Silk Road forums
Discussion => Off topic => Topic started by: Baconmmm on March 14, 2013, 03:41 am
-
So i got pulled over today and thought to make this thread. I would like to hear others stories about similar situations, outcomes, and any knowledge about this whole system.
This is my first actual ticket. I've been pulled over before but got off with a warning.
I was going 20 MPH over the speed limit, trooper K-9 Unit who was heading the opposite way pulled a U-turn and pulled me over. Gave him my license and registration, told him this was my first time being pulled over. He went back to his car, came back five minutes later and handed me my ticket. He said if i plead not guilty it will probably be knocked down to a parking violation, meaning no points on my license.
I also had around 7 grams of hash and a jar of hash oil in my car at the time, that i realized after the whole charade happened. You don't need to tell me I caught a lucky break.
If I plead guilty, the fine is 300.00, and then i need to pay 150.00 another three times, totaling about 750.00. I also can have my license suspended if i do this.
If I plead not guilty, I need to go appear before a court and defend myself.
What would you do? Would you hire a lawyer for this situation, or would that just raise the price of this whole episode? Thank you to everybody who responds.
-
I was actually recently in the same boat as you, cop said I was doing 147 in a 100 on my sportbike.
Anyways I was sort of intimidated by the whole court appearance so I decided to go watch traffic court for a week and get familiar with the whole process. And I am sure glad I did as it really paid off, I would have lost my license for a week and had a $400 Fine. Unless your fighting a criminal charge don't pay for a lawyer its just a rip.
First thing you need to do is request disclosure, which is all the documents the officer has, for me it was a copy of his ticket, (make sure to get front and back copies because sometimes they write notes on the back and here's where you can pick him apart.) certification of radar, service date of radar and also a copy of the manual for that particular radar model.
On your first court appearance just go and stand before the judge they'll ask you to enter your plea which you would say "not guilty", and setup a trial date.
On the trial date they will call you up and will ask if your ready for your trial, here's where you need to ask for an adjournment and say that you are still waiting for a copy of all the documents. So they will push the trial date ahead another month or two.
The crown prosecutor or officer may try talking you into pleading to a lesser charge however if you think you can come up with a strong defense be straight up and tell them NO, that you want to prove your case to the judge. And wear a suit, have a nice folder with all your documents in it, I found this seemed to really intimidate both the officer and the crown, they dropped the charge before I even got to the court room. The cop knew he was a lying bastard however they may have solid evidence against you so do some research.
Sorry for rambling on, any questions whatsoever give me a shout. I have no law background except grade 12 but I actually really enjoyed playing lawyer and going to court for that week.
-
On my ticket it says that radar was used to determine my speed, and also that he visually could tell that I was going faster than the posted speed.
When do i request disclosure? I got a copy of the ticket and an envelope to mail in my plea.
But, if I plead not guilty how can i defend this?
Thank you for responding and yes I plan on dressing nicely to my court date
-
He was going in the opposite direction and still could tell visually that you were driving faster than you should? He must have extremely developed senses then. I would ask him to demonstrate his skills to the court. The worst position to judge the speed of anything is when you are moving in the opposite direction to it.
-
Yea the "I can accurately determine speed visually" trick never really works. You should easily get off with that. Get the disclosure file as soon as possible so you have a better idea what you are up against. Just call the court and ask what the number is you need to call to request a copy of the officers notes and logs, etc.
It's not as difficult as you may think. You just need to put a little doubt in the judges mind for the case to be acquitted. Hell the cop probably knows his case will not stand up in court and end up not showing. For every ticket that gets dismissed he's just going to go out and write 10 more so don't get too worked up over it.
-
or just dont pay your fines and dont go to court. you're not obliged to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOF8sg4jD9E
-
I say find the cop who stopped you. Kill him and his whole family.
Problem solved. With no witness to testify against you they will have to award you the prize for getting off with drugs in the car.
Oh and blow the judge. Make sure to get that 49 hoe
-
He was going in the opposite direction and still could tell visually that you were driving faster than you should? He must have extremely developed senses then. I would ask him to demonstrate his skills to the court. The worst position to judge the speed of anything is when you are moving in the opposite direction to it.
As far as I know, in the US a speeding ticket is only valid if the cop was not moving, as the radar guns already have a fairly sizable error of +-5mph and being in motion would probably make it worse.
-
I once had a no seatbelt ticket. I requested a jury trial, and it was dropped. Why?
They do not want to pay a jury, and all the court costs over a 300 dollar fine. Would that work if you ran over a nun? Nope, but you have a clean record, so, let them appoint a worthless public defender. Say you were not speeding and stick to it, request a jury trial, they will work with you, or drop it.
*also first time offenders can usually get a defensive driver course or something like that, it really isn't a big deal, but I would feel pretty confident they would drop it if you decide to drag it out.
-
From my experiences, I'm saying BS. When you plead not guilty, the court sets a date and the police officer will be there. Unless you can prove yourself innocent, the prosecutor, police officer, and judge will all be there against you as it's serious revenue for your city and state. After that, you will realize you have to pay not only the full ticket but an extra court cost which is not cheap. BTW going 20 over is only around $150 from my experiences. What are all these extra $150 payments you are talking about? And yes, they can take your license away just like that. Lose your job, can't pay the ticket or rent. Family goes on welfare. Government intrusion works so well.