Speeding ticket - need advice

No one else asked: Were you speeding? Were you going 39?

wstuart wrote:

but he wouldn't have gotten busted if he wasn't speeding. Unless the cop is making all that up, which is highly unlikely.

It's a lot more likely than you think. Towns make a lot of money off speeding tickets, increasing the pressure to catch speeders whether they are there or not.

Cops are just people. They have the same fallibilities as the rest of us. They're certainly no less corrupt than the rest of us.

Besides, the guy didn't have a radar gun. I don't care how long he's been doing this, the "I can tell" defense shouldn't pass muster.

In regards to "were you speeding?" I can only say what I told the officer and that was I did not look at the speedometer and I was not going to say yes or no becasue that is the truth. I feel like I was not speeding but I also do not think that the poilice just pulled me over becasue he was bored.

I think I was being fair and reasonable when I asked to see the radar and that is when I felt I was not speeding when he said he had no proof other than "his can TELL I was speeding?"

I have the ability to pay the fine ($77) but I can not accept that burden of proof be place on me when he is now on record with me saying he had no radar to show.

Wisconsin, you should print out what you just wrote, and take that to court with you as your argument. If you are articulate and simply state the facts of the case, the judge may side with you, especially since the cop did not have a radar reading on you.

wisconsin,

let me reiterate what i posted before, which may have been lost in the shuffle. what he has is more than enough proof. this is his job and is probably the thing he does more (except than eat donuts) is look for speeders. he's considered an "expert" of sorts and his testimony his highly valued, moreso than yours, by a judge.

a little story: a friend of mine is a cop in a suburban town. he told me that he could tell a car's speed just by looking at them. i called bullshit. he went and got his speed gun. we went out to a road, posted at thirty, but people will routinely go 15 MPH or more over. i had the gun and got their speeds and he called out how fast he thought they were going. the majority of the time he was dead on; the most he was off was by 2 MPH (always under the actual speed, by the way).

as long as he had a clear, generally unobstructed view of your car driving for about 50 yards or so, i'd say you're cooked.

and what do you think happened before the advent of the speed gun?

Go to court...at worst, if by some backwards way you lose, youre only out court costs which wont double the amount of the ticket. Most likely the officer won't show, but you sort of challenged him by saying "see you in court" so he might show. Still, that's a heap of bullshit to say "I can just tell" and no judge will buy that as a basis of speeding. Wreckless driving? Yeah. Speeding no.

Speeding is one of the EASIEST laws to break. It is almost as if they are purposely designed to be easily breakable. Likely 99.9% of drivers have surpassed a speed limit at one time or another for some reason or another.

Of the 35,000 miles on my car proabably 30,000 of them were at speeds beyond imposed speed limits. I just got a speeding ticket for the first time last weekend trying to attend to an urgent matter. I figure it's my time and I deserve it seeing how 85% of the time I spend driving I'm also speeding. Whatever.

It happened on a highway where the speed drops from 65mph to 55mph for a few miles and then picks back up to 65mph. Cops says I was doing 78mph in a 55mph zone. Sure I was over the limit regardless, but the mere fact that it's a bit of a speed trap makes me want to contest it.

This was through a town nowhere near where I live and there's no way in hell I'll be able to show up to court that day. I pled not guilty and requested a supporting deposition. Not sure if any of that will do any good but I figure I'd give it the old college try. Anyone know how effective that is? Is the request even valid if I don't plan on showing up to court? I really don't mind paying the ticket, but will try to avoid it if I can. Any ideas?

The cop doesn't have to prove that you were going 38/39 mph. They are trusted to know when you are exceding the speed limit, and for a trained officer, the difference between 25 and 40 is pretty clear.

14mph is a four point offence. You can go traffic school to get rid of three of the points. If you go to court, admit guilt, but argue that you might have been going 30-35, but no way 40mph. 1-10mph over the speed limit is only a three pointer, and traffic school will bring you back down to zero.

This is a speeding ticket...holy crap!!!!

*********************************************************

Stillwater biker tagged going 205 mph

Terry Collins, Star Tribune

September 22, 2004 TICKET0922

Oh, what a tale Al Loney will have to tell for years to come.

The Minnesota State Patrol pilot was flying his aircraft Saturday near Wabasha watching for speeders when he saw two motorcycles blazing down Hwy. 61, and,

"Vrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!"

Loney clicked his electronic stopwatch as one bike burst ahead near a white marker on the road. He clicked again a quarter-mile later.

He checked the time. Double-checked.

His clock read 4.39 seconds, equating an amazing 205 miles per hour.

"Unbelievable," Loney said Tuesday, recalling the moment. "I've never seen anything like it."

He radioed a State Patrol officer down the road who arrested the fast rider and gave him a speeding ticket.

"By all accounts, this is probably the fastest speed we've ever caught anyone," said Kevin Smith, a spokesman for the Department of Public Safety. "It's astonishing, even for the most seasoned state trooper."

Samuel Armstrong Tilley, 20, of Stillwater, was ticketed for reckless driving and driving without a motorcycle license.

And, of course, he was ticketed for driving 140 mph over the posted speed limit -- 65 mph.

Darwin Holmstrom, of Crystal, who has written several motorcycle books, including "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Motorcycles," said Tuesday that it is impossible that Tilley's bike reached 205 mph without "mindless modifications."

