Yesterday I was ticketed in Kansas for running flashing railroad signal on a highway.
The signal started flashing when I was about 150-200 feet from the railroad tracks while I was traveling at the posted speed of 50 mph. There were numerous vehicles well off the side of the road on the railroad easement. The light came on right at that point in time where you can probably stop but you'd 1) have to react very quickly and 2) hit your brakes hard. I made a judgement that I could not stop safely so I continued on. It turns out one of the vehicles was the RR police and he ticketed me for not obeying the RR signal.
Two questions: 1) on the ticket, alll the officer wrote under violation was "Section 8 of K.A.R. 1551; however there is no such regulation (Kansas Administrative Regulations). After some research I learned the proper citation is Section 8 of Kansas Statutes Annotated (KSA). Is this a sufficient error to cause my case to be dismissed? He didn't write anything else, i.e. disobeying RR signal, etc.
2) Can I win on the details of the timing, speed, proximity to RR when the light started flashing?
I've had a few tickets and always plead guilty because I was, but this one just doesn't seem right.
Thanks in advance
The signal started flashing when I was about 150-200 feet from the railroad tracks while I was traveling at the posted speed of 50 mph. There were numerous vehicles well off the side of the road on the railroad easement. The light came on right at that point in time where you can probably stop but you'd 1) have to react very quickly and 2) hit your brakes hard. I made a judgement that I could not stop safely so I continued on. It turns out one of the vehicles was the RR police and he ticketed me for not obeying the RR signal.
Two questions: 1) on the ticket, alll the officer wrote under violation was "Section 8 of K.A.R. 1551; however there is no such regulation (Kansas Administrative Regulations). After some research I learned the proper citation is Section 8 of Kansas Statutes Annotated (KSA). Is this a sufficient error to cause my case to be dismissed? He didn't write anything else, i.e. disobeying RR signal, etc.
2) Can I win on the details of the timing, speed, proximity to RR when the light started flashing?
I've had a few tickets and always plead guilty because I was, but this one just doesn't seem right.
Thanks in advance