having no faith in the justice system is probably the healthiest mindset. imagine having faith in LLVM to compile your code because you believe that the compiler will do the right thing. the Justice System, much like LLVM, doesn't require faith to run; it requires valid code.

That said, if you're in court, you're pretty much guilty. It doesn't matter that you've done nothing wrong (no "innocent" plea, remember?); you're in their court, and that means someone has charged you and is demanding payment. "Guilty" means "to pay", according to Black's/Bouvier's. that means that Not Guilty is somewhere you don't want to be (committing a commercial dishonor in their court == contempt).

Just pay the fine (you can pay with securities/commercial paper if you don't want to use cash/cheques), and be done with the matter. Once you've settled, file a motion to expunge with a higher court in order to clear your record.

As the guilty, I guess I find being able to settle pretty relieving. :)