Speeding Ticket...Any Advise?

Last night I was the victim of Porsche profiling, I was driving home from a monthly PCA meeting and got pulled over, so did another car behind me. The State Trooper said I was speeding and asked me if I wanted to hear the statutes on racing. I told him that I saw him parked on the side of the on ramp and also pull out way behind me, so I made sure that I did not go over 60mph. It was sureal and could not belive what he was saying, i really was not speeding. I got a ticket, when he handed to me I signed and told him that it seems he is just jealous and it is not my problem that he chose a proffession that does not pay well enough to afford a car like this. Sorry! I am done rambling. Has anyone had any luck using The [SIZE=1]Ticket Clinic? I definitly want to fight this one. I never have gone to court in the past, but it was always my fault. Any advice on how to fight this would help!

You're done. Pissing off a state trooper is a #1 no-no. Polite, courteous, etc. Don't blow it off on the officer. He will get even. Sucks, but no matter how you feel, be polite. Get a decent Porsche-loving attorney (ask your PCA chapter folks) and go beat the damn thing. How much over the limit was the ticket for? Or was it 'racing' instead?

So did you Win... what were you racing? ; )

I agree with Eric. I'm always super nice to the cops... I recently was pulled over near my town, 75 in a 55. I saw the cop on the side of the road too late and he nailed me. As soon as my radar detector redlined I knew it. I pulled over as soon as his wheels started to move, he didn't even turn his lights on. He pulls up behind me and asked why I pulled over. I said gas was $9 a gallon and I wanted to save the town some money. I already had my license, insurance and registration out and handed them to him. He was laughing... in court he'll knock it down to 64 in a 55... 3 points on my licenses. Rob

I think it's always a good idea to be extremely polite to those who have weapons.

Will...I'm sure your were upset and that is understandable. But you did more damage not only to yourself but to other Porsche drivers as well. You just don't talk to a police officer like that. They have real shi**y jobs to begin with and they really don't need some guy in an expensive sports car telling him or her that. Some cops are fantastic and others aren't. Let it go at that. He had a reason to pull you over. You may have disagreed what that reason was. There was a place to explain your side but your show of attitude blew your case out of the courtroom before it got there. Remember...all cops make notes on the backs of their tickets about what was said during the stop...which in most states is admissible evidence in court against the alleged perp. Now he has a reason to pull more Porsche cars over because he probably thinks and, perhaps, now is convinced that Porsche drivers are a bunch of flaming A/holes. For the future...just show them common courtesy, be polite and keep your mouth closed. Hang in...

His job is get you to talk as long as he can and therefore make "admissions" of your violation. Your job is to keep him talking as long as you can and learn everything you can about/around the circumstances under which he is writing the citation. You blew it.

JUSTICE COURT PRECINCT 1 CULBERSON COUNTY 105 WEST BROADWAY P.O. BOX 367 VAN HORN, TEXAS 79855 REFERENCE: DOCKET NUMBER 05-55242 CITATION NUMBER 128344 MOTION TO DISMISS I hereby respectfully request that the citation and any and all charges, fees and fines in this matter be dismissed by the court for the following reasons. Officer Cook�s statements to me at the scene indicate that more likely than otherwise his visual observation of my speed, �tracking history�, for purposes of validating the moving radar indication, was mistaken. Based on information I have obtained from NHTSA, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a citation based on the use of moving RADAR for speed measurement is not to be considered enforceable absent a valid tracking history. I content that Officer Cook�s visual judgment of my speed, �tracking history�, was not only too brief (***) to be considered a valid tracking history but was also more likely than otherwise to have been mistaken. *** Assuming I was traveling just below 75 MPH as was Officer Cook our closing velocity would have been approximately 200 feet/second. Officer Cook stated to me at the scene �that as I came around the curve toward him I was passing everything in sight and he judged my speed to be 86 MPH.�. I immediately informed Officer Cook that Yes, I was passing everything in sight because all of us had just departed the rest area and I was in the left lane accelerating more rapidly that the other three cars. Whereupon Officer Cook immediately responded that he was also trained to use other means, road signs and markers, to correctly judge my oncoming road speed. This latter statement by Officer Cook is quite clearly of a defensive nature. This statement by Officer Cook makes it sound as if he had been unaware of the speed of our oncoming �group� relative to stationary objects until I pointed it out to him. But the statement he made to me after I said that I would be contesting the citation is even more telling of Officer Cook�s overall frame of mind. Officer Cook said: �Why would you contest the citation since you already admitted that you over-speeded your engine?� It is incomprehensible to me that a traffic enforcement officer with a reasonable level of training and experience would take my statement that I had over-speeded my engine as an admission that I had driven above the posted speed limit. As a result of my conversation with Officer Cook at the scene prior to his writing the citation wherein I admitted that I had over-speeded my engine I firmly believe Officer Cook mistakenly took my that statement as an admission of the validity of the moving radar indication. In the alternative since I could not truthfully state at that time that I had not gone over the speed limit Officer Cook decided to write the citation on the assumption that I would not be able to contest it. Summary: Officer Cook�s unquestioned skill at judging vehicular speed was compromised by facts of which he was not aware, could not have been aware, the fact that the group of four cars he observed were all in the process of accelerating up to highway cruising speed having all just departed the rest area.

wwest, I just read your post and my head is spinning. That was awesome. I guess the big question is if it really gets you off prior to court or if it is intended to be read in traffic court.

wwest, can I call you the next time I get in trouble?

