CHARGE: Speeding — Alleged 1–10 MPH Over Posted Speed Limit (R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-14-2)
Most drivers who get a minor speeding ticket assume they have a safety net: the Good Driving Record dismissal. They usually do — once. This client didn’t, because they had already used it. On 6/8/26, Attorney Morgan Alger took a speeding citation to trial at the Rhode Island Traffic Tribunal and won — the client was found not guilty, the charge was dismissed, and the driving record stayed completely clean.
What the Client Was Facing
On paper, this was a low-end citation: alleged speed of 1 to 10 miles per hour over the posted limit. Minor sounding — but a finding of responsibility on any speeding charge is a moving violation, and a moving violation goes on the driving record and gets reported to insurers. The fine is never the real number. The insurance recalculation that follows a moving violation is.
Normally, a clean-record driver in this spot would simply apply their good driving record and have the charge dismissed under R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-41.1-7. That statute lets the Traffic Tribunal dismiss certain violations when the driver has had no other traffic violation in the prior three years. The problem here: the client had used that exact dismissal on a 2024 ticket. That 2024 disposition fell squarely inside the three-year lookback, which made the client ineligible to use the good driving record a second time.
That changed everything. The fallback option was gone. Paying the ticket meant locking in a moving violation. The good driving record was off the table. The only remaining path to a clean record was to contest the charge and win.
What Attorney Alger Did
Attorney Alger took the matter to trial rather than concede a finding the client couldn’t afford. At the Rhode Island Traffic Tribunal, the burden is on the prosecution to prove the violation — and Attorney Alger held them to it, scrutinizing the basis for the alleged speed and the reliability of the evidence offered against the client.
The magistrate found the client not guilty. The charge was dismissed.
No finding of responsibility. No moving violation on the record. No fine. No insurance trigger. For a client who had no safety net left, that is the best outcome the system allows.
Why This Result Mattered — The Good Driving Record Was Already Spent
A lot of drivers treat the good driving record like a permanent insurance policy against tickets. It isn’t. It is a one-time tool that resets only after three clean years. Use it on one ticket, and you are exposed on the next one until that window closes.
That is the trap this client was in. With the good driving record unavailable, there was no administrative shortcut to a clean record — the case had to be won. When the safety net is gone, the difference between a clean record and a moving violation is trial advocacy and nothing else. That is the difference an attorney makes at the Traffic Tribunal: not just showing up to pay a reduced fine, but actually trying the case and forcing the state to prove it.
If You Have a Speeding Ticket in Rhode Island
If you received a speeding citation in Rhode Island — and especially if you’ve already used your good driving record on a prior ticket — do not pay it before speaking with an attorney. Paying is an admission of responsibility, and once a moving violation is entered, the insurance consequence follows automatically.
Marin & Murphy Law Firm handles speeding tickets and other traffic violations throughout Rhode Island, and our attorneys appear regularly before the magistrates who decide these cases. Our case results reflect consistent representation at the Traffic Tribunal, including contested trials. If you are facing a speeding ticket, a reckless driving charge, or any traffic citation in Rhode Island, contact us 24/7 at (401) 228-8271 or email mm@matthewtmarin.com. The consultation is free and confidential.
CASE RESULT: Speeding citation alleging 1–10 MPH over the posted speed limit taken to trial at the Rhode Island Traffic Tribunal. Client found not guilty; charge dismissed. No moving violation entered, no fine, driving record kept clean. Good driving record dismissal was unavailable because the client had used it on a 2024 citation within the three-year statutory lookback.
Practice area(s): Traffic Violations
Court: Rhode Island Traffic Tribunal
Resolved: 6/8/26
Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Each case is evaluated on its own facts and circumstances. This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Morgan Alger, Esq.
Attorney Morgan Alger is a Rhode Island criminal defense and traffic court attorney with Marin & Murphy Law Firm. She earned her J.D. and Master of Science in Criminal Justice from Roger Williams University School of Law, where she was a finalist in the 2022 Esther Clark Moot Court Competition, arguing before justices of the Rhode Island Supreme Court, and was selected as an ABA Legal Education Police Practices Consortium Fellow. Prior to joining Marin & Murphy, Attorney Alger interned with the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office and provided legal services representation to low-income clients in civil matters. She was admitted to the Rhode Island Bar in 2024 and represents clients in the Rhode Island District Courts, Superior Court, Traffic Tribunal, and Family Court across a range of criminal defense, traffic, and family law matters.
