This happened to me yesterday! I promise I was going 65 as soon as I saw the sign to slow to 45 in the zone I slowed down! He still pulled me over and gave me a ticket!!! He was in a silver charger could have been challenger BUT it was right before the bridge. I live out of state and I can't appear in court nor can I get an attorney....What do you do?

I CAME THROUGH THIS AREA ON SUNDAY MORNING, MAY 29 AND AS SOON AS I APPROACHED THE CONSTRUCTION ZONE I HIT MY BREAK TO START SLOWING DOWN. A COUNTY SHERIFF UNIT WAS HID BEHIND A CONCRETE BARRIER AND ABOUT A HALF MILE LATER TWO COUNTY UNITS WAVED ME OVER AND SAID I WAS DOING 57 IN A 45. I DIDN'T DISCOVER THAT I HAD TO APPEAR IN COURT UNTIL I GOT HOME AND TOOK A GOOD LOOK AT THE TICKET. I LIVE OUT OF STATE AND PLAN TO CALL THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE TO SEE IF I CAN MAIL THE FINE. THERE WERE NO CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT ON THE SITE AND NO WORKERS. YES, THIS IS BY ALL MEANS A SPEED TRAP.

I got a ticket on May 29 for 57 in a 45 construction zone at Mound City and I57. Yesterday I called the Sheriff's office to ask if I could mail the payment and was told no. They said I had to appear in court on the date stated on the ticket. Has anyone else had any luck in not being required to appear in court? It is a 200 mile drive for me from Arkansas.

I got a ticket at the same spot on July 19th 2011. This is a speed trap the speed limit said 55mph. Then she said there was another sign right after it stating 45 mph. Me and my passenger did not see it. I was a saturday morning no construction workers she got me a 57 in a 55. Does any one know an attorney or fought a ticket in that area. HELP!!

I got a ticket on I-57 mm 6 in the construction zone, where there were nothing but the cones. No construction, no workers. When I commented about no workers, officer said they were under the bridge???? But there were no cars for them anywhere?? Read other posts saying they leave the cones up year round! Illinois law as of Jan 2011 says you have to appear, as my ticket said. I called the attorney firm (618-524-9302) from another post, Josh Stratemeyer will appear for me. Worth the $ since it would be a 10 drive each way to get back to Illinois from Texas. Besides all the hotels I looked at in Mound City and Cairo didn't sound very nice or clean from the reviews! I understand this area needs financial help for their levee that is in bad shape and police/sheriff depts., but this is not the way to get it!

Only 7/2/11 my two boys were pulled over near mm 6 on I-57, driving from MI to TX. They reduced speed to 55 when they encountered a reduced speed sign. Nevertheless, were issued a ticket for 73/55 in a construction zone with mandatory court appearance. No workers present. Neither of them saw a sign where claimed by the police. This is their first cross-country road trip and they have been taught a lesson in foul play by Pulaski County. Shame on them.

Got our ticket Sunday morning, July 10th. The cost of this ticket and court costs look like they will exceed that of our entire vacation. It's a shameful abuse of governmental authority - who needs a court appearance for a speeding ticket in a fake work zone!

Sunday 7/17/11 On my way to Memphis TN for a vacation, I received a ticket for "Speeding in Construction Zone" on this stretch of I-57 S just before the Mississippi River while braking before I even entered the orange barrel zone. Before hitting the brakes I was only going 65 as I did not see any signs posted for 55 speed limit and had just passed another motorist pulled over by unmarked car. County sheriff flipped around from the other side of the highway before I'd even entered the so-called "construction zone" -it was Sunday so no workers around but I now doubt you'd find them there on any day of the week - and all cars on the road pulled over. Of course I was the lucky chosen one with the out of state plates. The deputy claimed I was doing 71 in 55 zone. Preposterous!! The ticket is "must appear", I live 8 1/2 hour drive away so was forced to hire an attorney in the local area to represent me. It's become clear to me that this is a scam designed to rob non-locals, fill the county coffers and enrich local attorneys. There's no getting out of it, the local judge will never overturn an issued violation. The minimum I'll have to pay to keep it off my driving record and stay out of jail is probably going to be about $500. Needless to say, my entire vacation was ruined. I'd have been better off paying $600 for a round trip flight with a 7 hour layover in Atlanta! I will soon be writing a vociferous complaint to the Illinois Attorney General's office. This should not be allowed to continue. Outrageous!!

