Ticket yay

[Dumbydome]

Got a ticket today. 73 in a 45. Guy was a complete ass i knew from the start i was gonna get a ticket. He comes up and screams at me give me your license and registration. I reply to him "one moment sir my registration is under my rear seat" to which he freaks out and screams "I DIDNT ASK YOU FOR YOUR REGISTRATION". Anyways the police officer was in the opposing lane in a two lane road. I go to pass a car and start slowing down. I have a couple of questions here.

A) how accurate are radar detectors in situations where they are moving and not stopped.
B) Aren't all 06/07 speedo's off by roughly 6-7%. I ask this because my speedo was indicating 70 at the time when he says i was doing 73.
C) How hard is a declaration by mail to win? What kind of stuff should you include in it to make a valid arguement?
D) What are the chances that the police officer(obviously an anal retentive douche) didn't keep propper logs of his radar gun calibrations?
E) If you do a declaration by mail, could you later opt to take the traffic course to not get pts assessed and pay said fines if found guilty?

[dazhahs23]

If I understand correctly, the officer was heading in the opposite direction and flipped around to pull you over after you passed him in the opposite direction...a scan of your ticket might be helpful for anyone trying to assist you.

If this is the case, depending on how much additional traffic there was in your lane, how many large objects were present on the side of the streets that would impact the radar, and how the officer was operating radar, would all be issues in your defense.

A. Not sure but through discovery get the specific model number for the radar used by the officer and then you'd be able to gather the manufacturer's information on that specific radar.
B. It doesn't really matter about your own speedometer error...even if you prove this, the judge will still likely find you guilty because you were exceeding the 45mph speed limit.
C. Depends on your specifc circumstances...not sure if you're in CA or not but I have experience having dealt with trials by declaration here and could help you. There are also some others on the site who could probably help based on their experience.
D. Relatively low, as these are requirements set forth by the departments and even if he didn't log the calibrations, another officer might have when he/she was using the vehicle or radar gun. This is always a possible point of attack though and again could be verified through the discovery process.
E. If you lose the trial by declaration, you would be able to request a "trial de novo," which is a new trial. During this trial, if you lost again, you'd be able to request traffic school if eligible. You would also be eligible for traffic school even if you lose the trial by declaration and decide not to proceed with the "trial de novo."

I'd recommend getting an extention, filing discovery motions to gather as much information as possible, writing a trial by declaration based on legal arguments using case law (as applicable), and then request a trial de novo, if interested in proceeding. I can help you with some case law as well and crafting the arguments, if you're interested but I'd need more information. Good luck and post any additional questions...

[kaneda_77]

DON'T do trial by mail... I have NEVER heard anyone get out of a ticket because of this, even with very solid cases. Fact of the matter is, they know you don't want to drive to the location of court and take the time off of work to fight a ticket.

The other fact that you have going for you is that it is pretty difficult to get a good radar reading coming in an opposite direction, in traffic AND your license plate is what reflects 90% of the radar signal or was it laser(which you don't have one in the front do you?)

I always just bring a friend to say they were driving in front of me and that the officer must have radar'd the guy that was speeding past us.

[Dumbydome]

Problem is i was doing the passing. Imma just go ahead and pay it :/ not really worth it. Just gonna take the class to get the pts dropped. Just pisses me off cause there is NO way i was going as fast as he said i was. Also cause i was being tailgated thats why i did the passing in teh first place.

[The Raven]

http://www.ticketassassin.com/

[dazhahs23]

Originally Posted by kaneda_77

DON'T do trial by mail... I have NEVER heard anyone get out of a ticket because of this, even with very solid cases. Fact of the matter is, they know you don't want to drive to the location of court and take the time off of work to fight a ticket.

See my post...http://www.r6messagenet.com/forums/s...d.php?t=143664

Just won a trial by declaration...

Originally Posted by kaneda_77

I always just bring a friend to say they were driving in front of me and that the officer must have radar'd the guy that was speeding past us.

Has this actually worked out in court for you? Ever won a ticket where a cop was present and the judge took your and your friend's testimony over the officer?

Originally Posted by Dumbydome

Problem is i was doing the passing. Imma just go ahead and pay it :/ not really worth it. Just gonna take the class to get the pts dropped. Just pisses me off cause there is NO way i was going as fast as he said i was. Also cause i was being tailgated thats why i did the passing in teh first place.

It's too bad you are not going to fight it...I would still say do the trial by declaration, you have nothing to lose except a little bit of time. Hell, send in the trial by declaration saying that "I am not guilty. I was not speeding." If the officer doesn't respond in the allowed timeframe, you still win.

[kaneda_77]

You'd be surprised, I've gotten away with a ton of crap in court... that's just one of my poor man's lawyer skills. It all depends on the case though. Anyway, congrats on winning yours by mail... you are the first I have ever heard of.

[tetsuo]

i've won 3 by trial by declaration and my friends have won a bunch too.