He said it would cost up to $25,000 in modifications to reach that speed on a $9,000 bike.

"Well, I don't think the kid is very smart, but if he hit 205, then he should be at the Bonneville Salt Flats (an annual speed racing time trial in Utah)," said Holmstrom, 41, a former regional editor for Motorcyclist Magazine.

"He was probably running [up to] 160, and that's insane on public roads. It's suicidal. He has no idea of his own mortality."

The second rider also was ticketed for speeding at 111 mph, Loney said. Both cycles were towed because the riders weren't licensed to drive them.

A reporter's calls to Tilley's home were not returned Tuesday evening.

Loney said he was confident that he measured the right speed on Tilley's Honda 1000 motorcycle.

"I guess he's a young man who doesn't realize how precious life is and that accidents do happen," he said, adding that he has helped ticket motorcycles traveling in excess of 140 mph.

The danger, Loney said, is that Tilley could have hit a pothole or roadkill, or had sudden equipment failure. The trooper said he expects Tilley will get a substantial fine and possibly jail time.

A search of speeding tickets written by state troopers, who patrol most of the state's highways, between 1990 and February 2004 shows the next fastest ticket was for 150 mph in 1994 in Lake of the Woods County.

"Quite frankly, the guy is even lucky to be alive," said Smith, the Public Safety spokesman. "Think about it, one bad move and that's it. I have two words for that guy and anybody else willing to do something like that -- Speed kills."

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

Terry Collins is at

tcollins@startribune.com

.

I heard in some states you can take traffic school online.

So tell us again...why DID they invent the radar gun? And why did cops start using them?

Show up in court and tell the judge you are not bound by his so called "laws". Declare your home a soverign nation unto itself with you as the dictator. Then you can tell them all to kiss your ass.

Now, they probably will follow this up with some trumped up bullshit illegal firearm indictment. Stand firm though. Remember, you've already warned them you're immune to the U.S. laws and ways. Don't back down. It could mean millions for you in the end.

Call an in-state law school. Their students have a 'free advice' hotline night as part of their curriculum once a week usually. The Wisconsin State Bar should know more about this.

luv2run wrote:

So going 70 through a residential neighborhood or school zone would be okay with you?

You chose an extreme example. With all the turns you would have to make through a residential neighborhood, I doubt you could even keep your car on the road at 70 mph.

No speed limits wouldn't mean you go as fast as you can all the time. You would still go at a safe speed and (I would hope) would slow down in busy areas. But on most roads you wouldn't be forced to choose between driving ridiculously slow and breaking the law.

Just don't pay the ticket!

I got a 75 dollar ticket in Maryland over 6 months ago and got a bunch of notices in the mail, but nothing happened. I got pulled over agian in CT for a warning and the cop checked me on the computer and nothing popped up, so I'm free and clear.

A better story would have been that you were running or on a road bike going 39 mph in a 25 zone, then I'd frame my ticket.

ok... this is what you need to do...

1. look up the "right to discovery" on the internet. this will help you get access to all the police officer's notes (he keeps notes on his copy of your ticket), the date his car's speedometer was calibrated, AND what HE remembers of that day. BASICALLY if you can prove he doesn't remember the events of that day then you can make a motion to have him dismissed as a witness.. then they have NO witness (you need to look this stuff up online too though).

2. have your questions SET OUT. ie. ask him how far behind you he was when he started "pacing you". Ask him how far behind you he was when he stopped pacing you. Try to trick him into admitting he gained on you while he was pacing you.

Speed enforcement laws vary from state to state. As a military policman, I've enforced state laws from several locations. IE, Fort Hood, Texas uses Texas laws, Fort Shafter, Hawaii uses Hawaii laws, etc.

I've never shown the person I've stopped the radar unit. Have never been required to. I've also pulled people over after getting them on radar traveling over the posted limit, only to have the radar handheld unit reset when I placed it on the passenger seat (the reset button get's pressed) I still wrote the ticket, and have had it stand up in court when the speeder fought it. I've never lost a speeding ticket, and have had several contested.

As far as an experienced police officer know your speed by sight only, yes it can happen, however, you still have to verify speed with some form of device, (radar, vascar, laser).

However, I would still fight it, you never know what mood the judge is!!

Wisconsin wrote:

I told him I would see him in court and he said it would be his word against mine.

These words are too late to help Wisconsin, but here is some advice for those of you who get pulled over for speeding (or any other kind of moving violation).

Never say "I will see you in court" to the police officer. In fact, never act contentious at all. Don't admit guilt, but be polite. In some cases, a polite demeanor will result in you getting off with a warning or some lesser infraction (like a fix-it ticket). The other reason to be non-confrontational is related to something others have mentioned: officers will often not show up in court. If you act contentious (i.e., say that "I will see you in court"), the officer is more likely to make a special note to show up for your court date.

Don't be so smug...

Maryland and Connecticut are both members of the Non-Resident Violators Compact (NRVC). The compact reports moving violations from one state to the other. Wisconsin and Michigan are the only two states that aren't memebers, so it's just a matter of time...

Also, credit reporting agencies can and will check your driving records, and they will report the moving violation to your insurance company.

Laugh it up funny boy... you should have paid the $75