In July we were on our way home to Texas from visiting my Mother in Indiana. We had a rental car as we totaled our Expedition on our vacation. Once we saw the work zone my husband turned the cruise off and it kicked back on and he hit his brake to get it to stay off. The silver sheriff car was hidden on the bridge and she got him. I did call the States Atty Office at 618-748-9134. I did tell her that we would not be able to make it back... I was finally told that the fine right now is 671.00 as written and if we show up or have an attorney represent us it would be knocked down to 430.00. I got online and found Attorney Ed Dorsey 618-549-7316. He called me back right away. Long story short. We have hired Mr. Dorsey to represent us and the fee is 200.00 along with the ticket we are expecting to be 430.00 and the attorney will have ticket removed from our record. In the future I believe we will be going thru Kentucky : ) I really think there is a racket and it should be stopped!!

I had the same thing happen and I am driving 12 hours to take care of it. After I am done I will make sure to tell my story on Pulaski's facebook page. I am starting to think that this is the cities only source of income.

9-3-11 (saturday) I was driving down I57 to visit my Grandmother who lives in Cairo, IL. i am originally from Cape but now live in Ohio. I drive this route at least 2 times a year to visit family and know well to be cautious in this area so I usually turn off at Anna just to be safe. Not this time. I needed to go straight to Cairo. BIG MISTAKE! After driving 10 hours, I was litteraly 1 mile from my exit. I received a out of state ticket in the area some 20 years ago and have not had a speeding ticket in 15 years. Believe me, I am careful! But I, like you, did not see any sign saying "construction zone" and when I came over the hill and saw the bridge at one-lane, I slowed. There was no traffic, no workers, no signs of contruction accept some barrels that were not even on the road. They just looked like they were left on the median to collect dust. But the bridge was one-lane so of course I slowed down. Then my husband said "oh no. you are getting nailed." I was confused as I had my cruise set on 70 in the 65mph zone. sure enough...she was on me as I crossed the bridge. She was in an unmarked car sitting behind the barrels at the base of the hill right before the bridge. She said she clocked me at 71 in a 55 construction zone and on a holiday weekend and that I would have to appear in court. I am contacted my congressman and the Il congressman. I also will mail the letter above and I will be a resonding gong! I may have to pay this fine in the end but I can assure you, a lot of people will know about it. And a few if them will become very familiar with my voice!

I was driving from Texas to Michigan on August 28 2011. (to go work for a few months) About 800 miles into the trip on Sunday at 8am, I entered into a construction zone right behind a semi on i-57, 5mm, North bound. I slowed down from 71 to 55. As we exited the construction zone, I noticed a un-marked police car in the bushes shooting radar. About a mile ahead the officer pulls me over. He tells me," you were going 71 in a 55, and that's a construction zone back there". I apologize and hand him my license. After waiting 10 min he comes back and tells me he is issuing me a ticket for speeding and the officer said and I quote " I usually don't give tickets out on Sundays for anyone going below 70, but you were going 71, and its a mandatory court date". I sign the ticket, and don't say a word and drive off. I notice it is a mandatory court date to show up which is next week, 10/4/11. I'm currently over 400 miles away, working 12 hours a day, everyday and I'm not taking off. I'm hiring a attorney to stand in for me. This is county corruption and greed at its best. I will be sending a personal letter to the AG of Illinois. I'll update it and let everyone know how much it ended up costing me.

