am i screwed?

**joe52985** · 07-10-2002, 09:21 AM

got a speeding ticket a coupla weeks ago and im 17

cop said i was going 35 in a 15 and she said she used radar but she was no where around, gotta go to court the 17th for a hearing thinggy, what does that mean will they take the license away? i think i might get community service my mom said, im in RI if that matters for law stuff thanks

**WhiskeyPapa** · 07-10-2002, 09:46 AM

Man, lots of speeding questions these days...

You say she was no where around. Do you think she made this up? I doubt that's the case.

Were you going 35? If so, show up for the hearing, be a man and admit you were speeding and pay your fine. You can usually request community service if paying the fine would be an extreme hardship.

I seriously doubt that they will take away your license. Speeding is a relatively small infraction, and does not warrant having your license taken away for your first offense.

**hoey222** · 07-10-2002, 09:50 AM

dont the cops need to show proof of your speeding? like a log of offenders

you could also ask when the last time the radar gun was calibrated - sometimes if they let it go - you could get them to admit that the reading could be wrong.

**Speedfreak** · 07-10-2002, 09:53 AM

Show up. If the cop doesn't, they don't do anything.

**mcs328** · 07-10-2002, 10:07 AM

Did she actually stop you or just sent it to you in the mail? Were they testing some new radar camera?

**revil** · 07-10-2002, 01:14 PM

alrighty, this time, your best best is to go in and admit you did it and apologize (if you actually did it of course). They usually knock off half for the first offense if you do that. unless it's really serious

.

anyways, next time your pulled over for speeding you need to know everything! what the cop was doing, how they spoke, what the surroundings were like. ask the cop to see the radar. if they said they clocked you but cannot produce it, then that's a serious minus for them. but sometimes you get a crooked cop... so always have one of them mini tape recorders in your car and start recording as soon as you see those lights

anyways, all of that information you can use to your advantage. there is a website that gives detailed information as to what to do, but i forgot what it was.

**ribitch** · 07-10-2002, 01:17 PM

any speed measuring devices are also calibrated everyso often. They need to be recalibrated every so often. If the device isnt up to date on calibration, then the court usually will throw it out. I believe that is a public record.

The officer also must be certified to use the device they used. If they arent certified, they cannot ticket you.

Good luck

**joe52985** · 07-10-2002, 01:59 PM

the officer (she

) stated on the ticket that the driving conditions were good, and the road conditions are also good, when the road was a notorisly badly lit road (read: no street lights), bumpy, and densly foggy.

when she pulled me over i was with 3 other friends (on the way to a movie) and she got us all outta the car, searched us multiple times for no reason, searched the car for pot which she said she smelled but i know none of my friends do and it was my dads car, and treated me like i was some huge criminal, also, all the speed limit signs are obscured by trees, will photo evidence throw the case out??

**ribitch** · 07-10-2002, 02:04 PM

bring your friends to court with you. Have everyone dress nicely (shirt & tie, or even a suit). take pictures of the sign at a similar time to when the incident happened. Bring the pictures to court.

**Jenny** · 07-10-2002, 02:04 PM

Originally posted by joe52985
the officer (she ) stated on the ticket that the driving conditions were good, and the road conditions are also good, when the road was a notorisly badly lit road (read: no street lights), bumpy, and densly foggy.

when she pulled me over i was with 3 other friends (on the way to a movie) and she got us all outta the car, searched us multiple times for no reason, searched the car for pot which she said she smelled but i know none of my friends do and it was my dads car, and treated me like i was some huge criminal, also, all the speed limit signs are obscured by trees, will photo evidence throw the case out??

Yeah, photo evidence could very well throw it out. Go take pictures of the road, no street lights, speed limit signs, etc.

**joe52985** · 07-10-2002, 02:09 PM

wow...scary just as i post this the north providence police just called my house looking for my parents...i wasnt out today yet!!!! eeekk i didnt do it i swear

**WhiskeyPapa** · 07-10-2002, 02:56 PM

You still haven't told us - were you speeding, and did you know you were speeding?

**leemaj** · 07-10-2002, 03:19 PM

i was going 70 in a 50 when i was 17..got caught on radar...$163 ticket..didnt have to go to court, just traffic school for $30..we sat around and told stories, then we filled out a busy work packet and watched drunk driving videos..fun stuff..

also, i dunno about RI, but in CA, if u do traffic school, your insurance doesnt go up

**mojo** · 07-10-2002, 03:31 PM

Originally posted by joe52985
when she pulled me over i was with 3 other friends (on the way to a movie) and she got us all outta the car, searched us multiple times for no reason, searched the car for pot which she said she smelled but i know none of my friends do and it was my dads car, and treated me like i was some huge criminal, also, all the speed limit signs are obscured by trees, will photo evidence throw the case out??

she can't search you unless you let her or unless there's probable cause. sounds like she asked if she could search you, and you said it was ok, probably out of fear of the po-lice.

