Speeding Ticket Question

[4X4]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

I had a completely wrong name and address on one of my tickets, took it in, and the JP just asked to see my ID and fixed the ticket and gave it back to me

Wrong name? I'd have just tossed it.

[jolinar of malkshor]

Originally Posted by Jayems

So then why are other cops above the law? Why don't they take responsibility for their actions when they get pulled over by their co-workers?

Off-duty cop gets pulled over, all he has to do is flash his city of calgary ID / police identification, and the other cop has no discretion. He won't want to be the cop to give another cop a ticket. Impunity?

They aren't above the law. Do they get special treatment from other law enforcement agencies? Yes it happens, that is how the world works. That doesn't mean they are ABOVE THE LAW. They still get tickets even if they flash their tin. Not to mention, how many times to police let citizens off with just a warning? A lot. So it really is a moot point.

[Antithesis]

Originally Posted by Jayems

So then why are other cops above the law? Why don't they take responsibility for their actions when they get pulled over by their co-workers?

To be devil's advocate, are you then against every single work-related perk that people have? You don't get any? I should be disciplined for the printer paper and stationary I sometimes take home with me?

[Rathji]

Originally Posted by Antithesis

I should be disciplined for the printer paper and stationary I sometimes take home with me?

Even it is so widespread that it is almost considered normal to steal stuff from work, it doesn't make it right. So technically, yes. However I would be shocked to see it happen unless it was on a large scale ( ie walking out with a box full of copier paper)

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by 4X4

Wrong name? I'd have just tossed it.

Well I thought I'd double check, and apparently having the correct drivers license number made up for having my name down as "Bluff Dogan"... which has 5 letters correct out of the entire first and last name.

[Jayems]

Originally Posted by jolinar of malkshor

They aren't above the law. Do they get special treatment from other law enforcement agencies? Yes it happens, that is how the world works. That doesn't mean they are ABOVE THE LAW. They still get tickets even if they flash their tin. Not to mention, how many times to police let citizens off with just a warning? A lot. So it really is a moot point.

Right, but if they're preaching "responsibility" to drivers that they pull over and won't give them a break, I'm sure they expect one when they get pulled over... and im sure it's a favour that is much obliged by their co-workers.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying warning shouldn't happen, i just think with some cops there is a double standard.

[Jayems]

Originally Posted by Antithesis

To be devil's advocate, are you then against every single work-related perk that people have? You don't get any? I should be disciplined for the printer paper and stationary I sometimes take home with me?

No, what I'm trying to say is that if a cop is out there being a hard ass, preaching that people should pay for their mistakes, they shouldn't be getting out of the exact same thing just because they "flash the tin."

If a cop is out there giving breaks where they should, then absolutely they should get breaks too.

[Tron_fdc]

So yeah, here's a scenario.

My girlfriend is driving to Red Deer, doing 115ish in the fast lane (I know, I know). A cop in a ghost car pulls up behind her, tailgates her, so she speeds up to about 130.

Cop pulls her over and gives her a ticket for speeding, as well as gives her sh*t for not pulling over to let people pass, the cop included, who said they needed to get by. Writes out the ticket for 15 over, and marks that it was estimated (no radar).

Now I know this is 4x4's dream scenario (people getting tickets for not getting out of the way), but I told her to fight it. It seems really odd that the cop would tailgate her (which is illegal) then tell her the reason they did it was that they needed to get by. If you need to get by, turn your lights on. If she's impeding traffic, pull her over and tell her that. Don't force her to speed up, then give her a ticket for it.

Dunno on this one, it seems kinda silly to me.

[BlackArcher101]

Apparently they didn't need to get by if they still had time to pull her over and stop, which wasted even more time. To the cop... I see what you are doing there... sneaky.

I'm actually shocked someone got pulled over between Calgary and Red Deer, usually there's nothing. North of Red Deer however, ya...

[Jayems]

I'm sure the prosecutor will say that she shouldn't have sped up to let other cars get by, and by admtting that you sped up to get out of the way of a cop will probably admit your guilt anyway. I guess if you can convince the judge that the cop was out of line and tailgating, then... maybe.

Have you filed a complaint to the RCMP or Sheriff's (who ever it was) that the cop was tailgating? That might help you in court.