My wife moved down to the Memphis in June 2010 and we have both been driving back & 4th for the last 15 months or so. We both got busted for speeding around mile marker 18-10 by Pulaski county's finest , each one time. We have sworn never to speed again on this road trips. It's not worth giving our money to these red neck dirtbags. But, here is some interesting information you may like, as I made more and more trips down to Memphis I noticed in the construction zones south of mile marker 30 that they do clearly post the beginning of the 55 mph speed zone. BUT, what they are doing is hiding the sign that is suppose to state the beginning of the 45 mph speed zone. Be very careful going thur this area. The 45 mph sign are actually tilted upward in the air so that drivers may not see them and in turn see the change in the construction zone speed limit, if you make it thur the 45 mph zone you will see the sign staing that the 55 mph zone resumes. I noticed this during this past summer and by my 3rd trip I paid close attention and saw that they are hiding the the signs for the 45mph zone by tilting them upward. Of course , the police and troopers can just say they that are clearly posted and they are not laying, BUT whom is tilting the 45 mph signs upward? The police? The construction workers for fun? Are some kids doing it? Are the police and construction crews doing, with someone getting a kickback? If you drive thru this area offen be careful, maybe bring a digital camera or video camera and film it for your own protection. Maybe we should alert a major news/media organization to investigate this scam. Until then, I drive the speed limit and stay in the right lane and I have noticed that during the last 40 miles of Illinois on I-57 there is always a nice long line of truckers and cars who frequently make this trip just doing the speed limit and not allowing Pulaski County any chance to get our hard earned money. Be careful they hide even in the trees, I saw them around mile marker 24-19 southbound backed up into the trees- there wasn't even a gravel path there, he just drove over the grass and native plants-killing them so they could bust anyone for $120 or more...

This just happened to me in what I believe is the exact same place this past Sunday, October 9. I hit the construction zone after starting to slow down, then going around the corner as soon as I entered the construction zone, I saw the cop sitting there, just before the bridge. After I saw him, I saw another guy pulled over going the other way, then another cop on the far side of the bridge. The cop pulled me over for going 68 in a 55 and gave me a $375 fine plus mandatory court appearance for the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. I live in Austin, TX and am trying to figure out how to make this work. I'm hoping I can find an attorney for less than the "$400 to $700" quoted me by the lady at the court, because I certainly don't have that kind of money. The reason I drove to Indiana was to avoid flying home for a wedding, and with this I might as well have just bought the plane tickets for me and my wife. The cop that handed me the ticket wasn't a jerk or anything. He was very to the point, handed me the ticket, suggested I call the attorney's office and told me to be careful as I drove off. This particular "construction zone" is clearly a racket and, based on my experience and these reviews, it does seem like these cops are placed there on purpose, probably against their will or better judgment, to pick off people with out of state plates, driving through on the weekend, that probably won't be able to make their court appearance. Tell your friends: Do NOT drive through Pulaski County, Illinois.

I live in Chicago, traveling to Arkansas for a business trip. I was well aware of Pulaski County and their penchant for local police writing up tickets on the interstate. I travel through here frequently for work and make it a point to never go over 3 mph above the speed limit, a co-worker learned the hard way. Well, now I did too. I came over a small rise and found myself in a construction zone from 65 to 55 mph (further on it was 45mph.) Before a could slow down (I barely had any time) the officer zapped me and now I have a $375 ticket which I have to appear in court for. The officer didn't even ask me for my insurance (that money goes to the state) all they care about is bringing in revenue to their depressed region. This crap needs to be dealt with. The government down there is bordering on tyranny.

Just got a ticket with the officer claiming I was going 71 in a 55mph construction zone in Pulaski county. The start of the zone wasn't clear at all and was very poorly marked so I didn't even know I was in it when he clocked me. Besides the zone being very poorly marked, I also noticed that the police car that clocked me was moving and wasn't even sitting still with a radar gun. How did he come up with that number? I also find it interesting that many of the comments on this site say the cop told them they were doing 71. Also, there were several other police cars in the same area busy pulling people over in the same poorly marked zone. Poorly marked work zone, police making up the magic "71" number, many cop cars working the area, which by the way was void of any workers at all, all adds up to a well planned scam by the county. I really hope that the DA investigates this area. It's not fair to law abiding citizens of IL.

