I was driving on a road I take daily & ALWAYS see cops. I had my husband on the phone (hands free). I saw the cop raise his laser gun, put it down & by his actions, I knew he was gonna pull me over. He did. Said I was going 60 in a 45 which is a load of crap. I saw him & the road is at an incline. You have to have some serious lead in your foot to go 60 on this road. If I deserved the ticket, I'd take it without question, but in this case, it's just not true. I had my kid & dogs with me. He told me my dogs had to be caged inside the car, but he was not going to ticket me for that but ticketed me for speeding. I have not had a ticket in 13 years, I had 2 tickets before which I paid no problem because I deserved them. I did some research & there is no pet law in the vehicle code book nor is there a municipal law. If I go to court & tell the judge he was not honest about the dog thing, do you think it would rasie enough doubt to make the judge question his honesty about the speed?
2007-11-15 10:30:54 · 12 answers · asked by k_powell76 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law Enforcement & Police
occured in San Clemente, CA
2007-11-15 10:59:06 · update #1
No, it is not a legitimate reason. The dogs were just an observance after the fact. If you can add what city you live in, I'll try to research it further, so it doesn't cause you a problem in the future. As far as 15 mph over the limit, that is excessive, but the Officer will have to prove it in court. You will also have a chance to prove that you were not driving that fast.
Edit. The Officer was correct. The dogs must be secured in a carrier. They are considered a distraction.
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/brochures/fast_facts/ffdl28.htm
2007-11-15 10:45:15 · answer #1 · answered by CGIV76 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Bringing up the dog thing will not deter of soften the blow from the judge/commissioner. The officer will just say that he was mistaken about that, but his LIDAR doesn't make mistakes, or something to that effect.
Just go and plead it like you did above. Did you actually look at your speed? I mean, you saw him point the LIDAR at you. I would have immediately looked at my speedo. How fast were you going? The judge will ask. If you were even doing 47, the judge would still uphold the ticket, I've seen it, I was the cop in a case. By you saying "I don't know." he will surely uphold the ticket.
2007-11-15 11:01:49 · answer #2 · answered by California Street Cop 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, I do. Absolutely. It's probably even grounds for discipline. Cop bosses should know if an officer is providing misinformation about the law. It casts a shadow on his competence and his speeding claims, and your own pretty good record will certainly assist. Fight and win!
Seriously, though, is it prudent to drive with your pet-slaves in a car? What if you have to stop suddenly?
2007-11-15 10:42:04 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Let's see, you were talking on the phone to your husband, had dogs loose in your vehicle, child in the car, driving etc. The cop was stationed for the sole purpose of checking vehicles for speeding. Hmmmm I would say the cop had a lot less on his plate and locked ya speeding and you really didn't know how fast you were going. You can always have your day in court and see what happens.
2007-11-15 10:58:27 · answer #4 · answered by RedMan 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
If you are going to fight the ticket, you need to do it on the evidence, or lack of, as it relates to the violation you are charged with.
Although this behavior by the officer may be questionable, it does not relate to the offense of speeding, and I doubt the judge would even consider it.
2007-11-15 10:34:11 · answer #5 · answered by trooper3316 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The best defense on speeding is to request to see the radar/lidar calibration log. If you are going to court anyway, might as well make him produce it. If he can't prove that it was calibrated or check regularly then you may very well win. A lot depends on the judge though.
No, I'd leave the dog issue out. The guy was being a jerk off and trying to make you think he was doing you a favor, but it won't add to your speeding defense. IF you want to make issue of it contact his supervisor. Making up BS laws to avoid a disgruntled customer is chickensh*t.
2007-11-15 10:57:24 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Doesn't sound like a legitimate reason to me. Even if there's no specific law on animals inside the car, there should be a general law that says that you cannot drive with distractions, and if the animals were distracting you and hurting your ability to concentrate, then it would be illegal regardless.
The only way you can beat this ticket is to focus on the speeding charge.
2007-11-15 10:49:55 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
actually, when you go to fight the ticket, the only thing admisable is info about the ticket. you can't fight the ticket and win if you say "he was rude". doesn't prove you innocent. so if you say "he lied about the dog in the cage thing", the prosecutor will say "objection, relevance" and the judge will say "sustained". ....guilty. now pay your ticket.
2007-11-15 12:29:45 · answer #8 · answered by Spoken Majority 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If the cop used his laser gun then it would probably be reading that you were speeding. If you think he was wrong, get your speedometer checked. Maybe it was off.
2007-11-19 10:24:36 · answer #9 · answered by Ava 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
His dog issue has nothing to do with the speeding, so I don't think it would help your case. You can argue the speeding I suppose, but I wouldn't use your dog to do it.
2007-11-15 10:40:02 · answer #10 · answered by krisski 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