Citation Reads 0mph in a 0mph

What is the name of your state? Minnesota

Mpls cop pulled me over and when he came to my car he stated he clocked me doing 41 in a 35 (which seemed odd since it was actually a 30mph zone). The citation he gave me, a printout from the in-car computer, states that I was doing 0 mph in a 0 mph zone. Is this something they can amend after the fact? And if so, don't they have to notify me, or does the verbal given by the officer suffice?

It does matter what the ticket says. But if you plead not guilty and set a trial date, the court has to notify the cop that he has to show up for the trial, and as soon as the cop gets the notice he will probably look over the ticket. If he notices the error, he will mail or deliver to you an amended ticket, and that will be the end of your 0 - 0 defense. But if he doesn't catch it until the day of the trial, you're entitled to ask the judge to dismiss, because you weren't made aware, ahead of time, of the specifics of the case against you - so you could prepare a good defense. The judge may or may not dismiss. He has the option of re-setting the trial for a week or two later, so that you will have time to prepare a defense. But he could be running into the 45 day "speedy trial" limit. If he wants to re-set to a date that is more than 45 days after the day you filed your not guilty plea, he will probably ask you to waive your speedy trial right. Refuse to waive it! If he forgets to ask, and sets a non-speedy trial date, just show up for the new date and argue non-speedy trial.

It may be to your advantage to stretch the pre-trial process out, to the max. After all, what if the cop didn't make any separate notes of what the speed was - all he has is the 0 - 0 he entered in the computer? What is he going to remember if you take all available extensions, and set a pre-trial arraignment, to stretch this out for six months. The cop has the option of simply not showing up for the trial - in which case you win, automatically. And if I was the cop, I would definitely not show up - to avoid the embarrassment.

You might also consider doing a Discovery, which could include a request for a copy of any notes that the officer made at the time of the violation. But this could backfire, so give the question of whether or not to do it, and when, some thought.

If you do any further postings here about the ticket, don't give the date of the ticket, or the location, etc. - the officer who cited you, or one of his buddies, may be reading this.

For more info, go to library and check out books on how to fight a ticket.

Pug