Hello fellow Americans that have fallen victim of this speed trap / construction zone scam. I am just another in a long line of out of state drivers that have been hit by the bogus speeding in a construction zone. Funny thing... this Pulaski Deputy was in a moving car and I was being passed by a in Illinois licensed car which he argued that was going slower than I was when he proceeded to give me a ticket for the magic 70 in a 55. By the way. I had a high dollar radar detector and it did not alert. Funny I work for the government FAA and there is not one version of radar that is being used today that would not be detected by this device. So Mr. Pulaski County Deputy...........Where did you pull your number from? This is BS and they are targeting out of state people that do not have the ability to return to there community. WHAT A SCAM and NO one is doing anything about it! Basically it comes down to fraud! You are stealing!

The same thing has happened to me. I paid for a lawyer to represent me and all in all it cost $600+. There is a facebook page for additional comments. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003284969184&sk=wall Please post and send to your friends. This can't happen. LETS STOP THEM!!!

I was traveling through Pulaski Co.last May and was also caught in their speed trap. I was informed that i had to appear in court instead of mailing my ticket in.So , i went to their bogus court where the truckers were treated differently from everyone else.Listened to the so called judge that gave his speach and left supposedly to go to another court .I waited for my turn and agreed to my ticket and found that my fine was 640 dollars ,i followed the officer downstairs and paid 140 dollars drove 3 hours back home and havent heard another woord of it .I have checked with my insurance company regulary and there isnt a record of it yet.

I received my ticket on January 19, 2012. I am from Chicago and I was on my way to Memphis for a weekend trip. I was driving a rental car which had Minnesota plates on it (which is probably why I was pulled over.) He indicated I was doing 82 in a 65. I do remember seeing construction cones on the shoulder but no construction zone speed limit signs. I know I was speeding but I know I wasn't doing 82. After reading all the comments on this forum, I think that after the officer looked at my drivers license and realized I was from Illinois, he decided to give me a "break" and told me it's only going to be a $120 fine and that I would not have to appear in court. But something really has to be done about how Pulaski county is targeting out of state drivers as it's not fair at all!! When traveling on I-57 through Pulaski county be sure to even drive through either at the posted speed or even a few MPH under the limit. Oh and I was pulled over at mm 8 southbound.

I got a ticket in this revenue generating scam. No cones, no orange signs, no workers, and no other evidence any type of construction work being done. My story: Driving along I-57 south with cruise control travelling at 68 mph. My car has Mississippi tags. I get pulled over and am told I was doing 70 in a 55 and that it was a construction zone. I tell the officer there is no orange signs or cones or other signs of construction. He tells me the work is being done up ahead and that the road goes to 55 and then steps down to 45 further up. I get my ticket, which is a ridiculous 375.00 plus I have to appear in court. My problems: -No evidence of any kind of construction work being done or any workers present. -No clearly marked signs informing of the speed limit change or the construction zone. One would think if safety is the concern, they would focus on clearly marking the zone rather than writing tickets after people have apparently "violated" the speed limit. It is clear from reading the other stories on this page that nobody intended to speed or ignore the construction zone, evidenced by the fact that most people were going around 70. -Obviously people have been getting construction zone speeding tickets here for around 2 years...why not better mark it, if average drivers aren't seeing the signage? What specific construction is going on here? Why is it that nobody ever sees workers or equipment? -It is clear that most of the people being ticketed are people from out of state, those who have little ability to fight it without taking significant time off work. Conclusion: This is at worst a criminal scam that reminds of stories I've heard from businessmen being shaken down by police in the former Soviet Union. At best it is a dubious means of raising funds for a pohdunk county, which does not have safety or law enforcement in mind. This should be investigated by the State Attorney General or the Attorney General of the United States. It is absolutely disgusting. This used to be a free country. I can't believe these clowns can get away with this. The police officers and the local politicians and local court system-all share a role in this disgusting shakedown.