**joe52985** · 07-10-2002, 05:26 PM

i was speeding, but i couldnt judge my speed very well because of the fog and windy road, after the last turn i had taken, using the blinker hit the panel light button so i couldnt see my speed for a few minutes

she didnt ask

it was more like
son step outta the vehicle spread your legs put ur hands on the roof
did that for all of us (one of the cops had his gun out, there were like 3 cars there), they put me back in the car and searched it for pot and weapons, she TOLD me this as she was doing it!!! she never asked!!!

seemed to me the ticket was an afterthought to give her reason she pulled us over since there were 4 kids in the car on a dark road at night

**WhiskeyPapa** · 07-10-2002, 06:14 PM

Hmmm... I was going to say "be a man and pay your fine", but I think you may be right - she gave you a ticket because she had to have some reason for pulling you over. She said she smelled pot because she needed "probable cause" to conduct the search.

When I was 21, I worked in an area with a lot of bars, and I got off work at 1:00 AM - the same time the bars closed. I got pulled over quite regularly for the most stupid reasons just so they could see if I was drunk. It was really annoying.

Go to court and tell the judge exactly what you said here. Dress nice and be very respectful. There is a good chance he will let you off with no fine, since you had the go through the humiliation of the search.

Let us know how it turns out.

**JPR** · 07-10-2002, 08:42 PM

Dont use that "couldn't judge my speed" stuff cause the judge will say will probably mention something about a speedometer.

**poiselle** · 07-10-2002, 08:49 PM

You probably will not be helping yourself if you tell the judge that the driving conditions were actually bad since they frown even more on speeding in bad conditions. Just own up to it and pay the fine. If you try squirming out of it because you think she stopped you because you are young (which she probably did) the judge will not be amused. When I was in HS a friend of mine was arrested for possession. The way the cop did the search was kind of questionable, but his lawyer told him to shut up and stand there and he would get it dismissed but if he starts in with constitutional arguments the judge is going to get annoyed at the unrepentant criminal and smack him. Traffic court can also be the same way. Just a thought though.

**sbp** · 07-11-2002, 01:56 PM

Ever think this female cop was looking for cheap feels?

**revil** · 07-11-2002, 07:27 PM

Originally posted by sbp
Ever think this female cop was looking for cheap feels?

What? did she give them the ticket because they didn't feel good or something?

**Ladogaboy** · 07-11-2002, 11:19 PM

In CA, unless they have a "Radar Enforced" sign under the speed limit signs, they cannot pull you over or ticket you by radar. Also, you can push the illegal search, especially since you are a minor. Technically, they can't do anything with you, including seaching your vehicle without your parent or guardian present. You can't even give consent for a search; you can't even be interviewed without your parent present. Of course, we have rights in CA... I don't know where you were... RI I guess

**joe52985** · 07-13-2002, 09:52 PM

eekk, court date is wednesday, i figure im just going to own up to speeding and pay what need be. scary as all hell though!!! i dont know how i am gonna react in court, prolly gonna piss my pants, how long do traffic violation hearings last for? if u plead guilty do they just say ok you owe blah blah good bye, or do they delve deeper into what happened that night, i dont wanna explain everything to a judge and my parents, cause i have to be honest with a judge, uhhh

**WhiskeyPapa** · 07-13-2002, 10:07 PM

Originally posted by joe52985
eekk, court date is wednesday, i figure im just going to own up to speeding and pay what need be. scary as all hell though!!! i dont know how i am gonna react in court, prolly gonna piss my pants, how long do traffic violation hearings last for? if u plead guilty do they just say ok you owe blah blah good bye, or do they delve deeper into what happened that night, i dont wanna explain everything to a judge and my parents, cause i have to be honest with a judge, uhhh

Don't worry about it. I've been to traffic court once. You just stand up, the judge asks for your plea. If you say guilty, he'll impose the fine and you're done. You'll only have to explain stuff if your plea is "not guilty".

You'll have to sit and wait while everyone else has their turn, but it's kind of fun to hear all the stupid excuses they give. It'll be very educational.

**joe52985** · 07-13-2002, 10:40 PM

will the officer be there?

**palayah8ta** · 07-13-2002, 10:54 PM

when ur in traffic court, be a nice boy, and when u plead guilty there gunna ask u if u have n e thing to say. say that u realize ur mistakes and ur not going to repeat it, then PLead for Traffic School. Good Luck, p.s. I F_CKIN HATE COPS WITH ALL MY HEART AND SOUL.

**joe52985** · 07-14-2002, 10:05 AM

Originally posted by palayah8ta
p.s. I F_CKIN HATE COPS WITH ALL MY HEART AND SOUL.

im starting to after my past few experiences, its pretty sad considering they are supposed to be there to help but instead people get off for friggin drug charges but my parents insurance is gonna go thru the roof because a cop wanted to bust my ass!

SPB, it was ultra funny how it happended, she patted me down (serveral times focusing on a certain "key" area), and my friends got the same, but by the big burly guy cop that followed her!