My day in traffic court

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I was in traffic court yesterday pleading guilty to driving 34 in a 25 MPH zone, but seeing if I could keep the points off my record for insurance purposes. I saw a few lawyers I knew there and we chatted it up while the court was in recess between sessions. One of the lawyers I knew was there for a kid in my son’s scout troop who got busted going 50 in a 35 MPH zone. His father, a local ophthalmologist, was there as well.

After court was back in session, what surprised me was the astounding number of no shows. Fully 2/3rds of the people on the docket weren’t there. Why say you’re going to show and then blow it off? The other odd thing was how many police weren’t there. There were several people with some pretty serious offenses that walked (smiling from ear to ear) because the charging officer wasn’t there. It almost seemed that odds wise, it was worth taking a shot that your officer wouldn’t show if you’re charged with anything re driving offenses, and choose to challenge it in court.

The judge divided us into 4 categories. Guilty with States Atty involved going first, guilty with counsel second (the doctors kid), guilty with explanation (me) and all categories of not guilty last.

My lawyer friend did marvelous tap-dance about how sorry his young 17 year old client was, and how mom had already punished him enough and taken away his license etc etc. The judge was duly convinced of his contrition, and told him to go and sin no more. No points.

When the guilty with explanation crew came up, it was actually quite amusing as people came up and explained themselves. The judge let me slide because my record was clean, but what was interesting was who he didn’t let slide. There is seemingly an epidemic of attractive young girls who like to speed because they were out in force. Outfits were tight, and necklines were looow. And seemingly the lower the neckline, the more desperate the situation of the accused re previous points. Some had 2-3 speeding tickets in last 24 months that had been null-prossed (not prosecuted) and were coming to the well once again.

Not a one got a pass if they had any tickets earlier than 3 years ago, and they were pissed. It was quite remarkable. Is like there was almost this palpable, hopeful expectation that their cuteness and tight little young bods were going to bail them out, and when they didn’t, a sour resignation.

The most amusing defendant of the time I was there was this dedraggled, scruffy looking, long haired working man type that was charged with something or other. He came up looking like he slept in his overalls, and offered some nonsensical mumbled reason about why he was asking for no points. When the judge asked him the question he asked all of us "How’s your record” he said "It’s pretty shabby”. The Judge was literally stunned. And said "I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone tell me that before. Working man knew doom was coming when he was told to go sit down.

When the bailiff brought my papers to sign, I bolted and met the doc and his son out in the hallway as my lawyer friend was leaving them to go to his next case. I told the doc I was sorry about buttonholing him last time we met at a scouting event, about prospects for repairing my old left eye injury. He said no problem, and and we talked about the parade of humanity, and peoples’ excuses.

I was surprised when the doc then launched into this near tirade about the bullshit local police and the Gestapo tactics they use. He told me some horrible tale of a year or so ago, about his wife being caught in a ticket rodeo some local police had organized, where people had to go around an obstacle in the road and cross the center line to do so. 70 people were given tickets (including his wife) in one day. “It was an absurd cattle call when we all came to court. The Judge deferred all the points, but everyone still had to pay the fines. I could see the officers laughing at us as we came up!” He was still pissed!

“Just wait till one of those fuckers come to my office!” he said. His son stood by and soaked all this in.

“Jesus Christ!” I thought “What’s an Ophthalmologist going to do to them?!” I shuddered to think!

We paid our fines, said our goodbyes and went on our merry way.

2

I’m glad you caught a break, but this part sounds to me like complete and utter bullshit. Getting off because you’re sorry and your mommy scolded you? It’s no better than the hotbod brigade. Rich = not guilty. I’d have loved to have seen a poor kid try that angle. So much for blind justice.

3

The kid didn’t have any previous points, which is what I think the Judge mainly looked at. I imagine the doc figured he’d be better off belt and suspendering it by hiring my friend for a thousand or so, vs the chance of paying a vastly increased insurace rate if the points got recorded. I might do the same thing if my kid was up there.

4

It’s been about 20 years since the last time I was in traffic court. It wasn’t quite the way you described, but I recall that, the handful of people with lawyers all got off, without an exception, and everyone without a lawyer got hit with both barrels, without exception. It’s nice if you can afford lawyers so your insurance rates don’t go up. The most egregious example during my day in court was the guy who was tagged, by radar, going 90+ mph in a 45 mph zone. The officer who got him was a) a licensed radar instructor b) had calibrated and tested the machine c) also rated within five mph on visual speed. It was a clear day and no other traffic nearby. Case dismissed. Not even on a technicality, from what I could tell. Just not guilty for driving while rich. Maybe he was somebody important, too, especially given his ride, a Rolls Royce, although I didn’t recognize him. By contrast I had a clean record, no prior tickets, had just graduated from the U with honors, clean cut, etc. Ticketed by the airport police in a known speed trap. The half-a-cop drove up on me from behind at a high rate of speed (it was night and I just saw headlights coming at me fast. So I accelerated because I thought some yahoo was about to rearend me. This was the cop, and he used his speedometer speed as he was catching up to me and said it was my rate of speed. Utter BS. Didn’t matter, I didn’t have a lawyer.

Frankly I would probably do the same if I had the money, I suppose. If he gets another ticket I’m sure Daddy can probably fix it for him. I just hope that kid doesn’t hurt himself or hurt someone because he doesn’t think there are any consequences for his actions.

5

astro,

What part of the country was this if I might ask? In many, many civil traffic hearings, I’ve had only two defendants bring lawyers and they both lost. The latest time, I walked out after them and heard the attorney tell his client, “well, at least we got the fine lowered.” But the fine in his case, which was around $114 to start, was only reduced about $60. So, the attorney’s fee was undoubtedly greater. And, it’s not all that uncommon to have the fine reduced here.

