hi all, some of you may know that i crashed my darling jezebel in october. worst possible time, worst possible place - there was a sac pd having lunch behind a tree close by. he didn't say he was ticketing me, and i thought all was taken care of when i finished with the insurance company. however, last week i get a notice that a ticket was issued to me and that my court date is in a few weeks. i pulled the police report, and the cop straight out LIED that i told him i was speeding. i could not have been speeding if i had TRIED. more importantly, i'm no idiot, i would have NEVER said that i was going 3X the posted speed limit even if i was. and i really really WASN'T. now, i'm heading to court to fight a 'my word against his' battle. :022: y'all have been pretty great with advice. do you have any for me? thank you very much.
Unfortunately the court considers the cops testimony as being an unbiased 3rd party and is potentially damaging to your case. And if it becomes a he says she says between you and the cop, the judge will side with the police because your testimony becomes biased. I would fight the ticket but if the cop shows up your screwed.
*sigh* i know. the worst part is that because he didn't tell me he was ticketing me, he took away my opportunity to thoroughly examine the area for oil spots and debris at that time and defend myself with that.
When you go to court the officer will speak frist, sit quietly and take notes for your rebuttal. Do not speak until asked; remain calm, cool, and collected. In my experience the judge almost always reduces the fine associated with whatever the incident is. You make a good point about your speed etc. You may also want to bring that up when its your opportunity to talk. (tell the judge why you would openly admit that you were going 3x the posted speed limit). Its one thing to be going a "little fast" but quite another to be going at such an excessive speed. Best of luck to ya girl!
did he write the speed down in the report? And the best i can say is be honest tell the judge everything as it happened. I wish you luck with the case, its going be hard fighting it. I would say not guilty get a new court date where the officer has to be present and use that small window and research everything you can on what he needs to present in court. There can be that wonderfull chance he wont even show up cause he may know he lied and dont want to mess with it. I work with SPD all the times most of them are lazy and hate paperwork. I respect officers to the fullist but SPD is one agency i show little for from just what i have seen.
First of all "having lunch behind a tree" ??? I'd make sure the judge heard that part, chances are that was no lunch. Was an accident investigation done or can you document your crash and the area? Seeing pictures and details of the accident and area can help a judge see that 3x is an absurd speculation on the cop's part.
In my experience, which has been considerable, the Judge pays a lot of attention to how each of you carries yourself. A Judge is an elected official and doesn't end up on the bench just because they have the famous brother, hopefully. They are trained to see through lies. I've personally had a Judge do research into my case that I didn't even know could be done and then let me off because the cop made a mistake that I never would have known about even though they KNEW that I was guilty. G Money gives good advice, stay cool and tell the truth. Good luck.
you are a believable and instantly likable person. remain calm and think about the words you want to use. be as honest as you can be and show up with photos(if they help) or any other evidence to support your side. witnesses? and if at all possible, stretch it out. time helps you. a cop has to remember every ticket from every day he works. you have to remember just one. ask questions or have a lawyer ask questions the cop can't remember like what were you wearing? what color was the bike? was it hot or cold that day? (bring in the newspaper with the weather) if he can't remember simple things then how could we possibly believe he remembers you saying it was your fault or that you were 3x the speed? he can't remember if you had sunglasses on, yet he spoke to you long enough for the lies he wrote? the longer the courts drag it out the less likely he is to appear and if he does appear, the less likely to remember what he was eating behind that tree or what you said or didn't say. be brave. and fight it. even if you lose it almost always gets reduced from the original fine. and IF you lose...when was the last time you did traffic school? take that option.
thank you all very much for the advice! i am definitely going in there prepared to ask questions, show photos and measurements, and use logic and reason the best i know how. this is not even about the price of the ticket or the fact that my insurance is going to sodomize me - this is all about the principle. this guy lied, and he's going to have to put up one hell of a fight with this chicka! *spit* now... pardon my 'queen-of-the-wood-flare-up-over-the-ring-of-power' moment. and thank you all again. it makes me feel fuzzy inside to know how much you all care and want to help. group hug on wednesday?
Miri, Sorry to hear what you are having to go through and hugs will be forth coming. I thought you had to sign a ticket, but then again I don't get many of them...haha. GMoney has good advice, stay to the facts and try not to attack the officer but make him state what his proof is, or if it's just his opinion. Best of luck to you...:moto1:
Isn't it illegal for cops to hide out of sight when they speed gun you? they used to hide on the offramps and such and now apparently from what i've heard they have to be visible. or am i misinformed?
Good luck with your court appearance Miri. I have a book called "How to fight your ticket in California". It is a couple years old, but if you want, you could borrow it for a quick read. Sam
There is some important information missing. Is the ticket for an at fault accident, or is it for speeding, or is it an at fault accident due to speed? This will decide how you fight it.
Good point Carl... And yes, you can be ticketed when you haven't signed the ticket. I had this happen in my early riding days. I was in an accident that wasn't my fault; the officer was very friendly and made sure I was ok, but I did receive a ticket in the mail for driving out of class and not having insurance.
Chalenge the officer to an arm wrestling match. If he turns you down run around the court room screaming "he lies, he lies". If that doesn't work you can always take your shirt off. See you wed day.
Having been one of the fuzz years back I must tell you that no matter what you say in your case it's your word against his and you will lose.
I agree... the Judge has heard enough lame reasons why we weren't speeding... fact is we do speed... but some of us speed legally... at the track... All you can do is create reasonable doubt in the eyes of the Judge... admit you mentioned the word *speeding* in the course of the exchange with the officer but you were referring that you were just speeding at the local track and it was a good thing I don't ride that fast on the street because it will kill you... Cross examine the officer and ask if he wrote down your the exact words... if he didn't then you have established reasonable doubt in the eyes of the Judge... It helps if you ask for a court date and then cancel do to heath or family... the longer the time goes... the less officer recalls...