I too have been ticketed on this section of Interstate 57.....Twice!!! Neither time did I feel I was speeding and am sure of it the second time. I know personally 3 other people who also have been ticketed in this section of highway. They tell similar stories. You really do have to appear in court because this section of highway is under "construction" though nothing has been done for 3 years. The speed limit has opportunistically been lowered to 45mph recently. I am pretty certain that cars with Illinois tags are not ticketed and they target out-of-staters. They know that not many people will travel back for court dates and fight this SCAM. My most recent ticket was given on Christmas day while I was driving to New Orleans in a caravan with 2 Illinois plated cars, one of which was my daughter. We were aware of this speed trap and had slowed well ahead of the "construction" zone. I was picked out of the middle and ticketed while the others kept going. The court doesnt even answer their phone at the number on the citation. Instead, you get a recording directing you to appear in court and even give you a list of local attornys to call should you be from out of town. I hired a local attorney to represent me in court, since I live 300 miles away. He was very enlightening on this scam and iterated that the sheriff, the judge and possibly the state attorney were all aware of what goes on out on that highway and turn a blind eye to it. Apparently, Pulaski county is financed by monies levied on out of state drivers. My attorney was able to get my speeding in a construction charge "reduced' to a non moving violation. However, the fine was the same. He further directed me to stay out of Pulaski County. 8 Months later my son was ticketed for speeding in a construction zone within the same quarter mile and claims he was going under the speed limit knowing all to well the consequences, to no avail. We now completely avoid Illinois and drive through Indiana and Kentucky on our bi-annual trips to Louisiana.

I got puled over in I-57 Pulaski County Illinois while driving to champaign, The officer said i was doing 82 in a 65 mph. I couldn't argue with him, and this is first time, I have ever been ticketed. He said my fine is going to be $120. I pleaded with him to warn me once but he refused even listen to me and was very happy in issuing a ticket.

We got pulled over in Pulaski county in the morning a couple of weeks ago and the Officer that issued the ticket said we were going 77 in a 65 and we had the cruise set with the GPS set at 66 mph when the Illiterate police office that gave us the ticket came up to our car he looked like he just crawled out of the bar he had terrable body odor and was not neatly dressed neatly at all he made 2 mistake on the ticket he wrote that the fine was $1200 and then he wrote it was $120 and then he wrote my DL down wrong and he said we his 11th speeder of the day. We went down to pay the ticket at the Pulaski county courthouse it looked like it was a old 3 story school house the bulding was not handicap accesable for a wheel bound person and 2 out of the 4 people working were on face book goofing off this county is noted for beign a speed trap county

I have read several comments on this particular speed trap, so it is obvious that I am not the first to fall victim to this travesty. I live about 50 miles north of the state line with Missouri. As I am well aware of its reputation, I am particularly mindful of my speed when I travel that route to Missouri. I have discovered, much to the contrary of comments left by individuals who obviously work in law enforcement for either Pulaski County or Mounds, Illinois, that it makes absolutely no difference how fast or slow you drive through there, you are likely to be stopped and told that you were "clocked" at a rate significantly higher than that displayed by your speedometer and/or GPS. As I was returning with my family one Friday afternoon, from a certain roll throwing destination in Sikeston, Missouri, I set my cruise control to 69mph, before crossing the bridge, back into Illinois. I realize that this is 4mph over the posted limit in Illinois of 65. I was stopped by an unmarked Mounds police interceptor, and informed that I was traveling at 77mph. I informed the officer that they needed to have their radar recalibrated because both my speedometer and GPS, differed significantly with their reported radar indication. I understand that this as a tragically depressed area and that their primary source of revenue is from traffic fines, but these people are fabricating violations. I suspect at the direction of public officials. A little homework will reveal a series of investigations and indictments of public officials in Pulaski County, Illinois, on a variety of felony offences. As these traffic enforcement abuses are being committed on a federal highway, I would submit that it is well past due for a federal investigation into the so called enforcement tactics of a known, criminally motivated, district.

Speed trap is alive and well! Got cited for going 75 in a 55 "construction" zone. I know I wasn't going 75, it was Saturday, with no workers/activity going on following another car going the EXACT same speed (not the 55MPH, but nowhere near 75); but I was pulled over. The officer did not care and got downright happy when he told me to show up or hire an attorney in Michigan to drive down to Illinois to represent me in court. Not funny. I am currently contacting online attorneys to find rates for representation as driving 9 hours during the work week is impossible for me to do. In the future, even if I have to drive 150 miles out of my way to visit relatives in Texas, I will do so. Really disappointed that something has not been done to ensure a more fair system of traffic regulation be put in place and followed by local enforcement. This would make a great segment on 60 minutes.

