Officer Misconduct/Selective enforcment

[Jason44]

I had a car accident in New Jersey. The accident was caused by another vehicle that pulled into oncoming traffic and then caused a chain reaction where I rear ended the person in front of me after he jammed his brakes and swerved violently to avoid this moron who pulled into traffic. This person pulled over briefly then drove away knowing 100% what he/she had caused.

The person I hit said it wasn't my fault and was furious about what this other vehicle did to cause the accident and wasn't annoyed with me at all. He said he wasn't injured at all even after being asked by multiple people and witnesses. And the witnesses even agree it wasn't my fault despite if you rear end someone it usually is. SO we have me 2 witnesses and the other driver all agree it wasn't my fault and no one was injured.

Then the officer showed up and turned out he was friends with the person I hit and the officer then coached him on what to say, Telling him to stop saying it wasn't my fault and to say that he was driving and a car was stopped in front of him and he came to a stop and I hit him. The officer then went about writing down a statement that the person I hit never said he just wrote in what he thought would best serve his friends interests. He also kept telling him over and over to get checked out by ambulance and say he was injured because it would ""Look Better"". He called the ambulance after we all said no one was injured and we didn't need or want one. The officer then refused to speak to any of the witnesses and didn't want the video witch certainly had the license plate of the reckless driver who caused an accident and then fled. He then had the balls to write me 2 tickets for tail gating and carless driving when I absolutely was doing neither I believe he did this to further make me look at fault because if he wrote me tickets at the scene I would have called for more officers because he is out of his mind. Now my record is scared because some other person caused a crash and then fled. I believe the officer did this to help his friend being if that other vehicle who was at fault couldn't be ID'd he my insurance wouldn't pay.

So in all he decided to change his original statement, coach him on what to say, call ambulance after we all said not to, tell him to fake injury because it would "look better", refuse to take witness statements or even speak to them and of course refuse to obtain the video... Is this selective Enforcement/Misconduct and is there anything I can do? I contacted my insurance adjuster and she really just honestly doesn't give a s*** at all whatsoever, they just attach what I say or wrote to my claim file and leave it as is with me 100% at fault and responsible. Even though there were extraordinary circumstances that myself, the other driver, and 2 neutral witnesses can all confirm and say it wasn't my fault. The officer just wanted to make sure his friend couldn't be blamed and made it so my insurance had to pay him.

I'm furious an officer is allowed to dictate the outcome like this and screw me over completely and my record. And the word investigation on the police report pisses me off even more, how can the officer say he was fair and even while leaving out and changing soo many truths?

 

[CdwJava]

Your recourse is to go to court and challenge the citations. AND, you can speak to your insurance company about the matter and hope they will not penalize you for the collision. You can also complain to the officer's agency about any statements or actions that you feel were unprofessional. The officer may be in violation of some agency policy, if he did, indeed, do as you claim he did and make stuff up out of whole cloth. Though, if the "friend" does not also allege that the officer attributed statements to him that he never made, the complaint may go nowhere.

Keep in mind that no law mandates that the police conduct a thorough or even a competent investigation in most instances. And, given the largely civil nature of traffic collisions, few resources are expended in such matters.

However ... the fact that you rear-ended the car in front of you - sudden braking or not - is prima facie evidence of your following too closely for speed or conditions. I can't speak as to the careless driving as I am unfamiliar with the elements of that offense in NJ. Sorry, but the fault for that collision is likely on you. The other vehicle that left may be a contributing factor, but, if NJ law/practice regarding the assignation of fault is similar to most the rest of the nation, then the fault tends to go to the guy who rear-ended the car in front of him.

 

[Zigner]

In other words, if you couldn't stop in time, then you were too close to the car in front of you. You're supposed to leave enough room for just this sort of eventuality.

 

[quincy]

In other words, if you could stop in time, then you were too close to the car in front of you. You're supposed to leave enough room for just this sort of eventuality.

If Jason could stop in time, there would not have been an accident.

 

[FlyingRon]

Selective enforcement is not illegal or even improper unless the reasons for selecting hinge on a protected class or the like.
Those who end up in an accident is not a protected class.

