Fixing tickets is no longer happening in Vermilion Parish says new district attorney

New Vermilion Parish District Attorney Keith Stutes let it be known that “fixing” tickets or “helping” with tickets are now a thing of the past, now that he is the new district attorney.
Stutes, who has been in office for four months, is speaking at organizations in Acadiana. He spoke at the Abbeville Rotary Club meeting on different topics, including fixing tickets.
Stutes asked the Rotarians if fixing tickets is OK? He then asked if it’s OK to drink and drive?
“The answer to both questions should be the same,” said Stutes. “We live in a society where our culture has expectations. We ask, ‘Who do I know?’’ We should say, ‘I was speeding, so I should take responsibility for my actions.”
One Rotarian asked Stutes if he went to visit him and was looking for “help” with a ticket, would he help?
Stutes told the Rotarian why should he “help” with the ticket when the person broke the law? The district attorney’s office reviews each ticket that comes across its desk.
“If someone comes to us and asks for help,” he said. “That is not enough to reduce a ticket or reduce the charge. It has to be based on the facts of the case.”
He said reducing a ticket is no longer going to happen, just because your asked to have it reduced. It will be reduced if you prove you weren’t speeding like the ticket states you were. “There has to be a reason to reduce the ticket, not just because you’ve asked.”
Do not even attempt to try and get a ticket fixed or reduced, because it won’t happen, he said.
“There will be no fixing of tickets in the 15th Judicial District as long as I am the district attorney,” stated Stutes. “I don’t fix tickets. Most people will feel this is the right thing to do.”
He explained there is a program already in place that provides an avenue to help reduce a fine of a ticket. If this was a first offense, then you qualify for the program that has been on the books for years.
“If someone comes to me and is asking if I can help my friend, uncle or brother, that is not how it is going to happen,” he said. Stutes said if the person qualifies for the program, the DA’s office will send a letter to the ticket holder explaining the program.
The program is about taking a traffic class, still paying the fine and court cost. After you successfully take the class, the ticket will be dismissed.
Stutes said the best way to avoid fixing a ticket is not to get a ticket.