Court/ticket screw up, How can I fight this ticket, even tough it is past due?

I was driving down I-75 last June and was pulled over for 78 in a 70mph zone. He asked me if the address was correct on my license, and I said yes, but was living in Nashville temporarily while I went to college. The trooper told me that it would be $150, but did not give me a court time or date. A couple of days later, I went to the lcal gas station to get a money order, since the courts do not take checks. I took a look at the ticket to see where to send it in, and there was no address or even a phone number! I called the county that I was in, and they had no record of it. I contacted al lthe adjacent counties, and still nothing. Finally, I had a friend who works for the highway patrol to run the license number. He told me that it was indeed in berland Co. I called again, and still they had no record. I asked the clerk what the address was, and she gave it to me. I sent the money order in the next day and thought everything was fine. Now, I recieve a notice that they had not received my payment and my license is set to go on suspension! I called the berland Courthouse again, and this time the price jumped to almost $400! $150 for speeding, $170 for the address, and processing fees! I will also have to pay the state a processing fee to get my license reinstated! They told me that I can simply send in proof that the payment had been cashed, but that was almost a year ago. I am sure I have tossed the stub since then and even that would not show that it had been cashed. I asked if I could contact the state attorney's office and the lady said that they had no jurisdiction in traffic court. So what, other than paying out the nose for a ticket that I already paid, can I do about this? Thanks!