Yesterday afternoon I was pulled over in Pulaski County on I-57, mile marker 20.5. I had slowed down to 61mph in what had been posted as a 55mph construction zone. I was continuing to brake to get down to 55 when a policeman who had been hiding under an overpass pulled me over and told me he clocked me at 69mph in a 55 mph construction zone. Like many other of the comments I've read, there were no workers (being a Saturday afternoon) and appeared to be no work underway...just the cones narrowing the lanes down to one. I have been told I have to appear in court even though I live 250 miles away. Not looking forward to finding out what the fine will be. What a racket.

Several years ago my wife was stopped in this "construction zone" speed trap that no construction ever seems to be taking place. We were made to appear in court in Mounds, Il along with what seemed like at least 200 other people, none which lived in the state. They target out of state vehicles. Just last week we went through this area for the 1st time since this occurred and being that we were aware of the treatment we received last time as soon as I crossed the Cairo bridge I set the cruise control at 65 mph. amazingly at this time there was not a "construction zone" set up so we cruised along at 65 mph headed north and at the 19 mm here comes the police pulling me over. He said that He observed me pass a semi at 79 mph. my wife & I argued the fact with him being that we had the cruise and the gps set. also we recorded the incident with a cell phone. he had no choice but to let us go but boy was he pissed off. as he walked away he shouted " I just hate a gd liar. with my kids there to hear. boy what a role model for young America.

I crossed the Cairo bridge, and set my cruise control to 67. The officer was rolling south and shooting radar. She crossed the median and pulled me over. She told me that I was doing 81 in a 65. Fortunately my company has gps on my company vehicle and has saved the data. Can't wait to get to court.

It was on Sunday morning when I was on my way back home from Illinois to Tupelo Ms. I had visited my son and my grandchildren. When I drove until I came to a construction zone and was going 47mph with the car in front of me which a young Caucasian female, I'm African American, was driving going much faster that me, and had been for quite some time. We were on a one lane construction where I was driving very careful being I had just bought a spanking brand new car and did not want to hurt it in any way. Soon after I approached the area where I noticed a plain clothe man was sitting off the road close to the street facing forward. I noticed he looked at the white female long enough to turn he head then placed his eyes on me and my car and started his movement like he was making a call. About a mile down the road the real car was parked and the female in front of me was really speeding enough for her to hit the brakes then she kept going. I was not speeding and he briefing looked at her and focused on me and got behind me and stopped me. I was polite and he wrote me a ticket and when he came back to give me the ticket I asked him if come could give me a warning because I was in the process of trying to get a security clearance and he said if I had asked him before he wrote it maybe but he could not tear up a ticket and instructed me to appear in court and I told him that I live in Mississippi and he said call the number on the ticket and see what they say. Well... I was concerned about it being on my record and had just bought the car so I called my network lawyer through my job and it was out of his jurisdiction but gave me a lawyer's name to call who would help but told me to not to tell him about the network service so he wouldn't get none of his business. I called the lawyer and his assistant said yes, sure we will take care of it for you and took my payment of over 200.00 on the phone and said not to worry, she will get in touch with me but it will be a while. I didn't hear from her until seven of eight months and she wanted me to send $680.00 more, I told her she had told me that is all I need to pay. I didn't hear from her until my 80 year old mother(who lives over4 hours from me, called and said I had a certified letter and that kind of stuff upsets her, she's not well. Well...she sent it by my nephew in his truck because she thought it was urgent. It was from that lawyer I paid and it was a motion to withdraw his services and said he couldn't contact me. when I gave him the payment I gave them al of my present contact information which has not changed as of today. They got my mother's address off my DL which I hadn't changed when I moved to North MS to work. My Lord... this has been so stressful, I have had 2 surgeries since then. However, they talked to me on my home phone number which has not changed when they asked for the $680 and said they would call me back. When I called the lawyer office, the lady was talking to me in a mean loud voice and now when I call for the lawyer they say he's in a meeting and say his assistant is in a meeting...Something really needs to be done about this speed trap. Something similar happened 17 years ago and my baby at the time was sick and his father was holding him and he was crying so terribly, we were going back to Illinois and three car were following each other, they stopped all three at one time...only one car might have been going 2mph over...How long will this go on?????

