DianneinCA
Junior Member
What is the name of your state? CA
Yes, hi, I just received a ticket for failure to stop. It is marked as an infraction of the law. The officer who stopped me told me I did not stop but was going 5mph through the stop sign. I do not know how he knew this being he did not have a radar gun. Anyway I CLEARLY remember coming to a stop, even though it was for a second (I remember feeling the weight shift in my vehicle that happens when you stop). This is at an intersection where there was NO traffic and only a three way stop where each stop is very easy to see if there is another car at the stop sign. So there was no need to stop for a long time since I would not have to wait for another car to go through. Anyway, I KNOW I stopped. Where the officer was sitting (and yes, he went back there again after me so he was obviously there to "catch" offenders), you can not see vehicles approaching until they are just a few feet from the line.
I am going to go to court and plead not guilty, as I feel that the officer lied when he said I did not stop and was going 5 mph. I go 5 mph down my driveway and it does seem fast. I was tired this day and was not driving that fast to begin. I stopped long enough to see that the intersection was clear and safe to proceed eventhough it may have been for a split second a few feet behind the line, but in front of the sign where I still had a clear view of the intersection and being this officer could not see my vehicle approach the intersection, perhaps was looking down, distracted or whatever and looked as I had already began my acceleration? I have photographs of the intersection showing it to be a slow, but very clear one. Will these help me in my case? It will just be my word against his, but do I even stand a chance eventhough I feel I am in the right? I have a clean driving record and eventhough I know I can pay the ticket and go to traffic school, I know I did nothing wrong. Is there anything else I should know/do before going to court? I am not sure if there was a videotape or not, so should I ask for discovery while at court to see if there is one? Do CHP still use quotas (I don't want to bring this up unless it's valid)?
Thank you for any advice you may have to offer in this matter.
Yes, hi, I just received a ticket for failure to stop. It is marked as an infraction of the law. The officer who stopped me told me I did not stop but was going 5mph through the stop sign. I do not know how he knew this being he did not have a radar gun. Anyway I CLEARLY remember coming to a stop, even though it was for a second (I remember feeling the weight shift in my vehicle that happens when you stop). This is at an intersection where there was NO traffic and only a three way stop where each stop is very easy to see if there is another car at the stop sign. So there was no need to stop for a long time since I would not have to wait for another car to go through. Anyway, I KNOW I stopped. Where the officer was sitting (and yes, he went back there again after me so he was obviously there to "catch" offenders), you can not see vehicles approaching until they are just a few feet from the line.
I am going to go to court and plead not guilty, as I feel that the officer lied when he said I did not stop and was going 5 mph. I go 5 mph down my driveway and it does seem fast. I was tired this day and was not driving that fast to begin. I stopped long enough to see that the intersection was clear and safe to proceed eventhough it may have been for a split second a few feet behind the line, but in front of the sign where I still had a clear view of the intersection and being this officer could not see my vehicle approach the intersection, perhaps was looking down, distracted or whatever and looked as I had already began my acceleration? I have photographs of the intersection showing it to be a slow, but very clear one. Will these help me in my case? It will just be my word against his, but do I even stand a chance eventhough I feel I am in the right? I have a clean driving record and eventhough I know I can pay the ticket and go to traffic school, I know I did nothing wrong. Is there anything else I should know/do before going to court? I am not sure if there was a videotape or not, so should I ask for discovery while at court to see if there is one? Do CHP still use quotas (I don't want to bring this up unless it's valid)?
Thank you for any advice you may have to offer in this matter.