Up in Canada, they tie the offense to the car and let the owner pay when he needs government services. They don’t worry about whether it was the owner of the car that created the offense. They leave it to the owner that, if he wasn’t driving, he has to get his money back from the person who was driving.
I suspect California figured how to not violate the 5th Amendment of due process, so you’re stuck with your ticket.
I figure the State does not care. Do you know the cost of hiring a lawyer to sue the State over this one? No one can afford to sue, that’s the way the State looks at it.....