What is the name of your state? New Jersey
I was at the stop light. I was talking on my cellphone(using my earpiece so my hands were free) but I didn't realise the light changed right away and the car behind me honked the horn. I was startled and took off but I levelled off to around the speed limit and stopped at the subsequent traffic light.
At the light after that one, I pulled up behind two cars and I heard a police siren, the police SUV was behind the car in my rear. I thought either the cop had an emergency or he was pulling over the person behind me. He turned off the siren and didn't pull the person over. He came to my right and didn't do anything. I didn't know what was going on, so I didn't pay any attention to the SUV anymore.
When the light changed I moved off behind the two cars and the officer put his siren back on and motioned for me to pull over. I pulled over. He claimed I was doing 48 in a 24mph zone and that I was going so fast that he only just caught me; he said he was trying to catch from about 0.1miles from the first traffic light ( he was on a cross street after the 1st light). He posted the ticket location as the intersection of the main road and cross street. I feel like he was trying to meet his quota for the month and was just looking for someone. I'm pleading not guilty because I feel that I was targeted.
Can I say that I may have accelerated from the light and exceeded the limit at that instance because I was startled but I wasn't speeding consistently ( no more than 5 seconds). He also didn't pull over the person behind me. And I couldn't have been going "so fast that it took a couple of light before he could catch up to me" on a road with a lot of stop lights. Help I've never been to traffic court before.What is the name of your state?
I was at the stop light. I was talking on my cellphone(using my earpiece so my hands were free) but I didn't realise the light changed right away and the car behind me honked the horn. I was startled and took off but I levelled off to around the speed limit and stopped at the subsequent traffic light.
At the light after that one, I pulled up behind two cars and I heard a police siren, the police SUV was behind the car in my rear. I thought either the cop had an emergency or he was pulling over the person behind me. He turned off the siren and didn't pull the person over. He came to my right and didn't do anything. I didn't know what was going on, so I didn't pay any attention to the SUV anymore.
When the light changed I moved off behind the two cars and the officer put his siren back on and motioned for me to pull over. I pulled over. He claimed I was doing 48 in a 24mph zone and that I was going so fast that he only just caught me; he said he was trying to catch from about 0.1miles from the first traffic light ( he was on a cross street after the 1st light). He posted the ticket location as the intersection of the main road and cross street. I feel like he was trying to meet his quota for the month and was just looking for someone. I'm pleading not guilty because I feel that I was targeted.
Can I say that I may have accelerated from the light and exceeded the limit at that instance because I was startled but I wasn't speeding consistently ( no more than 5 seconds). He also didn't pull over the person behind me. And I couldn't have been going "so fast that it took a couple of light before he could catch up to me" on a road with a lot of stop lights. Help I've never been to traffic court before.What is the name of your state?
Given your good driving record it would be wise to try and protect it. MD gives probation before Judgement on almost every case like this but I don't know about NJ. Call the court clerk and ask about it. If not and you don't want to learn all the case law, and argue it yourself - it is going to be cheaper in the long run to get an attorney for $500 or so - it sounds like you have a case. You will lose your good driver discount and get a hefty insurance hike if convicted as is.