Stalker Dual Fail

[toddwilli5]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? ( NY )
I am a truck driver in New York and I'm hoping I get some answers here.
I was driving yesterday on I-87 heading southbound. I was in the middle lane of three lanes and was headed uphill. There was a construction sign indicating that the right lane was closing. I had a car on my right approaching at a high rate of speed. ( my thoughts are that he was trying to get around me before the lane ended) I also had a vehicle in the fast lane approaching at a moderate pace but gaining. The car to my right passed me ,got to the top of the hill got into my lane and started to brake. The other vehicle was almost on me at that point. As soon as I reached the top of the hill I was about 2 car lengths behind the car to my front, the other car on my left was right beside me. The Trooper was about 180 yards ahead of us and pulled out immediatley, and he pulls me over. Nevermind there are to other vehicles obviously going faster. So the trooper comes to my window asks for my lic,reg,ins. I comply without saying a word. He turns to me and says I got you doing 72 in a 55, why are you driving so fast in this truck?? I told him that is absolutely impossible because the truck couldn't attain that speed, and that he obviously, either got the car in front of me or the guy to my left. He said No,No, don't tell me you weren't going 72, I got you!! So basically I kept quiet took the ticket and now plan to fight it. The thing is, My truck is governed to 65, So I know without a doubt that he has the wrong guy. When I topped the hill and saw him I obviously looked down, as does everybody, It's instinct. I was going roughly 59 at that point so maybe when he saw me i was doing 62 tops. I was empty so the hill didn't really slow me down so much. Can I beat this ticket??? Or am I screwed!!! I can provide a letter from the mechanic that services our vehicles verifying that the truck is indeed governed to 65. Some how I don't feel that will be enough. I have never gotten a fair shake on any ticket and sure as heck don't feel it changing for me. Seems like the judge don't even listen to the case. Thanks for any help you guys can give me.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

That is a serious violation. If you are convicted and receive another within 2 years, your CDL will be suspended for 2 months. I suggest you find a local lawyer, to fight the ticket. Most likely, the attorney will try to negotiate an amended plea. In your case, due to the Commercial anti masking provision, you are limited in scope to a possible violation. May I suggest NY Code - Section 401, paragraph 4. When the officer pulled you over and requested your vehicle registration, I am sure you provided tractor registration, however, failed to offer trailer registration. This would fulfill the anti-masking provision, eliminate pleading or losing to a serious violation and result in no points on your CDL. If an inspection was done, you would need to file against CSA points assessed.

 

[Free_Advice]

The governed aspect will hold no water with a judge. FYI

Catching you v. faster vehicles will hold no water with a judge. FYI

I have no idea what you have told judges before but it appears as if you have had limited success in fighting speeding tickets. You'll need to change how you challenge this tickets in court. If you just plead what you said in your post here, you will lose this one too.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

You can buy computers that plug into the transmission and lie to the master computer, allowing you to speed. As stated that will hold no water as a defense.

 

[HighwayMan]

If you are convicted and receive another within 2 years, your CDL will be suspended for 2 months. I suggest you find a local lawyer, to fight the ticket. Most likely, the attorney will try to negotiate an amended plea. In your case, due to the Commercial anti masking provision, you are limited in scope to a possible violation. May I suggest NY Code - Section 401, paragraph 4. When the officer pulled you over and requested your vehicle registration, I am sure you provided tractor registration, however, failed to offer trailer registration. This would fulfill the anti-masking provision, eliminate pleading or losing to a serious violation and result in no points on your CDL.

Again with this nonsense! Where do you get this crap from? You refuse to answer questions and provide a statutory reference to back up your claims.

OP's license will NOT be suspended for two violations within 2 years. It's two violations within a THREE year period. And the suspension is for 60 days. And the violations must be those defined as serious traffic violations - or else they don't mean any more than any other traffic offense.

OP is NOT limited in his plea bargaining. He may agree to any plea the court offers. Chances are he will NOT be offered a registration violation - that is ridiculous. If the speed gets dropped to less than 15 mph over the limit then it is no longer a "serious traffic violation" for CDL purposes. Or he can offer a guilty plea to VTL 1110(a) - disobey a traffic control device. This is a standard plea arrangement is speed cases.

OP - how do you know the trooper used a Stalker Dual? What court is adjudicating this matter??

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Again Highwayman, when you learn the ins and outs of possessing a CDL, we will have a logical conversation. Until then, you will just rant, because you lack the knowledge. What is important is OP understands, as all the truckers asking have. That is why they have the answer they needed and don't re-post.

