MadMax33 Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 So on the 4th I got pulled over by one of our fine state troopers. He was traveling southbound in one of those Ford Rangers and I was northbound, but I didn't think much of it when he passed by, but he appeared in my mirrors after about a minute. I guess he felt it was important enough to cross the median and pursue me. I knew he was going to pull me over when he appeared right behind me and sure enough, the lights came on and I stopped. Now I could have been three miles down the road if I gunned it when he passed me in the other lane but I didn't think he would actually do it.The posted speed limit is 65mph on that stretch of road but he said I was doing 21 over since he got me at 76mph but here's the kicker. He wrote 55mph on the ticket. Meaning for some reason he assumed it was 55mph in a 65mph zone. It's as clear as day on the ticket. Today I went for a ride to the exact location to be sure and sure enough, it's a 65mph zone, as are most of Ohio's rural highways. I talked with my sister, who is a cop and she says it's all up to the judge really. Still, even if he finds me guilty of speeding, it would be 11 over, which is two points on my license. Now I have no points on my license right now but I don't need my premiums going up so I am contacting legal help. It's worth fighting for, anyways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fusion Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 Yeah definitely go to court. Have had friends having a lot of luck lately having tickets reduced or thrown out altogether. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exSRAaron Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 definitely worth fighting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The King Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 You could definitely plea bargain with that mistake....make sure you talk to the prosecutor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAMBUSA Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 You should be able to get out of it just because LEO's mistake on the ticket. Take it to court and you'll prolly win it. Get a consult from an attorney, it's normally free Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DangBruhY Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 Well, here is the deal... If you are good at debating and can handle yourself, you can go to court and tell the judge that the "posted" speed was wrong. When he says... "It's just a simple mistake and so we'll just go with the difference." Tell him that there being an error on the ticket shows that there are mistakes and the speed he actually clocked you might be ANOTHER mistake.I've run into this problem as well. If you don't stand up for yourself, they will just change the posted speed and carry on with issuing you a fine. (Been there done that) Now that I know what I know... It will never happen again, TRUST me. Good luck and let us know what happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moto-Brian Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 Since when did Troopers start using old Rangers? Do you mean one of the Chevy Tahoes??You're going to get screwed if you fight it. They'll simply say he wrote down the wrong speed zone. Are you 100% sure he didn't get you in a 55 that turned into 65? Otherwise, you can try and fight it, but to claim that he made an error in writting and it could be an error in how he clocked you are two completely different things. If he's good at making notes on pull overs, you're going to waste time and money.If you simply plea no contest, take a few pictures, have a diagram, etc to support the 55 vs 65 thing, you'll be better of fine-wise... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadMax33 Posted July 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 Well, after I got my ticket, I got off at the Rt.30 exit and when I went back the next day, I used the same on-ramp and sure enough, the posted speed limit was 65. In fact, the majority of rural highways are at that same speed. Plus, I rode all the way to 170, where I got on a few minutes before my ticket. Before the area I was pulled over at, it was posted at 65mph, with vehicles exceeding 4 tons, 55mph. His truck was a Tahoe, I'm sure but I have no knowledge of trucks, despite having a job that relies on the rapidly dying light truck industry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DangBruhY Posted July 7, 2008 Report Share Posted July 7, 2008 Since when did Troopers start using old Rangers? Do you mean one of the Chevy Tahoes??You're going to get screwed if you fight it. They'll simply say he wrote down the wrong speed zone. Are you 100% sure he didn't get you in a 55 that turned into 65? Otherwise, you can try and fight it, but to claim that he made an error in writting and it could be an error in how he clocked you are two completely different things. If he's good at making notes on pull overs, you're going to waste time and money. If you simply plea no contest, take a few pictures, have a diagram, etc to support the 55 vs 65 thing, you'll be better of fine-wise...Are you kidding me? If you plead no contest, you are guilty, but don't want to say that you are. I don't know if you know this, but the LEO has to prove what he cited you for is what happened. If you go in and say that the ticket is full of errors and one of them being the speed limit and the other might be the actual speed you were doing... The judge WILL throw it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadMax33 Posted July 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2008 No contest means you agree to the facts of the charges but it's not an admission of outright guilt. There is a major error on the ticket, which questions the credibility of the trooper, who has more or less been patrolling that area for who knows how long, and should know that the speed limit is higher than what he put on the ticket. I cannot be guilty of the charge on the ticket unless he put down 65mph, which was the correct speed limit. Still, 11 over the limit is 2 points on my license. If I plead no contest, I am agreeing that the speed limit is 55mph, which it isn't, and also I would be saying that yes, I was doing 21 over. Which I wasn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fusion Posted July 7, 2008 Report Share Posted July 7, 2008 Yeah go in, plead not guilty, and you'll get scheduled a day in court to plea your case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kawi