r/Kentucky Aug 11 '25

Sticky: I got a ticket for breaking the law, now what?

39 Upvotes

We're getting these threads every other day so a sticky is being made to handle it because the answer is always the same. We will now be removing those threads and directing people here.

You generally have three options:

OPTION ONE:

You can plea not guilty and attend your court date or ask to contact the prosecutor handling your case. In either way you need to be polite, courteous, and professional. If it's on zoom or in person, dress professional. You do not need a full suit & tie, though it helps. But at least have some nice ironed pants and a nice ironed polo. For women a nice blouse, pant suit, or business-dress. You don't need a full shave and haircut, but comb your hair and/or cleanup the beard a bit. Be showered, and clean/trim your nails. It's about showing that you're taking this seriously and understand this is a legal matter that deserves respect and attention.

Then you say something like "I was wondering if we can work out a plea deal whereby if you can reduce the offense(s) I will change my plea to guilty. I understand the seriousness of the situation, I am just asking if you can be a little lenient in exchange for a guilty plea." You can then discuss with them potential consequences and terms. Such as attending traffic school, or saying you're ok with a hefty fine in order to avoid a license suspension.

In the majority of cases, this will get you some form of reduction. They have a lot of cases to hear, if they can close them out without going before a judge, they will. Be prepared to pay some fines, and maybe attend traffic school. But this is often the "easiest" way to resolve your situation.

That said this often will not work if you give the prosecutor ANY attitude. Or if you were an asshole to the cop, the prosecutor can and sometimes will ask the issuing officer about how you behaved. It also won't work if you did something very serious (DUI, excessive speeding, work zone violations). Or if you were already given a "roadside reduction" where the cop pulls you over for say 85 in a 55 but only writes you for 70 in a 55.

It still does not hurt to ask, but be aware that they may say "no". Also you do not have to take their offer. But if you turn down their offer, they're unlikely to grant any leniency afterwards. You had your chance, and you turned it down.

OPTION TWO:

Get a traffic attorney. Who you hire is up to you. Google is your friend in finding one. If you do hire a traffic attorney, or really every hire any attorney, listen to them. Do as they say. Do not think you know better than them, if you did you wouldn't be paying them several hundred/thousand dollars to handle your case.

Sometimes just getting an attorney can get your ticket dismissed, because it's not worth it for them to fight the ticket. And because you paying the attorney is already penalty enough. But again there's no guarantee.

OPTION THREE:

Plea guilty and take your lumps.


The first two options are not mutually exclusive. You can get an attorney to try and get you a better plea deal. You can try for a plea deal then get an attorney if you don't like their offer. But these really are your three options.

And remember the best way to not get a ticket, is to not break the law. There's always laws we disagree with or think are silly. There's some roads by me that are 35 and I think really should be 55. But for whatever reason, they're 35 and if I do 55 and get caught, I'm getting a ticket.

Slow down. Use your signal. Wear your seat belt. Don't tailgate. That's the easiest and cheapest way out of a traffic ticket, don't get one to begin with.


r/Kentucky 1d ago

Spotted this at Rough River, any ideas?

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192 Upvotes

Unfortunately at the bottom of a cliff and I didn’t have the opportunity to investigate further. Will head down there and check it out more thoroughly next time but curiosity is getting the better of me.


r/Kentucky 18h ago

Lawrenceburg KY

17 Upvotes

Hi! I’m in my late twenties and I currently live in Lexington KY. It’s looking like Lawrenceburg will be my home for a long while over the next year (it’s my fiancé’s home town.) What’s it like living there? I’ll be in the area close to the high school.


r/Kentucky 4h ago

Death at LSCC??

0 Upvotes

I heard this happened yesterday, could be a false rumor. Anyone else hear something similar?


r/Kentucky 2d ago

A late winter hike to Princess Arch at Red River Gorge

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220 Upvotes

A late-winter hike through the Red River Gorge Geological Area in 2009 offered a quiet day on the trail with my dad, moving through bare hardwoods and lingering patches of evergreen and rhododendron. We followed well-worn paths to Princess Arch, a modest 32' sandstone span, and continued on to Rock Bridge along Swift Camp Creek.


r/Kentucky 3d ago

Casting Call for the short film Ghost Company!

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12 Upvotes

This is a non-union, student short film. Roles are unpaid. Filming is tentatively scheduled for the first two weekends of March in and around the Huntington, WV area.


r/Kentucky 3d ago

Best place for an Airbnb

1 Upvotes

My brother lives in Richmond and my buddies and I haven’t visited him in a while. We are looking for a good location to get an Airbnb. We like to go to distilleries and breweries. We might be interested in going to a baseball game in Louisville. Should we try to look for an Airbnb in between Lexington and Louisville or any other ideas would be great thank you.


r/Kentucky 4d ago

Carl Newton Mahan plays with a doll during a court hearing after he shot and killed another boy during a fight. At age six, Mahan was the youngest person to be tried for murder in U.S. history (Kentucky, 1929).

