Mandatory First Attendance?
Short 1-Liner:
Court clerk scheduled a meeting with the prosecutor for me and said it was mandatory, even though I specified I wanted a trial date for my speeding charges. Is this proper procedure?
Details:
Got a speeding ticket for 30km/h over on the 401 near Cornwall just about 2 weeks ago. I live in Toronto.
My goal is to have this not affect my insurance rates, so I aim to have this ticket dismissed at a trial. I would also be ok with the charges being modified to non-moving charges, if that is ever done.
Yesterday, I brought the ticket to Cornwall's provincial offences court and asked for a trial. I specified I did not want a meeting with the prosecutor, and requested a trial date.
The court clerk gave me a Notice of Intent to Appear form to fill out. I completed this form and received a First Attendance Notice paper, which stated I must appear for a meeting with the prosecutor. I said again to the clerk that I would like to go straight to trial, and not meet with the prosecutor, and was given the response that the meeting is mandatory, and not optional.
Question: I was under the impression meeting with the prosecutor in advance of the trial was optional, and that the defendant (me) has the option of meeting or not. Is it a good idea to attend this meeting anyway, or better to go back to the courts and request a trial instead?
The reason I ask is because I live in Toronto. I originally planned to only have to go to Cornwall twice (once to set up a trial, once for the trial), now I must go a third time, knowing the prosecutor will most likely not be able to give me a deal I would be happy with?
Thank you for your thoughts.