"Fight the ticket. The state will have to have her testify, & if she doesn't show up, the state is SOL. Since the officer didn't see the incident, most of what the officer can testify to is hearsay & inadmissible. (Anything *you* said is admissible, so I hope you didn't admit guilt.)"
*** You can bet your ass that she will show up. Mainly due to the fact that your conviction on this charge will make her insurance claim against you a 'slam-dunk'.
"An illegal lane change generally means changing lanes in an intersection or in an unsafe manner. Unsafe would cover changing lanes without doing a head check."
*** Actually, an 'unsafe lane change' can be due to several things, including failure to provide proper lookout, failure to signal, etc.
"Since you made 2 head checks, you can argue that she must have been doing something to contribute to the accident -- speeding, moved into the left lane, etc. You can also argue that you did not actually change lanes."
*** Yep, those will sure help!! The issue here is very simple.... did YOUR actions cause the other driver to take evasive actions to avoid a potential collision??? And based on your post, it sounds likely. All of the 'excuses' offered won't fly when considering only that FACT.
"Did you hear/feel your tires go over the reflective road turtles?"
*** And who said there even were 'turtles'??? I guess that I missed something.... or was this imaginary??
"If you post the exact code section you are charged with violating, we can look it up. Or you can look it up here:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+TOC"
*** I have already looked and was not able to find any statute as to 'illegal lane changes'. So, EXACTLY what were you cited for??