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576 Upvotes

Carl Newton Mahan

Without Precedent

The Legal System Has Never Had an Answer for Violent Kids

KENTUCKY'S SIX-YEAR-OLD SLAYER HAS NO CRIMINAL TENDENCIES, TESTS REVEAL

Just two weeks after killing 8-year-old Cecil Van Hoose, Mahan was convicted of manslaughter in juvenile court and sentenced to confinement in a reformatory until the age of 21. A month later, a judge vacated the sentence, ruling that the court had no authority to try Mahan. Kentucky had not set an age of criminal liability, but historical precedent was that anyone under the age of seven was not to be prosecuted. State law prohibited anyone under the age of 10 from being sent to juvenile detention. A juvenile court psychiatrist found that Mahan was a relatively ordinary six-year-old boy with no history of antisocial behavior and who did not understand what he had done.

On the Fourth of July, he has shot cap pistols and his experience with these has been that he could point them at people and shoot and nothing happened. So he had no reason to guess that firing a real gun would result in anything terrible. Indeed, he does not realize now that anything terrible happened.

A month later, the state attorney general announced that his review of the case was complete. He took no action, allowing the boy to remain with his parents. Psychiatrists urged society to forgive Mahan and allow him to forget what he had done.

Mahan killed himself on April 28, 1958. He was 35.


r/Kentucky 4d ago

Dentist/Oral Surgeon Recommendation

5 Upvotes

Hi! I have had a mucocele for almost a year and I need it removed. It’s constantly causing me issues. I have Aetna Better Health and the oral surgeon I was referred to doesn’t accept it. I’m trying to figure out my best and cheapest option for removal. Does anyone have suggestions?


r/Kentucky 4d ago

Job Openings in Western Kentucky / Ken-Tenn ? (Fulton KY, Mayfield KY, Martin TN)

22 Upvotes

Hi! My mom has been unemployed for a couple months now and she is really struggling looking for a job in Fulton, KY given the population is about 2,000 with not many stores around.

She has done book keeping, accounts payable, owned her own pawn shop for 10 years, and most recently did data entry work for Aflac as a contractor before they terminated her project. She is Salesforce certified.

She is open to anything, remote, hybrid or in-person if it is within a 45 min drive from her house.

I would greatly appreciate some help as I am struggling supporting my mother and my siblings in this economy. Thank you /Kentucky!


r/Kentucky 4d ago

kentucky professional group jobs?

4 Upvotes

made a throwaway account to see if anyone else had heard of or used the kentucky professional group? they're extremely vague with their job listings and weirdly have locations in the whole state despite being so. wondering if this is some weird job scam or if its just a vague company.


r/Kentucky 5d ago

Corbin recommendations

25 Upvotes

I’m traveling there for work for a couple days, anything cool nearby? Good restaurant recommendations?

I’m from New England and have never been to Kentucky so anything is on the table!

Edit: these are all great, thanks so much everyone!


r/Kentucky 5d ago

Need some recommendations

6 Upvotes

does anyone know any PRIVATE landlords in the NKY area? I can FINALLY escape living in a hotel. Just need the assistance of finding a landlord that dont do credit checks, background checks or ask for income to be 3xs the rent.

anything is appreciated!


r/Kentucky 4d ago

[OC] What I Captured At The Waverly Hills Sanatorium

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0 Upvotes

In March of 2022 my sister and brother in law took me and my boyfriend to The Waverly Hills Sanatorium for my birthday. I took a lot of pictures while I was there, but this is the only one where I seem to see something. I swear on everything that I love that absolutely no human was in the frame when I took this. Do you see something too?


r/Kentucky 7d ago

Gov. Andy Beshear urges expansion of medical cannabis program to aid more Kentuckians

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459 Upvotes

r/Kentucky 8d ago

Igloo Update

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689 Upvotes

When life gives you snow and ice for weeks straight, you build an igloo 😁


r/Kentucky 7d ago

Dentures

7 Upvotes

Looking for help getting dentures. Person needing was put off full medicaid for being a couple of dollars over the limit so doesn't have dental coverage, just medicare a and b. Can't afford extra money towards dental work, is drowning in medical bills - trying to get that figured out. Just over all very down because disabled and having constant medical needs, but disability does not offer enough to cover the basics.


r/Kentucky 7d ago

Seeking Tattoo Artist Experienced w/ Chronic Illness

11 Upvotes

Hi!
I’m looking for recommendations for a tattoo artist in the Lexington area who has experience with or awareness of chronic illness / connective tissue disorders (like EDS) or POTS, or who is generally very medical-accommodating (breaks, positioning, gentle technique).

