Traffic Court Discriminations

[Naz24]

Ok so i'm FUMED right now.

A couple weeks ago, on my way to the gym on campus, i was driving and stopped to let someone cross, after they crossed, i accelerated hard (wanted to clean out fuel injectors lol )... SPeed limit is 25, i accelerated hard up to about 30-35..

anyway, about 30 seconds later i see the flashing lights behind me.. oh shit.

Cop pulls me over, and tells me that he pulled me over because i was driving at an unreasonable speed. ok.. No radar on me...But then he tell me he pulled me over because he had just finished writing someone else a ticket, and that person told him to go after me.... ANyway, the cop gives me a whole lecture on how he could be giving me wreckless driving, etc etc etc. He writes me a ticket for "speed not reasonable & prudent)..

SO this morning, i go to court. I walk into the prosecutors office, and all he will do for me from the 3 point ticket, is reduce it by one point, to a failure to signal.. my only other option was to go to court. WHich lets be honest, Cornell student in a BMW versus a cop who happened to be head of traffic safety at Cornell. I'm fucked. So I accept the 2 points and $180 fine (luckily because of my platinum coverage on allstate, no change in premium)

Eitherway, one of the locals who had about $3000 worth of traffic fines went in after me, he got away with ZERO points, and $200 fine. Now tell me this isnt discrimination?!?! I'm a college student, only in ithaca for 9 months, i'm from NJ. They dont like us i guess

We're in Ithaca.. the prosecutor was wearing suspenders like he was a NYC attorney, what a jackass

[Dark5yde]

Originally Posted by Naz24

Ok so i'm FUMED right now.

... SPeed limit is 25, i accelerated hard up to about 30-35..

.....speed not reasonable & prudent......

......Now tell me this isnt discrimination?!?!

He wrote you a ticket for breaking the law as you admitted to doing. The DA doesn't have to give you crap when you go in there. You should be thankful you got it reduced at all. Write it off as a dumb mistake and move on. I see no discrimination.

[Naz24]

Originally Posted by Dark5yde

He wrote you a ticket for breaking the law as you admitted to doing. The DA doesn't have to give you crap when you go in there. You should be thankful you got it reduced at all. Write it off as a dumb mistake and move on. I see no discrimination.

I forgot to mention, he had no radar on me... Only observable difference

[Dark5yde]

Originally Posted by Naz24

I forgot to mention, he had no radar on me... Only observable difference

Which in court stands up 99.9% of the time.

[Naz24]

Originally Posted by Dark5yde

Which in court stands up 99.9% of the time.

so youre saying i should've gone to court?

[Dark5yde]

Originally Posted by Naz24

so youre saying i should've gone to court?

No you would have lost. Unless you had a lawyer or the officer didnt show up. I'm saying the judge will use "the trained eye of the officer" excuse over the "he didnt have radar" one.

[motordavid]

I went to court to fight one tik in 50 yrs of driving. It was a chump/trumped up charge, and the cop knew he was simply being retaliatory for not paying attention/almost hitting me, circa 1986.

I gave my story to the local NY judge, (Greenwood Lake, NY), and the cop gave a completely inaccurate/made up version. The judge looked at me for 5 seconds, looked at the local cop for 10 seconds, and found me 'guilty'. The cost was the fine plus add'l court costs vs just paying the fookin fine.

I would not waste my time in local kangaroo court without a local lawyer and only if it was really 'worth it'. It ain't worth it Naz, or worth getting cranked about it... you summed it up about the Cornell student in the NJ plated BMW. ;>)
GL, mD

[HPIA4v2]

Not sure about New Jersey or New York area, here most traffic lawyer charges $400-$500, most will say the ticket will be dismissed due to "technicallity" ( and they are always "technicality" however small).

Maybe too late for you now but next time get a lawyer. I know for fact, lawyer can ask when the radar was calibrated etc and we, mere mortal" can't (or the judge would throw a book on you if you did).

[tmv]

I'd pay a traffic counselor (lawyer) instead. The case would have been thrown out.

[TwinTurboGTR]

Originally Posted by Dark5yde

Which in court stands up 99.9% of the time.

Errr... not true???

Before the use of Laser and Radar, VASCAR was the go to move. At least in Jersey. But most traffic laws within the tri-state are similar. An officer ticketing for speed must use radar or laser. Just by eye doesn't cut it. The NJSA 39 code covers it extensively.

While the wording of the ticket may be justifiable since it wasn't a summons for "Speeding; X miles in a Z mile zone" the prosecutor just wanted to make an example of Naz. 9 times out of 10, you have a clear record, the prosecutor will drop the points and increase the fine. So an appropriate summons in NJ would be Speeding 10 MPH over the limit. (BTW 25MPH zones are difficult to fight because of the way the law is worded. Most 25MPH zones are within neighborhoods, campus parks, or schools.) Going to court and speaking with the prosecutor will normally have the ticket plead down to a 39:4-97 or a careless driving summons. Be issued no points (Vs. 2 for speeding) but pay a substantial fine. Careless driving starts at $255 plus $33 court cost on your first offense.

So was it discrimination, no. Should you have gone to court??? How much is your time worth to you per hour? You got a BS ticket to generate revenue, 2 points, and a story.

Next time, brake check the cop, let him hit you... Then you reallly got a story! lol