Bottom line. Consider me the judge for a moment.
Be concise and Spartan in your testimony.
Tell me the truth without embellishment.
Be respectful of every one here especially me.
If you do these things, and convince me that is your objective, and you do not waste the courts time, you are already doing better than 90% of the Morons who come here with an attitude and lie their arses off trying to convince me they have no guilt.
Sprinkle some humility and acknowledge your error, but add a little of the "it was not intentional or willful, and you will get as close to the results the you wish.
The "I was worried about running out of gas" defense might go either way, but could help in explaining your actions to the point of a not guilty verdict, but stupid is not an excuse, unless you just tell him it was a stupid mistake for which you were trying to compensate for prior bad judgement.
A refreshingly honest conversation with a side order of humility and the ability to accept that you are partially responsible gives him the opportunity to respond with some potentially deserved compassion, while he wades through all of the rest of the crap he has to deal with daily (or her if it applies).
Constant eye contact and direct communication indicate integrity, never forget that.
And don't forget to say "Your Honor"
.
When I went to court for my 80+ in a 55 zone 5 over the reckless threshold. I had a document prepared to help me to be precise and concise. While the judge did not accept the document he did seem to consider the preparation involved to be relevant to his decision. I had to go to a driver improvement class and not get a ticket for 6 months. My record was perfect and my explanation was viable and also true.
regards
Mech