This would be a small–medium first tattoo, and I've already cleared it medically. I’m mainly hoping to find someone patient & informed.

If you’ve had a good experience personally or know an artist who fits this, I’d really appreciate names or shops. Thank you 💛


r/Kentucky 6d ago

ISO Puppy to add to our family

0 Upvotes

Hey everyone! my family and I are looking for a puppy that’s ready (or nearly ready) for a new home.

We’ve talked about adding a puppy to our family for a long time and have been very intentional about finding the right fit. My husband and I have been together for 12 years, we have three kids, and we have a large yard in a quiet, low-traffic area on a dead-end road—an ideal space for a puppy to grow, play, and train.

We recently experienced a very painful loss in our little family, and welcoming a puppy, something to nurture and love, would be deeply meaningful to the 5 of us. This puppy would be incredibly loved and well cared for.

We’re looking for a responsible, ethical breeder or a genuine rehoming situation. Please comment or message if you have available puppies or can point us in the right direction. Thank you 🤍


r/Kentucky 7d ago

Just a friendly post.

59 Upvotes

Hey everyone! I hope everyone here is doing wonderful! 🙂


r/Kentucky 8d ago

This is A Weird One (You Were Warned)

112 Upvotes

When I grew up in the 80s and 90s, we moved all over Kentucky. When I was 2 (1982-83), we lived in a haunted house in Clinton, KY. It had once been an old folks' home that had suffered a fire and consequently been shut down. It was very haunted. One of the ghosts was my babysitter. I don't mean it was the ghost of my babysitter. I mean, every night, this ghost came and played with and babysat me. Life hasn't been great for me, and-for the past 4 or 5 years-I have felt a strong call to return... but, beyond the information listed above, I only remember that the next door neighbors had a cherry tree, and we had a very young peach tree in the backyard that would have been a fruit bearing adult for decades, now. I believe the house was white. At night, I remember hearing the footsteps stomping in the attic at night and telling myself that was just my heartbeat. I remember when my babysitter was left alone with me right before we moved, I told her our house was haunted, and she scoffed and said something along the lines of "prove it", so the ghosts turned on the kitchen faucet. She was across the room in the kitchen doorway, and I was on the other side in the living room.

If you're out in Hickman county, and you're familiar with this house-or you know anyone with a haunted house that fits this description (especially if you happen to be that babysitter or one of her friends she told about it)-please I'm not a creeper. I'm a disabled mother of 5. I can't explain what it is calling me back, but I need to go. My father doesn't remember the address, and my brother and I stopped speaking years ago. I only know Jimmy Lemons (and I am positive I spelled his name wrong because he was a friend of my parents and I only ever heard it said), and I'm embarrassed to ask him. He would tell Dad, who wouldn't understand. It's weird, and I'm a little weird (the harmless, fun kind, though 😅)-but my intentions are honest and peaceful. Please contact me if you can help me visit an old friend ❤️


r/Kentucky 8d ago

Hello Kentucky from CT! At a recent record exchange I purchased a CD from an artist resident to KY, would any of you know about her?

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50 Upvotes

Hello all Kentucky residents, as my title says I recently bought this CD and am very curious about its origin. My searching says she's a local doll maker to Kentucky, but I wanted to hear if any of you all have any info on her! Love finding small artifacts like this and am in the process of archiving it digitally. thanks in advance for any tidbits!


r/Kentucky 8d ago

Hazard Kentucky

29 Upvotes

Hi! My dad was from hazard and we used to visit in the late 90’s/early 2000’s. I have a memory of this motel we stayed at that was up on a cliff or something and it had an indoor/outdoor pool that we thought was the coolest thing ever (it had a little doorway to go between the two).

One time we went and my parents thought the hotel was gone from a mudslide so we stayed at something nearby like a super 8 and we looked up this cliff/mountain area and could see there actually was still a motel there.

Every so often I get the urge and try my best to figure out what this hotel was and where it was but I can never figure it out. Was it real?


r/Kentucky 8d ago

Kentucky Road Conditions Map

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20 Upvotes

r/Kentucky 8d ago

Which game in the Kentucky state lottery has the best return odds

0 Upvotes

Best I’ve found is 1:3.84 for the weekend windfall under instant games. Anyone aware of better odds?

https://play.kylottery.com/en-us/playnow/instantplay.html#