Did they lawyers you saw have more success than people pleading on their own?

And what’s with the judge letting people go if they have a (self-reported) record of no points? That’s strange. So, if I have a clean record I get to skate? And, did he verify what they said?

By the way, at my Department, we are given automatic discipline if we miss traffic court and I’d get fired if I set up violations the way your friend described. (Although, all third-party tales of criminal justice woes are best taken with a grain of salt. :rolleyes: )

thanks for sharing,

AZRob

6

I’ sorry if I wasn’t clear. The doc’s kid (via his lawyer) plead guilty with explanation/excuse (so did I). He was the only defense atty representing a traffic client at that particular court session. Everyone else, including myself, pled our own cases. All the guilty pleaders were essentially just looking to avoid points and/or the ticket being on our record. The fine was still required to be paid for everyone who pled guilty, and there was also a 12 month probation period, where if you re-offended the null-prossed points came roaring back. The only issue was whether the offense was going to go on your driving record, and available to the insurance companies or employers.

The cut off seemed to be around 3 years. It seemed if you had a clean driving record of at least 3 years or older duration you had a good chance of getting null prossed. Under three years, and especially with multiple points/offenses, you were in some difficulty. A fair number of the people with multiple violations had been null prossed previously on the last violation, and were looking for the same dispensation again, which the judge was not inclined to give them again this time.

Your point about people exaggerating is well taken, but the traffic ticket trap/setup was apparently so egregious it (according to the doc) made the papers. I don’t read the local papers as often as I should, but he’s not a BS artist, and I have no reason to disbelieve him.

As a side note I have personally seen things happen like a huge traffic gauntlet set up on a main road coming off a local resort at the end of labor day weekend, that was checking for drunk drivers. I had a car full of tired kids coming back from the beach, and this little parade stalled traffic for more than 2 and half fucking hours. I got home at 12 midnight. It was a combined effort by several police departments, and we all had to get a looking over by the policeman before we could pass. If the police have the power and lack of perspective to jam traffic like that on one of the busiest travel days of the year, I don’t have a lot of difficulty imagining that they think they can get away with almost anything.

7

Assuming that you have the time, it’s always worth a shot to go to traffic court and hope that the cop who ticketed you don’t show. So that’s what I do everytime with a moving violation. If I see my cop walk into court, I usually take the option of traffic school to avoid the points (but still gotta pay the fine + cost of the traffic school). And the court sessions are like cattle calls. My experience has been that no one got off, with or without a lawyer. If it comes down to your word or the cop’s, the judge will side with the cop every time. At best, an offender might get his fine reduced. I had one exception once. I got tagged for driving through a short street that was supposedly only opened for buses and other big trucks. I took photos of the area to show the judge that the street signs were obscured by the buses and big trucks when they’re on the street! So reasonable doubt got me off the hook.

8

So…when there’s an obstacle in the road, just what exactly are you supposed to do??

9

This is going to bother me. Unless there’s more to the story that your friend didn’t mention, I don’t see how you can be ticketed for crossing the center line to avoid an obstacle in the road. The PA Vehicle Code specifically states, with regard to driving on the right side of the roadway:

I’d assume that most other states have similar guidelines.

10

Can’t you just go to traffic school to avoid the points? That’s what I did the time I got a speeding ticket (82 in a 65 on I-95 near Daytona).

It was supposed to be the Improv Comedy Traffic School but it was about as funny as reading the dictionary. But, it was only 4 hours, one evening and I was finished and the points were erased.

Maybe it’s a Florida thing.

11

Before it was dissolved, the town of New Rome, Ohio, was one of those nasty tales of criminal justice woes. Cops in the town would deliberately jam traffic lights so that motorists would think that it was a ‘stuck light’ and then they’d pounce when the motorist went ahead. They made up stories in order to pull people over. Their ‘court’ was in a trailer, law enforcement and judge working together to bring the town higher revenue.

I made the mistake of going through New Rome once, and only once. I was pulled over for my failure to properly display front license plate. There was one major thing wrong with stopping me for that, though. The fact that the plate on the back of my car was a properly displayed Pennsylvania license plate. Pennsylvania does not issue front a front plate. When I told the officer that I had never been issued a front plate because they are not issued in my home state, he said he smelled marijuana in my car and wanted to search it. I was threatened with arrest and told that arguing would be a ‘very bad idea, missy.’

I was lucky to get out of there without a ticket and without being arrested, although there was no justification for either. It was only my continued insistance that my attorney would have a field day with them that got them to let me go.

There are places where officers aren’t disciplined for setting up violations at all, much less fired, even when they outright abuse their power.

12

astro,

thanks for the extra info.

catsix,

thanks for the New Rome story; glad they’re gone

AZRob

13

I once fought the law and . . . I won. Got accused of running a red light in (Prescott, AZ no less), when I actually entered the intersection on a yellow when it changed. The officer said that he “thought I had plenty of opportunity to stop”, but the law is written (or was a the time) that if you enter an intersection on a yellow, you’re allowed to leave the intersection. Got off with a rambling ruling from the judge, which confused everyone in the court. . .

I swear, I thank God this sort of thing isn’t tolerated. Your boobs plus Mommy & Daddy’s little Miata don’t equal any sort of special privileges. I can’t tell you how many times I wanted to shift my F-150 into 4WD and roll over these people who weren’t paying attention.

Tripler
G’head, I’m guilty. Cuff me.