Wrong Issue Date on ticket.

[kelcron7]

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

I received a speeding ticket that states the ticket was issued one day prior to the alleged offense.
The correct date (08/31/08) is on the ticket for when I was stopped but then there is a box where it says "issued 08/30/08". How can one be issued a ticket the day before they were stopped?

Do you think it's enough to throw it out?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[seniorjudge]

Q: Do you think it's enough to throw it out?

A: No. The date is not an essential element of the offense.

 

[JIMinCA]

Q: Do you think it's enough to throw it out?

A: No. The date is not an essential element of the offense.

The date of an offense is not an essential element of the offense?? What kind of nonsense is that?? Of course it is!!

Kelcron, basically, you were charged with committing a certain offense, at a certain place on a certain date. The cop may ammend the ticket to reflect the correct date, but if he doesn't, you simply need to go to court and tell the truth... which is, "I was not driving my car at this location on the date in question". You can bring a witness or whatever you need to establish an alibi of where you were at on the date of the ticket. But, you simply need to show that you did not commit the offense at the location and on the date specified.

 

[You Are Guilty]

While Jim is correct, I think the poster will find that the court really couldn't care less about whether the officer made a typo in the date field of the ticket whether he amends it before trial or not.

As a practical matter, I'd have an alternate defense ready if/when the judge shoots that one down.

 

[JIMinCA]

While Jim is correct, I think the poster will find that the court really couldn't care less about whether the officer made a typo in the date field of the ticket whether he amends it before trial or not.

As a practical matter, I'd have an alternate defense ready if/when the judge shoots that one down.

I would agree with this simply because traffic courts frequently couldn't care less about the law. However, if the court doesn't care, it subjects itself to overturn on appeal.

 

[The Occultist]

My argument to a typo as far as a date is concerned is this: if you weren't there on the "date" in question, then how on earth did you receive the citation??

 

[You Are Guilty]

I would agree with this simply because traffic courts frequently couldn't care less about the law. However, if the court doesn't care, it subjects itself to overturn on appeal.

Not necessarily. While I agree that traffic court judges are uh, "loose" with their legal interpretations, this one might not fall on them. With the caveat that I don't know how PA handles it, but the ticket can just be a "notice to appear" and not part of the evidence used against the violator at trial. If that's correct, the evidence against the defendant comes solely from the officer's testimony. If the officer simply reads off his (incorrectly dated) notes/ticket, then the defendant has a shot at making the argument, or appealing a guilty finding. If the officer testifies to the correct date regardless of what the ticket says, the defendant is not going to have a viable appeal on that basis.

Of course, if your state permits/uses the ticket as direct evidence, none of the above applies.