40-6-16 citation..

[sunshine_atl]

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

i have received a citation today that states 'approaching authorized emergency vehicle' as an offence. the problem here was that i was in the lane wherein i had to exit as it merges onto another interstate..so i cud not move over to the adjacent lane..the officer mentioned though that i had ample time and distance to switch to an adjacent lane, however i do not think that was the case...i am confused on what to do here..shud i plead for a NOLO? what is the minimum fine that we are looking at? also the citation says to call a # if presence in court is mandatory or if the fine/charge can be paid via mail. please help me in this matter and let me know how i shud approach this..thanks in advance..

 

[FlyingRon]

If you could not move over, you need to substantially slow down.

Whether you want to plead nolo or not depends on your driving record. It will have no bearing on the fine. If you're absolutely clean, just take your lumps. If you have some points, you may wish to try the nolo if the judge accepts it.

 

[sunshine_atl]

do you happen to know what is the minimum fine in this case, if i do not want to contend and just plead guilty...anyone within this forum has encountered such a citation and what did you have to pay as a fine? any inputs into this are highly appreciated**************...

 

[FlyingRon]

do you happen to know what is the minimum fine in this case, if i do not want to contend and just plead guilty...anyone within this forum has encountered such a citation and what did you have to pay as a fine? any inputs into this are highly appreciated**************...

I believe the fine is a biggie $500.

 

[sunshine_atl]

that's just too much..and that too for no fault from my side..so this what actually happened..on the ticket, it mentions the offense code as 40-6-16 which is the GA Move over law..but when the cop explained to me why i got pulled over, he mentioned that there was a merging lane into the lane i was driving and there were a couple of vehicles trying to get in, so i shud have switched over into the left lanes that were free..But my point was i had to be in my lane since within a mile,i had to exit on a different interstate.So its unclear what he told me vs the offense that is actually specified on the ticket..If i go by the offense, if there are a couple of cop cars on the shoulder with flashing lights how am i supposed to know if they have actually caught someone there and hence present, or if they are trying to move into the lane to catch hold of someone else..If you are driving from a distance, its difficult to figure out why the cops are actually waiting on the shoulder with lights flashing. Also I was within the speed limit and when i saw the cop cars from a distance i slowed down as well.

how shud i present this case/justify in the court? i guess if the cop is not present during the hearing, then it wud make my case strong and there are chances the fine wud be reduced or minimal...is there a possibility of them cancelling the citation if i present my case clearly and the cop is not present, or they call for another hearing under the presence of the cop ? please please let me know...

 

[The Occultist]

Here is your code:

a. The operator of a motor vehicle approaching a stationary authorized emergency vehicle that is displaying flashing yellow, amber, white, red, or blue lights shall approach the authorized emergency vehicle with due caution and shall, absent any other direction by a peace officer, proceed as follows:
1. Make a lane change into a lane not adjacent to the authorized emergency vehicle if possible in the existing safety and traffic conditions; or
2. If a lane change under paragraph (1) of this subsection would be impossible, prohibited by law, or unsafe, reduce the speed of the motor vehicle to a reasonable and proper speed for the existing road and traffic conditions, which speed shall be less than the posted speed limit, and be prepared to stop.
b. The operator of a motor vehicle approaching a stationary towing or recovery vehicle or a stationary highway maintenance vehicle that is displaying flashing yellow, amber, or red lights shall approach the vehicle with due caution and shall, absent any other direction by a peace officer, proceed as follows:
1. Make a lane change into a lane not adjacent to the towing, recovery, or highway maintenance vehicle if possible in the existing safety and traffic conditions; or
2. If a lane change under paragraph (1) of this subsection would be impossible, prohibited by law, or unsafe, reduce the speed of the motor vehicle to a reasonable and proper speed for the existing road and traffic conditions, which speed shall be less than the posted speed limit, and be prepared to stop.
c . Violation of subsection (a) or (b) of this Code section shall be punished by a fine of not more than $500.00.

As you can see, it doesn't matter what the officer is doing (whether he caught somebody or if they are moving into the lane): when you see those lights flashing on the side of the road, you change lanes, or you substantially slow down. The problem with this law is that it doesn't tell you how slow you need to be going, which makes the reasonable speed the officer's opinion. Since the statute does require being prepared to stop, my guess is that 50, 40, 30, maybe even 20mph are speeds that do not leave you prepared to stop. So how fast were you going? Well, in the end, it doesn't really matter, since the state's expert witness (the citing officer) felt that you were driving too fast.

Oh, and as you can see, the max of the fine is $500, so it could be less.

Something I'd like to throw out there: if you communicate in real life about as well as you are doing on here (one example, and this is not your only error, is your spelling of "should" and "would"; this is not text messaging, ya know), then you may find that trying to represent yourself will do you more harm than good. Not trying to offend your or hurt your feelings, but just pointing out that not everybody makes it into law school, and of those that do, not all of them actually get to be lawyers, and there are reasons for that.

 

[sunshine_atl]

Yes, I totally agree to what you are trying to say here. Based on the text of the move over law, nowhere is it mentioned that you should be at a particular speed that the officer would consider as a normal speed and not fine you. Moreover, whenever there is a cop with flashing lights on the shoulder and you are driving in the right-most lane, from a distance it is difficult to figure out if the cop is actually trying to switch over to your lane, or has caught someone and waiting on the shoulder (i.e. someone else got pulled over). In my case, when I saw the cop from a distance, I slowed down from the normal speed (I was already driving within the speed limit). And I could not switch over to the next lane as I mentioned because the exit that takes me to my apartment was within a mile's distance. Can I present the above as a justification that will help to reduce the fine? Is it true that if the officer who gave you the ticket is not present during the court hearing, your case will be strong and resolved there and there, and you will not be called again? please let me know...thanks for all your help and advice in this matter..i truly appreciate your prompt reply..

 

[sunshine_atl]

can someone please please respond to my previous post and let me know any comments/suggestions you have ?? thanks.

 

[HighwayMan]

And I could not switch over to the next lane as I mentioned because the exit that takes me to my apartment was within a mile's distance.

A MILE?

Sorry, but that is NO justification for not moving over. You had about a mile to move back and get over for your exit. I have moved over for troopers with stops AT exit ramps I intended to use. As long as it can be done safely I move over a lane and exit after driving around the trooper.

Based on what you've said you don't have much of a defense.

 

[sunshine_atl]

based on my response above, can someone please tell me if there's a way i can get the fine reduced ? if i plead a NOLO, do they give me a chance to explain my side of it and possibly pay the minimum fine? please help and let me know your suggestions..

 

[The Occultist]

The problem with what you're trying to do is that it's essentially, "I'm guilty but with an explanation," and the part that will hurt you is the "I'm guilty" part of that. Yes, it's possible that a judge may feel sympathy and throw you a bone of some sort, but there is no requirement that he do so. The best thing you can do is seek legal representation. Yes, it can cost some money, but that should be considered an investment considering what the lawyer can do for you. Local attorneys know best what the courts want to hear, and as such present the highest potential in yielding the most favorable results, which could be an outright dismissal (highly unlikely, in my opinion) to some sort of plea bargain (you agree to plead guilty to a lesser offense which could help for when your insurance gets wind of things). Many attorneys offer free/cheap consultations, so you should take advantage of this and sit down with a couple to see what insight they may have to offer.