Would GPS data, hypothetically, be admissable?

What is the name of your state? VA

I just got a ticket for 42 in a 25 zone on a hilly back road, but cannot reasonably contest it as I was watching the road, not my speedometer. The officer was set up nicely at the bottom of a hill, and I suspect I'd only coasted up to that speed very briefly before slowing down, as I try to stay around 30 on that road. Would going to court and explaining my position do me any good? I just have a hard time believing this offense is worthy of $142 in fines and fees; would a judge be sympathetic at all, at least enough to reduce the fine? I also have no idea what goes on my record from this.

In the future I’m going to leave my GPS receiver on while I’m driving, so I at least have some independent record of my speed to fall back on; but if I did, and it differed from the officer’s ticket, would the court even accept it as evidence?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[JETX]

The officer was set up nicely at the bottom of a hill, and I suspect I'd only coasted up to that speed very briefly before slowing down, as I try to stay around 30 on that road."
*** Speeding is driving above the posted or lawful speed limit. Why do you think that your speeding due to 'coasting' on a hill should be exempted?? Hell, your own post admits that you 'try to stay around 30' on a road that has a 25 mph speed limit!!!

"Would going to court and explaining my position do me any good?"
*** No one can answer that. We don't know the facts or the court.

"I just have a hard time believing this offense is worthy of $142 in fines and fees; would a judge be sympathetic at all, at least enough to reduce the fine?"
*** See above. Your going 42 in a 25 zone is EXCESSIVE, whether you agree or not. Look at it this way..... you were going almost 50% faster than the law allows!!

"I also have no idea what goes on my record from this."
*** Start with 'speeding, 17 over limit". Add points, insurance costs, fines, etc.

"In the future I’m going to leave my GPS receiver on while I’m driving, so I at least have some independent record of my speed to fall back on; but if I did, and it differed from the officer’s ticket, would the court even accept it as evidence?"
*** Yep. Just present your written 'continuous updated' printout from your GPS for the alleged time of the violation and the court might accept it. If you mean just your word ("Your Honor, I couldn't have been doing 42 mph!! My GPS shows I was only doing 41.25 mph!!"), I doubt it would be considered.

JTEX, whether 42 in a 25 zone is excessive depends on a lot of factors, none of which were taken into account when setting the speed limit on the road in question. The speed limit was originally 45, lowered last year at the request of a church two miles away from where I was pulled over.

When you are driving down a hill, your car speeds up; simple physics. Unless you ride your breaks the whole way down, there is literally no way to maintain 25mph. Riding your breaks damages them over time, and really gains nothing, as using the breaks every 10 seconds or so to slow down works just as well. The police radar does not distinguish between a peak speed of 42mph and the average speed, more like 35mph in my case. Obviously, average speed is the far more useful measurement for assessing safety.

I was not driving unsafely, and getting pulled for this amounts to little more than petty harrassment by the police in the name of raising local revenue. I have been passed by too many speeding police cruisers to have any doubt that they care much about speed limits. Most of my friends that are police agree with me, and hate it when they are assigned to radar duty. While they don't technically have quotas anymore, they still don't feel comfortable returning from radar duty without having pulled over the "average" number for their shift.

All of that aside, I'm not sure why you're so hostile to everyone posting here (obviously not just me), we're simply trying to find the best solution to our problems. If you don't think we're deserving of advice, nobody here is forcing you to post. Consider, however, the sheer number of people who get hit with these fines, and try to find a little kindness in you... I very much doubt you have anything positive to contribute anyway.

[JETX]

Oh, geeeze, here we go again!!!

"JTEX, whether 42 in a 25 zone is excessive depends on a lot of factors, none of which were taken into account when setting the speed limit on the road in question. The speed limit was originally 45, lowered last year at the request of a church two miles away from where I was pulled over."
*** None of that matters. The ONLY thing that matters that the posted speed limit, for whatever reason, is 25 MPH. You exceeded that LIMIT and got a ticket for it!!!

"When you are driving down a hill, your car speeds up; simple physics."
*** Yep. And that is why they make those things called 'speed deceleration devices, aka: brakes.

"Unless you ride your breaks the whole way down, there is literally no way to maintain 25mph."
*** Gee, seems that everyone else manages to do it..... huh??

"Riding your breaks damages them over time, and really gains nothing, as using the breaks every 10 seconds or so to slow down works just as well."
*** Simply, NOT true.

"The police radar does not distinguish between a peak speed of 42mph and the average speed, more like 35mph in my case. Obviously, average speed is the far more useful measurement for assessing safety."
*** Rather than try to debate with your feeble (and unsuccessful) attempts to justify your speeding..... tell it to the court. If they agree with your inane logic, great.

"I was not driving unsafely,"
*** Nobody said you were (though speed is often an indicator of 'unsafe' driving). You were cited for speeding. And your own statements admit that.

"and getting pulled for this amounts to little more than petty harrassment by the police in the name of raising local revenue."
*** Are you really this full of crap. Clearly, they reduced the speed limit due to some reason (you said it is a church down the road). And you, in your believing that the posted limits don't apply to you, found out you are wrong.

"I have been passed by too many speeding police cruisers to have any doubt that they care much about speed limits."
*** Okay, next time stop one of them and make a citizens arrest.

"Most of my friends that are police agree with me,"
*** Sorry, but I find that VERY hard to believe....

"and hate it when they are assigned to radar duty. While they don't technically have quotas anymore, they still don't feel comfortable returning from radar duty without having pulled over the "average" number for their shift."
*** And that is just plain crap.

"All of that aside, I'm not sure why you're so hostile to everyone posting here (obviously not just me), we're simply trying to find the best solution to our problems."
*** No your not. You clearly broke the traffic laws and are trying to weasel your way out of the consequences of your own actions. Clearly, you never learned accountability and responsibility in your life. One of the problems with todays society is that too many people think that rules don't apply to them, then when caught, try to make themselves out to be 'victims' of some big, bad injustice.

"If you don't think we're deserving of advice, nobody here is forcing you to post. Consider, however, the sheer number of people who get hit with these fines, and try to find a little kindness in you... I very much doubt you have anything positive to contribute anyway."
*** Right??

"If you don't think we're deserving of advice, nobody here is forcing you to post. Consider, however, the sheer number of people who get hit with these fines, and try to find a little kindness in you... I very much doubt you have anything positive to contribute anyway."

I almost lost my cookies on that one.

Let's see, speeding ticket and kindness....hummmmm.

NOW I remember. Summer of 1974 I got a speeding ticket. I was doing 165km in a 100km zone....damn thing cost me DM 400. But then, back then it was only $100.

Sounds like another conspiracy theory wannabe