 

[HighwayMan]

Again Highwayman, when you learn the ins and outs of possessing a CDL, we will have a logical conversation. Until then, you will just rant, because you lack the knowledge.

You seem to enjoy making up things. Until you provide references to back up your alleged "facts" and detail what your qualifications are, your information should be ignored, or at least taken with a very large grain of salt.

You have a history of providing incorrect and misleading information to posters. When called out on it you start name calling and never do answer any clarifying questions about your "facts". A clear example is the CDL suspension issue which I already addressed. Or are you insisting that you are still right and that the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles is wrong? I have, at least several times in the past, asked you to provide references to back up your claims and your response has been to completely ignore the queries.

I have written well over nine thousand tickets of all types over the past twelve years, including several thousand CMV violations. I've inspected or participated in the inspection of many hundreds of large commercial vehicles. I've prosecuted well over a thousand thousand traffic cases throughout the lower 10 counties of New York State, including many CMV cases.


The OP may plea to whatever the court offers, and I would bet a month's pay that it will not be a registration violation. There is no restriction written in any New York State law that I know of which limits plea bargaining in traffic cases, except for Aggravated Unlicensed Operation which is a misdemeanor (see VTL 511 (5)). Other than that anything goes. Certain courts and judges may have their own pet peeves or guidelines, but there is nothing in any state law which limits this.

My advice to the OP is to enter a not guilty plea and go to court - the trooper will not be there. Speak to the designated prosecutor about your case and if you have any questions about what you are offered get back to us here. And please post what court is handling your case. It's written on the face of your Uniform Traffic Ticket.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Yet you continue to prove your ignorance of the effect of FMCSA regulations on CDL drivers. The court is not going to just let him walk away with no fine/ticket. If he hires a local attorney to negotiate a ticket amendment, to failure to possess registration, it will do all the things I said.

OP cannot afford to take a chance on getting fired by his employer for receiving the ticket or getting any CSA points that may accompany it, if the trooper did a roadside inspection. It is not worth risking his CDL status and job over.

You have proved many times over your ignorance on the effects of the tickets you write CDL holders. If you had a better knowledge of how gravely you affected their ability to stay employed, when you write them tickets, you might rethink it. If you had the wisdom to not cite them for equipment violations, they have no ability to force their employers to fix, again, you might rethink it. Until then, continue to ignorantly drive your cruiser off into the night and leave CDL advice to me.

 

[HighwayMan]

Yet you continue to prove your ignorance of the effect of FMCSA regulations on CDL drivers. The court is not going to just let him walk away with no fine/ticket. If he hires a local attorney to negotiate a ticket amendment, to failure to possess registration, it will do all the things I said.

This has nothing to do with FMCSA.

I never said the court will let him walk away with nothing. It is a possibility though if the case is not prosecuted. But then again, what experience do you have in New York traffic courts?

Very few courts would allow the plea you propose. And it makes no sense for them to do so. There are plenty of more appropriate charges than a failure to present a registration certificate for a trailer.

OP cannot afford to take a chance on getting fired by his employer for receiving the ticket or getting any CSA points that may accompany it, if the trooper did a roadside inspection. It is not worth risking his CDL status and job over.

If the trooper wrote him a speed then he did NOT do a roadside inspection because he wasn't trained to do so.

You have proved many times over your ignorance on the effects of the tickets you write CDL holders. If you had a better knowledge of how gravely you affected their ability to stay employed, when you write them tickets, you might rethink it. If you had the wisdom to not cite them for equipment violations, they have no ability to force their employers to fix, again, you might rethink it. Until then, continue to ignorantly drive your cruiser off into the night and leave CDL advice to me.

You have no idea WHAT violations I write anyone.

Your .sig says it all: I am a legend in my own mind
I would certainly agree with that, at least.

And yet again, you ignore questions and do not back up your alleged facts with references and refuse to state what your qualifications are.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

This has nothing to do with FMCSA.

I never said the court will let him walk away with nothing. It is a possibility though if the case is not prosecuted. But then again, what experience do you have in New York traffic courts?

Very few courts would allow the plea you propose. And it makes no sense for them to do so. There are plenty of more appropriate charges than a failure to present a registration certificate for a trailer.

If the trooper wrote him a speed then he did NOT do a roadside inspection because he wasn't trained to do so.

