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Fighting a Traffic Ticket in Court - UPDATE: I WON!!!!!!!!!!!
Jdurg:
Today was one of the happiest days of recent memory. ;D I had submitted my ticket to the courts as "Not Guilty" and received a few letters from them over the past four or five weeks. One of which just said that my Not Guilty Plea had been received, and another stating that the case was being transferred to the Norwich Superior Court for processing and that they'd get in touch with me for my court date.
Today, I received another letter in the mail from the State's Office of the Clerk of the Superior Court. Inside the letter was the following (With items X'd out to preserve my privacy):
"Docket Number: XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXX-X
Summons Number: XXXXXX
Date of Summons: 01/08/2008
STATE OF CONNECTICUT
V.
JUSTIN X XXXXXXX
YOU AE HEREBY NOTIFIED THAT: On 03/03/2008,
A NOLE PROSEQUI WAS ENTERED BY THE PROSECUTING AUTHORITY (Pr. Bk. 39-29)
This notice means that the case shown above pending against you has been disposed. You are NOT REQUIRED to appear in court or pay any fines, fees, costs, or surcharges which may have been applicable if you had been found guilty of this offense. The Department of Motor Vehicles or the appropriate Arresting Agency will be notified of this disposition by the court.
Office of the Clerk."
;D ;D ;D :applaud: :applaud: :applaud: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:
--- Quote ---Okay, last night I got screwed by an overzealous police officer. I was passing through an intersection when the light turned red as my car was directly underneath it. Thus, my front half of the car was inside the intersection and the back two wheels were behind the "line". This was a fairly large intersection so it took me some time to safely traverse it. As I finished with my turn, I saw the nasty flashing red and blue lights. :hissy:
The cop comes up to me and asks for the regular stuff, then proceeds to state that I ran the red light. I stated that I was already in the intersection so I had the right to continue on my way. He said that his light was green when he saw me going through so I must have run the red light. (Obviously failing to see that the intersection is a very large one and takes a few seconds to actually get through it. So when I was completing my trek through it there is a good chance that his light had turned green).
The cop also stated that my insurance card had expired (which it hasn't. He just couldn't read the words that said "Valid for one year after effective date". The effective date was in September of last year). So he started chewing me out for not having proof of insurance. I said, "You must be reading this incorrectly because I know I have insurance. How else would I have been able to re-register my car a few months ago?" He just gave me this snotty "Well just be thankful I'm not arresting you and having your car towed". He then gave me the ticket and I said "Thank you officer. I'll see you in court."
On the ticket, the cop didn't fill it out in full. The time was not designated as AM or PM, and various other bits of information are just wrong. Because of this and the fact that I'm showing up to court to fight this, what are the chances that it gets waived because of the failure of the cop to fill out the forms properly? (What he did fill out is so completely illegible that I actually need to go to court just to see what the fine is. I can't tell if it's $124, $154, $174, or $194). It was a young kid too. Probably just out of the police acadamy and wanted to "prove" that he's a real cop. Well son, you're going to get a harsh lesson about being a cop now. :badmood:
--- End quote ---
missioncontrol:
you word against his... you aren't going to beat the system with technicallities such as "this wasn't filled out" or "I can't read this"
just because the light is yellow doesn't mean to speed up to beat if before it goes red. If his light turned green then you obviously weren't driving with due care.
quit your bitching just because you got caught....
Jdurg:
--- Quote from: missioncontrol on January 09, 2008, 08:32:52 am ---you word against his... you aren't going to beat the system with technicallities such as "this wasn't filled out" or "I can't read this"
just because the light is yellow doesn't mean to speed up to beat if before it goes red. If his light turned green then you obviously weren't driving with due care.
quit your bitching just because you got caught....
--- End quote ---
1): I didn't increase my speed at all to get through the intersection.
2): I was already in the intersection when the light turned red, and according to the statute I was ticketed for that means I have every legal right to continue on my way. "14-299 (2) Yellow: Vehicular traffic facing a steady yellow signal is thereby warned that the related green movement is being terminated or that a red indication will be exhibited immediately thereafter, when vehicular traffic shall stop before entering the intersection unless so close to the intersection that a stop cannot be made in safety; pedestrians facing a steady yellow signal, except when directed by separate pedestrian-control signals, are thereby advised that there is insufficient time to cross the roadway before a red indication is shown and no pedestrian shall then start to cross the roadway."
3): The intersection is where two four lane roads combine. Therefore, when entering the intersection it takes approximately 3 seconds for you to make a complete left hand turn. The light will therefore turn green for the other side while you are completing your turn.
4): Asking the judge to clarify the report on the ticket for me will not directly state that the cop was incompetent. It will simply show that the manner in which the cop filled out the ticket may indicate a poor performance by the officer.
So I didn't get caught doing anything. If I did something wrong I'd pay the fine. I didn't do anything wrong and I now have legal proof of it. I win. :applaud:
myntik1:
fighting the law ain't easy. as missioncontrol stated people don't beat the man on technicalities. I always hear people say they hope the cop doesn't show. In MA you go in front of a magistrate and in most cases the cop isn't there. Anyway the magistrate hears traffic cases all day, every day and he has a copy of your driving record in front of him. That ticket you got speeding to the Van Halen concert in '84 he knows about. He knows when you've bad or good. And he's heard everything from I had to go to the bathroom, to I had a sick kid at daycare, etc. So unless you have something truly noteworthy you're not getting off. With that said my old roommate did get off because his step-father owned a service station. He had his stepdad (who has a different last name) right up a receipt saying they changed the pumpkin and axle on his hillbilly pickup truck and didn't recalibrate his speedometer. More often then not they'll reduce the ticket to make you happy. In most cases the ticket doesn't hurt, the extra insurance premium for the next 6 years does though. Good luck.
tommy:
edit by saint. For the love of Pete stop thread crapping and pissing on each other.
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