These people are complete jokes !!!! They are the worst people to deal with !!!! They pulled me over for 3 miles over the speed limit and the officer gave me a ticket for 11-15 over .... she was very rude ... i told the officer she should have pulled the car over in front of me that went speeding around me that was more then likely who she got on a radar .... There has got to be someone that can stop the scams that they are pulling on people ??? I would love to go to the court house but unfortunately i live over 8 hours away ... Take these cops off the road

Amazing! I was pulled over at 3am only seconds before I had re-enter the interstate at the only gas station in the area. It seemed like a complete set-up from the beginning. The officer claimed to have clocked me at 107, but refused to show the radar gun he then said if I did not pay him $200 he would take me to jail. I had no cash but the officer said he could direct me to an ATM. Since I was 5hrs ago from home and could not contact anyone else at 3am. I followed him and paid the money out of fear. I now have a court date scheduled and again have to drive 10 hrs round trip on top of finding a sitter and taking off work.smh pure ridiculous!!

Pulled over and tickets on Christmas eve. DRIVING 15-20 MPH ABOVE LIMIT Not construction zone but I saw 3 cruisers pulling people over. Merry Christmas

I was driving from WI through there and was given a ticket. They refused to allow me to pay via the phone or mail. This requires me to miss 2 days off work seeing as they only hold court on Tuesday & Thursday. Not to mention the cost of the trip. Purely insane.

Worst county ever. I was driving home from a trip at 8:30 on a Saturday morning and had my wife and 2 kids in the car. I was stopped by a Cairo city cop for doing 86 in a 70. I'm a police officer and he extended me a professional courtesy. I was stopped again 10 minutes later by a Pulaski County Deputy. He told me I was doing 85 in a 70. I once again told him I was a cop and he instantly knew that I was just stopped by the Cairo Officer. There's no way that I was going 85 mph because I had just been stopped and I saw the guy poaching way down the road and slowed down to like 60. The only thing he wanted to see was my license and issued me a ticket. I've been a police officer for 18 years and work in a rough city. I know how intense the public eye is on law enforcement now and cops like this give us a bad name and make my job more dangerous. I think these so called cops should be ashamed of themselves. I don't even consider them to be cops they're just ticket writing revenue generators. I've done more police work in one week than they've done in their entire careers. Oh yeah and by the way I'm from Illinois. I too am just going to pay the ticket because I live far north in the state and I'm not driving 6 hrs for nothing because I guarantee you I'll be found guilty.

I need a great lawyer to represent my husband and I in Mounds,IL ASAP! Please tell me who is going to fight for our rights in this corrupt speed trap. To say the least we need a criminal defense attorney because we were both charged with far worse than a speeding ticket for doing nothing. Truly innocent please help me out I need one heck of a lawyer.

They're back! On August 20, 2019 I was driving on I-57 close to Mound City and was pulled over by a young female police officer in an unmarked car. I was going through a "construction zone" around 7:00 pm. The speed limit went from 70 to 55 and I started braking immediately, slowing to 55 entering the construction zone. Within a few hundred yards the speed limit dropped to 45. I continued braking and slowed to 45. There wete no workers nor equipment in the entire area of the zone. The female deputy acknowledged that I was braking the entire time, but said I was going 60 in a 45. She was very pleasant and after I told her the speed limit changed from 55 to 45 very quickly, she said don't worry about it, happens all the time. At that point I thought she was going to give me a warning. Big surprise, after excusing herself to return to her car, she came back and gave me a citation for speeding in a construction zone. At that time she also told me a mandatory appearance was required at a later date. After telling her that I lived in Florida and it would not be possible to drive 900 miles for my court date she told me if I had the financial means I could hire an attorney to represent me. After reading the many comments submitted by so many others who have experienced the scam it seems I have only two choices, hire an attorney or don't show up for my court date. Would some fellow victims involved in this scam please let me know of an attorney who could represent me. I'm sure all the local attorneys are likely co-conspirators, but looks like I'm out of choices. My court date is in two weeks, so please give me a reputable attorneys name someone has hired.

