CaliSuby

iTrader: (10)

Okay so today in the morning as I was driving to work on the fast lane going 65 behind a Saturn..a stupid lifted work truck was all up on the nuts as if I was holding traffic up or some, as if I was going under speed limit and holding him up from driving faster. He then throws his high beams on...This is 4am near 41st Avenue in Santa Cruz , pretty dark. Anyways lights are bothering me, so i think, switch lanes, get in front of the Saturn and bamm he cant throw his high beams at me or tail gate...so i down shift and get to 75 may 77 at most just enoght for me to get that jump...**** people do 80plus on hwy 17 with all those turns and how close the lanes are to eachother.. I hit 77 max on a lonely road (3 cars total around me at the time) thats just a simply straight away..

Anyways as soon as i switch lanes BAMM chp in there off the side of the road with lights off and all (couldn't even see him cause its so dark nor did the cop have his lights on). Sure enough he jumps right on the high way and the truck behind me slowed down once he saw the popo too.

So officer pulls me over..Im totaly cool with the officer just honest and respectful. Explain to him my circumstances. He tells me "I understand you, BUT your not making it any safer by speeding". So inside my head im like are you serious..(5 seconds later) then ....

I didnt say anything, nothing was gonna change the officers mind, why waste time an get worked up over something i have no control over. I am a chill driver with only one speeding ticket when i was 19yrs old (in my old 04 STi) I was only five minutes from work..ONLY reason i sped up a LITTLE is because the guy behind me had his high beams on me..

What can I do? Anyone have any useful info? Thanks iclub..

CaliSuby

iTrader: (10)

lol he was all flashing his flash light at my hella horns too....inside my hood scoop asking me why i have soooo many illegal parts on my car..I said its stock except for the lip officer. He didnt say anything after that.....lol menso popo..

buzzword

iTrader: (11)

It sounds like he caught you fair and square. My advice would be to go to court, ask for traffic school, pay your fines and fees, and chalk it up as a lesson learned.

Online traffic school is something you can pay $15 for and complete in 45 minutes or less. There are even free options available, but I went with one that cost a bit because friends told me it was ridiculously simple. I can look through old emails to see if I can find the name of it if you're interested.

STi-owns-evo

iTrader: (4)

Trial by dec. Explain that because of the truck behind you, the fact that he was tailgating you and blinding you at the same time, made it very unsafe to drive. Thus, to avoid keeping yourself in the dangerous situation, you had to do what you had to do.

CaliSuby

iTrader: (10)

Will this hold up? .....^^^

CaliSuby

iTrader: (10)

I'm just so mad cause I only sped up to 75 was for a good reason, to pass the ******** who was making it unsafe for me. Now it's gonna cost me? Seriously wtf!! I wasn't driving 75 the whole way, just at that point to get away from the truck...

buzzword

iTrader: (11)

I've heard of this working and also not working at all. The problem here is that you're still admitting guilt, so what is the court's motivation to dismiss the case with an admission of guilt on paper? Probably worth a shot, but you'd still be out the entire dollar amount of the citation until they decide since they won't refund you until your case is dismissed. Also, if they do decide you're guilty you are still on the hook for the entire amount, vs. going to court which in most cases results in the judge reducing the fine when you show up.

Also isn't there a guy who posts here that has helped a lot of members with their written declaration statements?

Edit: trial by written declaration usually disqualifies you for traffic school if you are found guilty though IIRC... Just saying you should weigh your options - actually going to court could also mean the judge might give you 90 days to pay instead of having to drop the whole amount right now.

CaliSuby

iTrader: (10)

I just pmd Calvin.... How do those letters of declaration wrk?

CaliSuby

iTrader: (10)

Damm iphone

sonic_subaru

If he wasn't visible, with his lights off, parked. Wouldn't that be considered entrapment?

Jimboi

iTrader: (2)

Lol I would do the same thing if someone was to high beam me like that. But then again I would slow down to the point where the truck would speed up to change lanes. Or even brake check that ****. But it's too late for that now. Just my 2cents

slugrx

iTrader: (12)

Letter of declaration you don't plead guilty just have to pay bail and if you win you get it back

CaliSuby

iTrader: (10)

That's exactly way I'm saying.. By not having his lights on their presence isn't felt therefore people who dont see em like the tailgater/high beam flashers think it's cool to act the way they do, otherwise if he made his presence noticeable the guy would think twice before acting the way he was. Don't feel like they are actually helping. Instead of helping it's more of a set up than anything they can prevent accidents from happening by putting themselves out there where we can see them they hide to get cash... Doesn't make sence to me... They are suppose to PREVENT accidents BEFORE they happend not just bust people for AFTER the incident

LGT Mark

iTrader: (5)

I took a defensive drivers course for work one time, and the CHP presenter explained a scenario where a car going speed limit in the fast lane, forcing other cars to pass to his right, was being an unsafe driver and could be ticketed.

I would contest, you have 2 things going in your favor:
-The Saturn in front of you was driving unsafely by going under the speed limit in the fast lane (illegal)
-The lifted truck behind you was tailgaiting (unsafe)

You made the safest decision in the scenario by passing the Saturn to avoid both him and the truck.

If the cop shows up in court and agrees that both cars were there when he pulled you over, you have a good chance. I'm not a lawyer or anything, so I can't guarantee anything, but I think you have a good case.

I went to court one time to dispute a stop sign ticket (cop didn't show... woot). The lady before me was in the left most lane, swerving back and forth before crossing the carpool double lines and 4 other lanes to exit (in socal). Cop was watching her, and soon as she exited he pulled her over. She pleaded that her kid has ADD and was acting up, hitting her head and yelling, so she had to exit right away to calm him down and find his drugs. She pleaded that she didn't want to put any other drivers on the road at risk because she was getting distracted by her kid. The Judge tried to reinforce that it wasn't safe, and she shouldn't have done it, but the judge did end up waiving the ticket.

If you can add in how your decision was made in order to avoid an unsafe situation, that would be pretty solid ground for your case.

pter

iTrader: (1)

I got popped last year like that.
BMW 5 series in carpool lane was going slow and slightly veering off (on his phone). I waited, passed on the right, got popped by CHP on the side of the road.

Did the trial by written dec, lost. Now I'm looking for cheaper insurance companies lol.