Red light ticket in Arizona - told wrong court date

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

My brother got a ticket for a red light violation in Arizona. They handle these things somewhat strangely out there in that there is no prosecutor-- just you, the officer, and the judge. He called the court and asked if he could speak with the prosecutor before his court date (not knowing there isn't one). They told him that the court date he had was just an arraignment and he would only be entering a plea of guilty or not. Turns out it was his trial, and he didn't have the evidence he had planned to bring. He talked to the clerk's supervisor and they said they keep a record of every communication to parties, however they had no record of this phone call. My brother's phone records show he called on Friday, left a message, and then received a return call on Monday, but it wasn't documented.

I'm sure he got some official mailing from the court telling him his trial date, but what weight does this screw up by the Clerk's office have when determining if you were prejudiced in your case and unable to properly prepare?

His evidence was going to be photos of the intersection showing that the area was under construction and that an area of loose gravel near the intersection would have prevented him from safely stopping at the point where the light turned yellow. The officer testified that there was no loose gravel and thus my brother was unable to present evidence which would have contradicted the officer's statement and potentially gotten a not guilty verdict.

He normally wouldn't fight something like this but he needs a good driving record to get into a particular mechanic school.

Any helpful thoughts are appreciated.

His evidence was going to be photos of the intersection showing that the area was under construction and that an area of loose gravel near the intersection would have prevented him from safely stopping at the point where the light turned yellow.

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Your brother saved himself some embarrassment, this is a lousy excuse. If there was loose gravel on the road and your brother could not stop for a traffic light, he was driving too fast for conditions. The pictures would not have helped, they would have been evidence against him. It appears the end result was the same.

Yeah that's kinda what I said. He should have just gone to traffic court but he was under the illusion that it mattered if he really didn't go through a red light.

Your response was my first thought but loose gravel really can't be seen until you're almost on top of it--it's not the same as if it were raining at night or similar. So I actually think his defense wasn't terrible, but the complication of having to win on appeal seems tough.

I actually made a post a few days ago in regards to AZ clerks, and the overall message I conveyed was: take anything a clerk says with a grain of salt.

Also, if speaking to a clerk is necessary, this should be done in person instead of over the phone.

And I agree, the photo would not have done much for him.

Thanks guys. I'm going to tell him it's best to move on. I would have liked to see what happened with his loose gravel defense but it's too late for that now and not worth the time/expense for a small % chance of success.