R
rumblefrenzy7
Guest
First off, at a quick glance, I couldn't tell if this site was designed for questions regarding laws in the United States or elsewhere. But to anyone who might be able to help me, my situation occurred in West Bridgewater, MA, USA--I am sorry this is so long, but I gave all the information which I though would be neccessary.
Anyhow, I received a citation last summer after being stopped, supposedly, for having an expired emissions rejection inspection sticker.
The car was a black Camaro, so it was naturally a "Police Magnet", and yes, the sticker was in fact expired. I was at a stoplight, in the left lane, waiting to go straight through the intersection. There were two cars in front of me, in the same lane, and two cars in the lane to my right. A police cruiser was parked at the far right curb, on the other side of the intersection, facing the center, approximately 35 feet from the end of the curb.
When the light changed, the two vehicles in the right lane, which were one small import in front, and the giant Ford Expedition behind it, both turned right. Both of the two cars directly in front of me, as well as myself, went straight. From the position the police car was in, the officer could only have seen the left front corner of my car until the import and the Expedition turned right, and I would be halfway through the intersection. Keep in mind that the closest my car came to the officer's head was at least 40-45 feet (this I can prove with official diagrams and maps I obatined at the West Bridgewater Assessor's office), and that this happened at night.
After going through the intersection, there was an S.U.V. right behind me. I looked into my passenger door mirror, and saw that the police officer was in pursuit, but had not turned on his blue lights.
By turning right at the intersection to follow me, he would have had to turn right on red, which is clearly marked as an illegal maneuver at this particular intersection. As I said before, he made this turn without his blue lights on, which I am guessing is illegal (?). He did not turn on his blue lights until traveling against traffic in the opposite lane, next to the S.U.V. behind me. He did not seem to mind that the S.U.V. was tailgaiting me.
Once he stopped me, I discovered that this was an older officer, most likely in his sixties. First, he strolled around my car for about twenty-five seconds, as if to look for something illegal or improper. He needed to put on thick-lensed glasses to see my inspection sticker. Only AFTER he read the sticker did he ask for my license and registration, and still needed his glasses to read them. He indicated on my citation that my car was a Pontiac. Any Police officer with even minimal experience should not have made this error. The make and model were correctly printed on my registration, as well as the name badges on the bumpers and fenders of my car.
Given these circumstances, the officer's poor vision, and the errors that he made, is saying that I should never have been pulled over in the first place actually a legitimate defense in court? If not, what is my best course of action for my appeal, and do you think it will be successful? Can prior driving record be entered into evidence in a civil offense magistrate hearing (I previously had one wrong lane violation from 1997-I was a minor) Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Anyhow, I received a citation last summer after being stopped, supposedly, for having an expired emissions rejection inspection sticker.
The car was a black Camaro, so it was naturally a "Police Magnet", and yes, the sticker was in fact expired. I was at a stoplight, in the left lane, waiting to go straight through the intersection. There were two cars in front of me, in the same lane, and two cars in the lane to my right. A police cruiser was parked at the far right curb, on the other side of the intersection, facing the center, approximately 35 feet from the end of the curb.
When the light changed, the two vehicles in the right lane, which were one small import in front, and the giant Ford Expedition behind it, both turned right. Both of the two cars directly in front of me, as well as myself, went straight. From the position the police car was in, the officer could only have seen the left front corner of my car until the import and the Expedition turned right, and I would be halfway through the intersection. Keep in mind that the closest my car came to the officer's head was at least 40-45 feet (this I can prove with official diagrams and maps I obatined at the West Bridgewater Assessor's office), and that this happened at night.
After going through the intersection, there was an S.U.V. right behind me. I looked into my passenger door mirror, and saw that the police officer was in pursuit, but had not turned on his blue lights.
By turning right at the intersection to follow me, he would have had to turn right on red, which is clearly marked as an illegal maneuver at this particular intersection. As I said before, he made this turn without his blue lights on, which I am guessing is illegal (?). He did not turn on his blue lights until traveling against traffic in the opposite lane, next to the S.U.V. behind me. He did not seem to mind that the S.U.V. was tailgaiting me.
Once he stopped me, I discovered that this was an older officer, most likely in his sixties. First, he strolled around my car for about twenty-five seconds, as if to look for something illegal or improper. He needed to put on thick-lensed glasses to see my inspection sticker. Only AFTER he read the sticker did he ask for my license and registration, and still needed his glasses to read them. He indicated on my citation that my car was a Pontiac. Any Police officer with even minimal experience should not have made this error. The make and model were correctly printed on my registration, as well as the name badges on the bumpers and fenders of my car.
Given these circumstances, the officer's poor vision, and the errors that he made, is saying that I should never have been pulled over in the first place actually a legitimate defense in court? If not, what is my best course of action for my appeal, and do you think it will be successful? Can prior driving record be entered into evidence in a civil offense magistrate hearing (I previously had one wrong lane violation from 1997-I was a minor) Any help would be greatly appreciated.