You have no idea WHAT violations I write anyone.

It has everything to do with FMCSA. You just do not know that. When trying to prove you were a CDL expert, you established how little you know about the subject. If no inspection was done, CSA points do not apply. He only needs to negate the effects of points toward his CDL and to protect his job. A lawyer can discuss an amended charge on behalf of his client. If not, NY must have a different legal system than the rest of the country. He cannot afford to roll the dice on the officer showing up. You don't need to know what I do for a living. All you need to know is that I make more money than you and that I know more about CDL driving.

 

[Zigner]

Not to take sides - but I feel the request for citations to the applicable New York state law is appropriate OH.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Here is the relevant FMCSA statute all states are required to be in compliance with.

Disqualification of drivers. - Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Here is the antimasking provision all states are required to be in compliance with. This is why the only alternative, is amending the charge.

http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/fmcsrruletext.aspx?reg=384.226&keyword=masking

 

[HighwayMan]

The "driver disqualification" statute is what New York mimics and does NOT in any way contradict what I stated. It's right there in the New York CDL Driver's Manual. For instance, speeds less than 15 over DO NOT COUNT as serious traffic violations. I said that plain as day. Disobeying a traffic control device also does NOT count as a serious traffic violation. Those are the most common reduced charges in speeding cases. Your implication that a registration violation charge is the only conviction that will save the OP's license and career is doing the OP a disservice and is down right wrong. Very few courts would accept that and you don't seem to accept that the standard plea deals would have the SAME result as your nonsense registration charge.

As far as the "masking convictions" statute goes, please explain how that limits plea bargaining. The driver is convicted of whatever offense he enters a guilty plea to - period. A plea bargain is not a "masking of a conviction". A conviction on a lesser charge as a result of a plea bargain is not a "mask", "deferral", or "diversion" - it is a conviction.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Sigh.....

You are again showing lack of understanding for the effects of federal law on state law. There is no reason for OP to assume a plea bargain will be offered at the time he goes to court. By having an agreement in place prior to this, he avoids the potential backlash of receiving a serious CDL violation, a second which can cause his CDL status to be suspended for 60 days. Which, in the real world, usually results in termination. Creating a false charge out of thin air, in court or out of court, for a CDL holder, violates the anti-masking regulations. You are intentionally being offered a plea for which you are not guilty, in an attempt to mask the original charge. Having an agreement in place, amending the original charge, to another charge OP is guilty of, prior to court appearance, removes any likelyhood that the state will be unable to convict, at the same time not violating the anti-masking provision, because OP is pleading guilty to a charge he is guilty of. It is in his best interests, to pursue a course of action that will present the least likely possibility of a serious conviction and license points, when it offers an insignificant conviction and no points.

 

[HighwayMan]

You are again showing lack of understanding for the effects of federal law on state law.

And YOU are again showing your lack of understanding of how New York State courts work.

There is no reason for OP to assume a plea bargain will be offered at the time he goes to court. By having an agreement in place prior to this...

The trooper will not be there when he first appears. He will be offered SOMETHING and that SOMETHING may be agreeable to him. There is NO opportunity to reach an "agreement" BEFORE a court appearance.

Creating a false charge out of thin air, in court or out of court, for a CDL holder, violates the anti-masking regulations. You are intentionally being offered a plea for which you are not guilty, in an attempt to mask the original charge.

So you think that a reduced charge offered during a plea bargain must be something the motorist actually did? That's ridiculous and that is not what plea bargaining is about. I disagree with your interpretation of the statute regarding plea bargaining being a form of "masking". However, even IF you are right, there is NO way for anyone to know this. The charge is amended - period. There is no record of the original charge. Besides, one could also consider what you propose to also be "masking". The original, valid charge goes away and is replaced with something unrelated! Gee, where did it disappear to?

It is in his best interests, to pursue a course of action that will present the least likely possibility of a serious conviction and license points, when it offers an insignificant conviction and no points.

That is in EVERY violator's best interests. It is not something that most courts give in to.

And according to the federal statute, 10 over the limit (for example) is an insignificant conviction.`

There are many charges acceptable to most courts which will have the the same effect from the motorist's perspective.

If you have any New York State case law to support your interpretation of FMCSA in New York courts now is the time to post it.

One key point for the OP which I just thought of is if the "CDL vehicle" spot on the Uniform Traffic Ticket is filled in. It is often ignored/overlooked. If it is not marked then this whole argument is moot.