In one of the other threads (GPS...) I had posted a question to see if anyone else had ever beaten a freeway radar ticket on FWY 5 heading for the border.

I consider this relevant since most of us are extremely impatient to get through those gates.

I had gotten a ticket in the middle of the year from a CHP who sat just past the last interchange before Dairy Mart Rd off to the side with his radar pointing at you as come around the bend.

You cannot see him but he'll getcha by the time you finally do.

So that was how he nabbed me for going over 100 mph on the freeway. I researched the shit out of the infraction (not a misdemeanor nor felony nor impound situation as many said it was).

This ticket is a mandatory court appearance and you cannot send in a not guilty plea in writing. You have to show up in person and you cannot even just pay the bail for it. They want you there to talk to you I guess.

I went to court prepared to try and discredit the officer with everything I could find as a defense, hoping that I would be able to find something to get the judge to decide that maybe I wasn't going over 100 but certainly over 65 mph.

The reason for this post is to tell you what happened that day in court. The cop no showed but the judge would not dismiss the case because of the severity of the offense. He offered to give me another court date in the future or take a reduced sentence of exceeding 65 mph. I asked if I took the 65 offense, was I eligible for traffic school, but the answer was NO!.

I took the guilty plea to 65 and avoided getting two points on my driving record and paid a $300 fine.

I was facing $2000 in fines and loss of my license for 30 days at worst.

My insurance only went up $49 so I feel like my luck saved me a whole bunch of chica money.

The bottom line is always fight your tickets and show up in court. Half of the cases that morning were dismissed because the officer did not show up in time.

Keep an eye out for those CHP radar traps as you fly down there.

Thanks for posting good info. I was always under the assumption that if the cop does not show, the case is auto dismissed. I guess not. I once got busted for 95 MPH in another state, and the judge yelled at me for about 2 minutes, then I paid a hefty fine.

I usually cruise down to TJ at about 95-110 (traffic permitting). I have never gotten a ticket and have rarely even seen the CHP ... I will be careful in that particular area though.

-Superman-

Speaking of FWY driving, coming from Los Angeles I've often wondered if its faster if I stay on the 5 FWY and go thur downtown San Diego or take the 5 FWY to the 805, which merges with the 5 right at the boarder. Any idea which route would have the most CHP?.

I don't know about chp but the 805 is shorter than the 5 by 1 mile in SD then gets longer by 1 mile in the south so I take the 805 then 15 to 5 or take the 805 then 163 to 5 (preferred route during commute time).

Just a quick reccommendation... I was the proud recipient of a double ticket totaling $600. I hired this atorney called Mr. Ticket (on El Cajon Blvd), who handles most claims for 99.00. He went to court, plea-bargened the 2 tickets down to one traffic school appearance, and was able to reduce the fine from 600 to 200. Best 99 dollars I have spent, and no points on the record. If you have a problem, check him out.

If the officer doesn't show, and the judge doesn't dismis, and you want to plead guilty, remember to say that "I don't waive TIME, your honor."

Here are a couple of links to good infromation on Speed Traps and Tickets. If Mongers start posting on these sites we can cover all bases.

http://www.speedtrap.org/stetlist.htm

http://www.speedtrap.com/
Regards,
User

Senior Pauncho,

I don't get the connection....what does not waiving time have to do with it?

I plead guilty to a lesser charge which was much better than the one I was trying to prove my innocence of. Am I missing something here?

And speaking of time, here is another side note:

I knew I had a court approved change reducing my conviction down to the one point penalty yet 30 days after my court appearance, I received a letter from the DMV stating FYI, they were preparing to send a two point notice to my insurance company.

I had to go see the clerk and get them to correct their records as I was still on the books as a two pointer. It took them about an hour to get the mistake corrected.

Needless to say, I no longer go over 100 mph if there is any way to avoid it.......

You have to really be careful when you approach a bridge overhead as I have seen CHP motorcycle units pointing their radar guns at us coming down the freeway.