The lawyers in the county are in on the deal. I talked with three of them and they all said exactly the same thing....like a "script" they were reading. $250 and they will make the ticket change to an "illegal parking" ticket....BUT they say the fine will remain at between $800 and $1200 based on how the judge is feeling that day. WHAT A RACKET!

Same thing happened to me on a Monday night coming home from Chicago. I was going 70 then proceeded to slow down to 55 when I saw the work signs ahead. unmarked white SUV pulled out from behind some bushes and pulled me over. he gave me a ticket for 71 in a 55 which I know I wasn't doing since I slowed down and never exceeded 70. I was very nice respectful but once he told me it's mandatory court I lost it. and i live 3 hours away in Tennessee. this is the biggest scam I've ever seen. I'm sure it will be close to 1000 to pay this ridiculous ticket. Does anyone have a good attorney's number who will not over charge?

Adding my situation to the list of horror stories so that there's even more proof that individuals at both the local and state level are wrongly taking advantage of people, and targeting out of staters. I was driving along 1-57 on a sunny Saturday morning in August to visit a relative at Southern Illinois University. There weren't a ton of drivers out, but by no means was the road empty. Yes, there were "construction zones" sporadically placed along the highway but like all other comments have mentioned, there were no workers, vehicles, lights, or anything to indicate that the zones were active except for some cones. If you pull up a map of construction zones on the IDOT website, the stretch of 1-57 where everyone has been getting pulled over has its construction type listed as "LANE REDUCTION/LANE CLOSURE from 5/13/2019-7/31/2020 for roadway improvement", but there's no indication that any work is actually being done. And even if there is, how does it take almost a year to make improvements eight years after the original post on this site was made? How this town got the Illinois Department of Transportation behind this ticketing scam, I have no idea. From all the signs I saw, the speed limit in these "construction zones" was 55. Right before I was about to take my exit, I was pulled over by an unmarked black car and the officer said it was because I was going 60 - SIXTY! A mere 5 miles over the posted limit. Granted I understand that speeding is still speeding, but come on. The cop tells me that if people had been working that day (which I highly doubt ever happens), my car would be towed and I would be sent to jail (I don't know state laws in Illinois but that seemed a bit dramatic). Because of all this I'm already frustrated, but then when I call to find out the status of my ticket/how much it will cost, I'm told that I'm unable to send in a payment because I have a mandatory court date. I couldn't read the carbon copies the cop left me with because he didn't write hard enough, but apparently my ticket said I was going 65 in a 45. First of all, I never saw any posting for 45 MPH even after having made the same drive again, and secondly, how can you tell me one thing and then write down another? For those who think "oh well she should have read the ticket", again, the carbon copies were illegible to the point where they looked like blank pieces of paper. I'm not from the area but the drive back toward Pulaski County isn't too lengthy so I had planned on making my own court appearance because I have a clean driving record and figured the cost of gas would be less than the cost of hiring representation. However, I found out my court date was scheduled during a week I would be out of town for work and tried to see if there was any possibility to reschedule, but if you ever have to contact the circuit clerk, good luck. There are only a few phone numbers listed on their outdated website and at any given time, all of them are busy. Because I couldn't reschedule, I was out of options and forced to hire an attorney (though I'm pretty convinced they're all in on it, too). Today I got a call from the attorney's office, and was told that the county has offered to reduce the ticket to a non-moving violation for $872, and no that is not a typo. At the end of all this absurdity, I will be out almost $1,200 for going five over. Definitely avoid taking 1-57 if you can because even if it adds a few more hours to your trip, I guarantee you'd rather have that than be in the same boat as me and owe these scammers over a grand. And on the offchance anyone from Pulaski's law enforcement or judicial system happens to read these comments, you should be ashamed. You signed up to protect and serve and to uphold the law, and now either 1) do the opposite or 2) pick and choose who those principles apply to. I would never wish badly on anyone, but I hope you all come to your senses before something else (the federal government, other authorities, etc.) force you to.