Posted on 07/15/2003 11:22:14 AM PDT by mvpel
I resisted my urge to thank the officer for his kindness. But most people in OKC know that you don't speed or run yellow lights in Edmond or you are toast.
...and good looking women getting of with a warning...well, again, I just know plenty of nice looking ladies who can tell tons of "got a warning instead of a ticket" stories.
If you are asking if I have done a scientific study, I haven't. Maybe the government will commission one.
How's the new job going?
Yes but...you can still be speeding and NOT guilty. Example..
Speed limit = 25
Your speed = 30
Cop's ticket = 35
Assuming you take the stand, prosecutor asks you (or your witness)what speed you were going. You say 30 and explain that you've been charged with going 35 of which you are not guilty. The judge, if he/she believes you...should find you not guilty as you were charged for going 35!
I guess you can thank the same older cops that taught me about not ticketing other cops' families. Its a summons after all, not an arrest situation.
Its dangerous to say the least. I don't know how to say "stay in your car" or "turn off your engine" in 20 languages.
Best thing to do is just take it slow. Speeding is only going to get you somewhere a little faster anyway. My first bad traffic accident is something I wish everyone could have seen. This woman was hit crossing the street by an aggressive driver and I can still hear the way she was screaming. Its just not worth the chance.
The vast majority of cops here vote straight GOP even though we're in a union of sorts. So right wing bumper stickers and the like are usually a good thing.
Stay safe..
My friend was nailed for speeding in Korea. He tried the "hands up in wonderment - know no Korean" act. The policeman proudly proclaimed in well rehearsed english "Please follow me to the station". Probably the only english he knew. My friend had to backtrack about 20 miles to the station. Now he wishes he had played the "I am sorry" act and just signed the ticket and worried about how to deal with it later.
Never flown BA so don't know if that is sarcasm or not. But I am sure that BA cannot compare to some of the Asian lines for service.
When I finally got my date in court, there were about five people ahead of me - all of whose cases consisted of their word against the (same) officer's. An assistant DA was there to prosecute the tickets and in every case established the officer's experience, familiarity with the area, notetaking, etc. All lost.
On my turn, I proceded to establish his location, which was on a cross street just south of the clearly-marked beginning of the SZ. I was travelling north-bound in a 35 mph zone when he clocked me. He actually pulled out from the cross street, travelled across the southbound lanes, and stopped his motorcycle in front of me. We were both at a complete stop and the beginning of the SZ was still ahead of us. Therefore, it was impossible for him to have recorded my speed inside the zone. I also presented photographs showing the relative loactions of the cross streets, school zone, and traffic signs. I felt good.
Then the assistant DA got up and tried to get me to concede that my recollection could be faulty, that the officer may be more familiar with the area in question, and that it was possible that he could have been on a different cross street inside the school zone. I politely held firm and maintained my version of events.
Then he put the officer on the stand. After establishing his bona fides, he asked for the officer's version of events. Sure enough, the officer stated under oath that he was on a different cross street that was well inside the SZ. And that, of course, he clocked me inside the SZ. My heart sank into my stomach. If he had shut up then it would have been solely my word against his. and I had already witnessed whom the court believes in those situations.
But he didn't shut up. He went on to embellish, "I could not have been on the street that the defendant alleges, because there is a solid median there. I would have had to jump the median with my motorcycle to get to the northbound lane." Or words to that effect. Suddenly, I felt like Perry Mason.
When I got to cross-examine the officer, I reminded him of the pictures I had submitted to the court. I actually walked up to him and asked him to identify which intersection had a solid median and which did not. He had to concede that his recollection was not correct and that perhaps he was mistaken about his initial location. I promptly sat down and shut up.
The judge then made a statement about how I probably did commit the infraction, but there was enough doubt in the officer's testimony that he had to dismiss the ticket. I was a little irked that the judge still thought I did it, but had enough sense to keep that to myself. The officer actually had a mini-outburst (he said Damn! or Man! or something like that loud enough for me to hear across the courtroom - and also pounded the table once with his fist). Needless to say, he was not pleased. That was delicious.
All in all, the end result was extremely satisfying - even though it was only a lousy 8 MPH over ticket. It was also a little scary, seeing that I would have easily lost if the officer had just kept his lies straight.
She entered an intersection - still in the neighborhood - where she had the right of way. A lady ran a stop sign and did $1500.00 worth of damage to our vehicle. My daughter was cited for driving without an operators license.
We are using the experience to learn about the law. Last week she plead "not guilty" before a judge. On Tuesday, 7/22 she goes to an omnibus hearing. We studied the state code under which she was cited, and it does not govern the road upon which she was driving. Furthermore, the individual at fault for the accident was not cited precisely for this reason.
Nevertheless, I was fit to be tied when I heard about the wreck and how she was allowed to drive with neither license nor permit. The spouse and I had a talk about that one.
Well, we'll see what happens.
However, 15 years ago when I fought my traffic ticket in court, the testifying officer either was mistaken or was perjuring himself when described the reading showing on the radar gun which I had demanded to see. It so flummoxed me that he would lie that I botched my case and lost.
Now I realize that cops are human too and during court trials on TV or in the newspappers, I take what they say under oath with a grain of salt.
How so...no complaining witness...no case. What am I missing?
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