At the end of the day, she'll have to prove that she didn't speed, which she technically did... as crappy as that is.

As per the no radar thing, the prosecutor will ask the cop on the stand how good he is at guessing traffic speed without instruments. They're usually within 10km/hr. That might help you too.

[PowerPlayoffs06]

Originally Posted by Jayems

As per the no radar thing, the prosecutor will ask the cop on the stand how good he is at guessing traffic speed without instruments. They're usually within 10km/hr. That might help you too.

That might help in a case where you're caught speeding when you and the cop are in opposing directions at an intersection or something, but in a case where the cop is actually following (tail-gating?) you, I think they'd have a pretty firm grasp of the speed you're travelling at since they'd be moving at pretty much equal speed.

[soulchoice]

Hopefully she fights it and wins. I think that she does have a strong case, even if not a complete win, but a definite reduction for her. If I was her, I would most certainly make a complaint on the cop tailgating her. Good luck though! However, my motto is fight every ticket.

Please in the future, tell her not to be doing only 115 in the left lane though, stay to the right!!!!

[ken0042]

I'm usually in the "don't fight a ticket just for the sake of trying to cheat the system", but in this case I would say she should fight it. Make sure she sticks to the facts- that she was doing about 110-115 prior to being tailgated. Once being tailgated she sped up to make some room, but the tailgater stayed on her tail. Use your car and hers (parked of course) to be able to get an idication of distance the cop was behind her. That way she can say "between 2 and 3 metres behind me" instead of "pretty close." Then be sure to calculate the following distance the cop would have been at- for example if it was 3 metres that is less that 1/10 of a second @ 110km/h.

Make sure she indicates to the judge that she sped up to avoid getting hit, and was planning on resuming her legal speed once she was able to get into the right lane.

This is the reason our courts allow fighting of traffic tickets; to ensure that the odd bad cop doesn't pull stunts like this.

Ridiculous scenario and you're all falling for it. Sped up to keep from being hit? Are you serious?

They obviously weren't trying to get by as they stopped to give her a ticket. I'm guessing it's an embellished story at best to try to assuage some blame for the offense itself.

[ken0042]

Well, BW- You may not believe it because it isn't the type of thng you'd be inclined to do. But I have seen it done before. And with the absense of any further facts, we only have what we've been told to go on. If Tron's gf is lying, then any advise we give here is moot anyways.

Besides, what should one do if somebody is tailgating them? Shouldn't they speed up to increase the following distance, then pull over at the first chance?

[Resolute 14]

Driver: "He was tailgating me."
Cop: "No, I wasn't"
Judge: "Guilty!"

She's not going to win a my-word-vs.-yours battle there. If she fights it, best hope is that the cop doesn't show up.

[Gozer]

She was going 130, she got a caught. She deserved the ticket, can the ACLU entrapment story.

[Tron_fdc]

Yeah that's kind of what I was thinking. If it's a word against word thing she might be screwed.

I would think she can at least get off on the demerits though.

[BlackArcher101]

The tailgating thing is iffy. All you are doing is making an excuse as to why your speeding. In reality, most people that go to court for a speeding ticket are there to prove they weren't speeding at all, not justify it. The law says you may not speed when passing another vehicle, simple as that. If you say you sped up so you can change lanes, then you are admitting you broke the law. Hopefully the judge doesn't see it the way I do or else you are SOL.

[Jayems]

Originally Posted by PowerPlayoffs06

That might help in a case where you're caught speeding when you and the cop are in opposing directions at an intersection or something, but in a case where the cop is actually following (tail-gating?) you, I think they'd have a pretty firm grasp of the speed you're travelling at since they'd be moving at pretty much equal speed.

You raise a valid point.

Originally Posted by soulchoice

Hopefully she fights it and wins. I think that she does have a strong case, even if not a complete win, but a definite reduction for her. If I was her, I would most certainly make a complaint on the cop tailgating her. Good luck though! However, my motto is fight every ticket.

Please in the future, tell her not to be doing only 115 in the left lane though, stay to the right!!!!

If you take it to court and they find you guilty, you can't get it reduced.

If you take it to a first appearance prosecutor, then you can plead guilty to a lesser offense.