kid Posted July 7, 2008 Report Share Posted July 7, 2008 the ticket is wrong and 21 over is way worse than 11 over. plus if the cop dont show i believe it gets tossed and you walk out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DangBruhY Posted July 8, 2008 Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 No contest = You, "I'm not saying I didn't do it" = Juge, "You are guilty"You are correct. If you plead no contest, you are agreeing that the speed posted was 55 and you were going well over it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EagleCock Posted July 8, 2008 Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 not sure if this is fact or internet legend, but I've heard that if the cop/trooper makes any mistake on the ticket (location, time, speed, etc) the ticket can be thrown out if you take it to court Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zoner1320 Posted July 8, 2008 Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 See that is the catch that not too many people know. It is all in where you got clocked not where you pulled over. So if it took him 10 miles to pull you over and in that lil section of road is 55 but you pulled over in a 65. Catch my point. I am by no stretch of the imagine calling anyone stupid or anything like that it was more of an FYI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted July 8, 2008 Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 i agree with whodey,you can get a ticket tossed out for any proveable discrepancy, not just listed speed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonzie Posted July 8, 2008 Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 I've been blessed with good luck before, by showing up dressed appropriately.......nice shirt, khaki's, sometimes even a suit & tie......be respectful of the judge, plead "no contest" & ask to speak, or do so when offered "if you have anything you'd like to add".......Plead your version of the facts. I've even asked the judge's advice before......."Your honor......I think there's a mistake on this ticket & don't agree with the officer's assement of such, but I don't really want to waste anymore of mine or the court's time pursuing this further by pleading "Not Guilty", so should I plead "No Contest" & ask mercy of the court"? This has usually opened discussion about what happened, and allowed me to tell my side....Sometimes without even entering a plea yet.I have noticed before that there are usually rep's of the Troopers, Sheriffs, & Towny's in the back, with writeups from the citing officers for the cases being heard that day......So the judge has deferred to them for "their side" before.....Even though they may not physically be there. Point being.....If you got shiddy with the LEO, he may have put it in his notes for the judge to read.If the judge is lenient, I've been lucky to get off with court costs, and even got the points waived once or twice. When he's said "fine waived & pay court costs"......I hurry up & politely ask if there's any way he can waive the points so my insurance doesn't go up. There was one judge who told me last year he's not allowed to do that, but several others have agreed to it. I think they have to write it on the paperwork though, as several have....Otherwise there's no record of it.Again.......Polite/Respectful, humble, well groomed, speak clearly/articulately....No mumbling/slang. Image is everything. Common sense stuff...You got tatts.....Cover 'em up. You got piercings....Take 'em out. Compared to some of the riff-raff they see in there....You'll be a breath of fresh air.**Your results/luck may vary. Not to be construed as legal advice....Only first person re-telling** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadMax33 Posted July 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 Well, there is a posted speed limit sign of 65mph, before the area that I got pulled over in, so unless there is an invisible sign, or my bike weighs more than 4 tons, I have a chance of having it dropped. If I plead "no contest" then I am agreeing that the posted speed limit is 55mph rather than the actual speed limit, and putting me 21-over, something that will not look good on my record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkow97 Posted July 9, 2008 Report Share Posted July 9, 2008 No contest means you agree to the facts of the charges but it's not an admission of outright guilt. There is a major error on the ticket, which questions the credibility of the trooper, who has more or less been patrolling that area for who knows how long, and should know that the speed limit is higher than what he put on the ticket. I cannot be guilty of the charge on the ticket unless he put down 65mph, which was the correct speed limit. Still, 11 over the limit is 2 points on my license. If I plead no contest, I am agreeing that the speed limit is 55mph, which it isn't, and also I would be saying that yes, I was doing 21 over. Which I wasn't.you've got it mostly right here. you don't want to plead no-contest, because you'll be agreeing with 100% of the police report - even the parts that are wrong. The CHARGE (speeding) is correct though, so they couldn't throw this out based on that.Plead not-guilty, and work a deal with the prosecutor. You'll likely pay a small fine, but as long as you have insurance, and a clean(ish) record, you probably won't get any points. The prosecutor may drop it completely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkow97 Posted July 9, 2008 Report Share Posted July 9, 2008 Well, there is a posted speed limit sign of 65mph, before the area that I got pulled over in, so unless there is an invisible sign, or my bike weighs more than 4 tons, I have a chance of having it dropped. If I plead "no contest" then I am agreeing that the posted speed limit is 55mph rather than the actual speed limit, and putting me 21-over, something that will not look good on my record."no-contest" is not an option for you. You've said it yourself a couple times, so believe it!"guilty" will give you the chance to say that the report is wrong."not guilty" gives you teh same chance, but in the privacy of the prosecutor's office. Some judges (with a court room full of other people waiting for their pre-trial hearing) won't cut you as much slack as the prosecutor.if it were me, I'd say 'not guilty.' you can always agree to a guilty plea of a lesser charge after talking to the prosecutor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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