Are you a Florida resident? State Troopers love to give tickets to out of towners since almost none of them will fight the ticket. If you are an out of towner, I wouldn't try to prove that the Texas State Tropper is incompetent. This approach may not play well in front of a Texas judge, especially when the Tropper tells the judge what you said at the scene of the citation. Has it ever occurred to you that the traffic judge may not earn much more than the Tropper? BTW I'm close friends with two MD State troppers and it just so happens that at least in MD, State Troppers earn enough to afford Porsches. It just so happens that both of my Tropper friends own $50K Corvettes.

In the 19 years that I have been driving, prior to this incident, I have been pulled over at least 20 times and have always been 100% polite and courteous. This A hole of a Trooper was being totally ridiculos and I let him get the best of me. I couldnt contain myself because of how sureal the whole situation was. I was not racing or speeding at all! Well unless you consider 60 in a 55 speeding...I got a ticket for doing 80mph. and it also said I was driving agressively. Next time I will bite my tongue even harder... maybe the officer will let me go because of the blood running out of my mouth. This is not a money issue, it's a principle and points issue!

You've been pulled over at least 20 times? You need a V1, escort, k-40, or something!

Holy Crap In this case, I don't think the lawman has the problem

ya know.... I've been watching this thread. IMO the whole story is not being told. The admission of "overspeeding the engine" is mentioned in passing in the motion. Assuming that means you hit the limiter, that would be 73mph in 2nd gear (at least in my car).

Lee, those are 2 different cases. and "Overspeeding the engine" could be just over-revving with the clutch on, so engine noise does not always mean hard acceleration

you mean over-revving on deceleration? if so, why would that be an issue in this case?

Yes at least 20 times in 19 years of driving, but most of that was in the first two years of getting my license. I was 17 and had an IROC and a Vette, kinda hard to not get pulled over... young and dumb. I think most of us had done stupid stuff when we were teenagers and lot of us even as adults, this was just not one of those times. I reserve my stupid moments for women issues. BTW I have 2 points on my record, i'm not a habitual offender.

more info on the "over-speeding" please...

Will, Get an attorney. You can beat the ticket or at least keep the points off. I am an attorney and handle traffic tickets,but not in orlando. I have have had some associates refer some cases to the guys in the ticket clinic and they have had some good results. Just a bit of advice. Be nice to the officer even if he is in the wrong. Its no use trying to get out of the ticket right there on the spot. Officers fill out a worksheet and they put down the demeanor of the driver and sometimes this comes back to haunt you in court. Judges are more sympathetic to a driver who was cool and calm than to someone who was insulting the cop and arguing with him, especially when your asking the judge to withold the points Lou

Lou- I fortunately don't have much experience in traffic courts, since I only went to court on two occassions in the last 30 years, but my limited experience suggests that judges are much tougher on those who have a habitual problem. Also, it appears that the alleged violation was in Texas since that's where he's addressing his letter. So you have someone who's from out of State, has a record of speeding, and was abusive to the State Tropper at the time the citation was issued. I think the lawyer had better be a good one to get the guy out of this one. It wouldn't hurt to get a lawyer who was friends with the presiding judge.

~73 MPH in 2nd gear....EXACTLY. Can you imagine how I felt, how I wanted to respond, when the Officer Cook asked me that question? But instead I simply told him that absent knowing what gear I was in at the time my over-speeding the engine was meaningless. The citation was dismissed at trial I assume as a result of the information I provided to the court. $100 for John Elder, attorney in Van Horn, to represent me in court.

Thanks Lou for the advice. He just got the best of me...you had to be there to relize how sureal it was. Again thanks

A lawyer runs a stop sign and gets pulled over by an Alabama Sheriffs Deputy. He thinks that he is smarter than the Deputy because he is sure that he has a better education. He decides to prove this to himself and have some fun at the deputies expense... Deputy says, "Laacense and registration, please." Lawyer says, "What for?" Deputy says, "Y'all didn't come to a complete stop at the stop sign " Lawyer says, "I slowed down, and no one was coming." Deputy says, "Y'all still didn't come to a complete stop. Laacense and registration, please." Lawyer says, "What's the difference?" Deputy says, "The differnce is, y'all have to come to a complete stop, that's the law. Laacense and registration, please!" Lawyer says, "If you can show me the legal difference between slow down and stop, I'll give you my license and registration and you give me the ticket, if not you let me go and no ticket." Deputy says, "Exit your vee-hicle, sir." The lawyer gets out of his car and at this point, the deputy takes out his nightstick and starts beating the ever-loving crap out of the lawyer and says: "Do y'all want me to stop or just slow down?" sorry i could not resist

I was recently pulled over on the Mass. Pike for doing 84 in a 65. The trooper came up to the window and politely told me that he had pulled me over for speeding and would I please give him my license and registration. I said "sure, but would you mind holding my beer while I fish them out of my wallet?" That really pissed him off............

wwest, john only charged you $100? It was $350 for me.. hrmm :> you good friends with him?

You took the words right out of my mouth. Maybe it's different in Flordia, but cops in Pennsylvania make $70-$80K when their overtime pay is included plus tons of fringe benefits (medical, pension, i.e. package deal worth upwards of $100K per year). Plus they usually don't have lots of school loans to pay back. My former next door neighbor was a cop that has since passed away. When his house was damaged, he moved a lot of stuff into my parents garage for safe keeping. That stuff included a large rack of like twenty fur coats, a corvette and other expensive stuff. They can afford a 65K (base price) car which of course can be financed over five years. Something else stops they from buying Porsches (lack of class or sophistication if I had to put it into words). Corvettes are very common cars for Cops to own.

Bobporsche996, So, why were you in Van Horn? And who did the front "bumper" conversion?

wwest, i know john from all the guys at park place.. the front bumper is just an NR Auto TT replica front bumper for the 99-01 with the nr auto headlights covers..