outright liar).