After all the research I did on the radar arguments, the best thing I can say is to change lanes and go behind other cars when in an area that you suspect radar in. If they cannot lock, they cannot determine your speed. Unfortunately the more aerodynamic your cars body styling is, the easier it is for the radar to find you. So hide behind the boxier taller cars.

Why don't you speedsters SLOW DOWN? I drive those stretches everyday and you are endangering my life and yours, not to mention the chicas who depend on your money. Think of all the extra sessions you could have had in the zone by not paying those attorneys and fines.

Merican How the hell did the judge justify not dismissing your ticket when the pig no showed?

There's no law requiring a judge to dismiss a case because the key witness didn't show up. They do that as a practical matter to avoid backlogging petty cases. In this case the judge obviously thought the case was too serious to dismiss - so he offered a plea to more minor offense as an alternative to simply postponing the trial and giving the cop another chance to show up. Dude was traveling over 100mph on an urban freeway!

Otherwise, there seems to be about zero enforcement for more routine speeding violations on the I-5 and 805 corridor between L.A. and the border.

Powerslave,

I know, I thought I had it in the bag when he called me up before starting the cases. But then he told me to sit down for a few more minutes.

I did overhear the policemen sitting in the seats to my right say that I was very lucky that the officer did not show up because the 100 mph radar cases are not usually overturned in court.

When I went in for the appearance to plead not guilty and set the court date for the trial, that judge told me the factors that he would consider at that time if I wanted to enter a guilty plea and pay a reduced fine. He told me the guilty verdict is normally $2000. The amount of traffic on the road (light), how new my car was (new), what road conditions were (clean, dry, daylight), and my driving record (clean).

Even though I had the best parameters for getting a reduced fine, I'm positive it would have been more than $300 and it would have still carried a two point penalty for the insurance company to stab me with for at least four more years to come.

I was betting that I could reason that there was at least 4% tolerance within the radar equipment accuracy at the time. I found out during my later research that the equipment runs about 2% error only.

Bottom line is always fight your tickey. It usually cannot hurt you. In my case, my tremendous luck saved my ass again because for the first time ever, I felt that my cross examination of the officer was going to be seen more as just beligerent than fact finding as is usually the case.

Sure there was a chance that he would not have been using a calibrated radar gun but I would not bet my money on it next time. I've beat four tickets over the years by using the courts rules better than the district attorney newbie did each time. I consider this one a win although technically it is a conviction.

the more aerodynamic your cars body styling is, the easier it is for the radar to find you

Is this true or a misprint? It would see to me the more aerodynamic your car is the lower profile it would have to radar/laser ... and that the boxier cars/suv's/vans would be better targets.

-Superman-

Maybe someone on here knows the answer to this question. If someone passes the breath test but the pigs arrest him for drunk driving anyway and give him a blood test, which, 45 days later, comes back negative, does that person get a refund for his car towing fees? This actually happened to a friend of mine at the border.

Here are two quotes from a couple of the "fight your ticket" websites...

"#6: Try to avoid buying a "sporty" car.
First, it will attract every police radar unit around. Second, judges assume it's a "sporty" (i.e. speeding) car. Third, the concept of radar... radar is much more accurate against curved shapes (like 747's or Corvettes) but against a "boxy" shape like the F-119 "box" Stealth Fighter, or a nice "rectangular" truck, radar will not be as effective. The difference isn't much, but it could mean a ticket... or not. Remember, stealth is your friend."


"Reflectivity of the target, however, varies with each vehicle and is therefore of great importance to each motorist.

For highway vehicles, radar reflectivity is mostly a matter of size and shape. The smaller the vehicle, the smaller its reflection, and therefore the shorter the range. Some cars are out of range on some radars until they drive within 500 feet of the antenna. On the other hand, big, flat surfaces perpendicular to the beam make excellent reflectors. The same radar that may be blind to a small car 500 feet away can see a semi truck a mile and a half away. From this you should conclude that the principle of radar is quite easily understood, but the details of its operating behavior are hard to predict with accuracy."

Boxy shape reflects back better whereas a curved shape may reflect away. Bigger is bad. Radar is line of sight so a small target closer may be missed and a large truck further away would be picked up.