 

[Eekamouse]

I had a car accident in New Jersey. The accident was caused by another vehicle that pulled into oncoming traffic and then caused a chain reaction where I rear ended the person in front of me after he jammed his brakes and swerved violently to avoid this moron who pulled into traffic. This person pulled over briefly then drove away knowing 100% what he/she had caused.

The person I hit said it wasn't my fault and was furious about what this other vehicle did to cause the accident and wasn't annoyed with me at all. He said he wasn't injured at all even after being asked by multiple people and witnesses. And the witnesses even agree it wasn't my fault despite if you rear end someone it usually is. SO we have me 2 witnesses and the other driver all agree it wasn't my fault and no one was injured.

Then the officer showed up and turned out he was friends with the person I hit and the officer then coached him on what to say, Telling him to stop saying it wasn't my fault and to say that he was driving and a car was stopped in front of him and he came to a stop and I hit him. The officer then went about writing down a statement that the person I hit never said he just wrote in what he thought would best serve his friends interests. He also kept telling him over and over to get checked out by ambulance and say he was injured because it would ""Look Better"". He called the ambulance after we all said no one was injured and we didn't need or want one. The officer then refused to speak to any of the witnesses and didn't want the video witch certainly had the license plate of the reckless driver who caused an accident and then fled. He then had the balls to write me 2 tickets for tail gating and carless driving when I absolutely was doing neither I believe he did this to further make me look at fault because if he wrote me tickets at the scene I would have called for more officers because he is out of his mind. Now my record is scared because some other person caused a crash and then fled. I believe the officer did this to help his friend being if that other vehicle who was at fault couldn't be ID'd he my insurance wouldn't pay.

So in all he decided to change his original statement, coach him on what to say, call ambulance after we all said not to, tell him to fake injury because it would "look better", refuse to take witness statements or even speak to them and of course refuse to obtain the video... Is this selective Enforcement/Misconduct and is there anything I can do? I contacted my insurance adjuster and she really just honestly doesn't give a s*** at all whatsoever, they just attach what I say or wrote to my claim file and leave it as is with me 100% at fault and responsible. Even though there were extraordinary circumstances that myself, the other driver, and 2 neutral witnesses can all confirm and say it wasn't my fault. The officer just wanted to make sure his friend couldn't be blamed and made it so my insurance had to pay him.

I'm furious an officer is allowed to dictate the outcome like this and screw me over completely and my record. And the word investigation on the police report pisses me off even more, how can the officer say he was fair and even while leaving out and changing soo many truths?

Injuries from being in an accident don't always make themselves known right away. Whiplash. Chances are, the guy you hit could have gotten soft tissue damage. Wait til you get rear ended someday. You'll see.

 

[CdwJava]

And in some places, calling for EMS is pretty much standard operating procedure. If the parties decline EMS, that's on them. The officer may have had little or no choice in the matter.

 

[Zigner]

If Jason could stop in time, there would not have been an accident.

fixed it

 

[FlyingRon]

It's also quite likely the officer himself didn't call an ambulance but one was automatically dispatched either based on his report of the accident or someone else calling 911.

But even if he did at his discretion, it's not a bad idea. Cops are not paramedics. I've had people involved in mvas as a paramedic who presented just fine but there were serious head injuries involved.

 

[Jason44]

Well if you are on a highway and a car pulls out completely sideways across the highway and causes a pileup and a chain reaction of cars hitting each other how can you say it I the fault of anyone involved in the pileup? Same thing And then that car who pulled out sideways and caused others to crash just drives away knowing what he/she did... I wasn't Tail gating I was about 2 car lengths away and I did nothing careless at all whatsoever besides being involved in a pileup caused by Mr./Mrs. Pull in to on coming traffic.I know the rule of thumb if you hit someone from behind its your fault yadda yadda yadda I'm responsible so my insurance pays yea, but why go through the effort of ticketing me and then lying,changing statements, excluding witnesses,ignoring the video, telling him to basically fake an injury and call an ambulance when everyone said not to. ALL THAT to make me appear to be at fault when it wasn't and obviously knew it.

 

[Eekamouse]

Well if you are on a highway and a car pulls out completely sideways across the highway and causes a pileup and a chain reaction of cars hitting each other how can you say it I the fault of anyone involved in the pileup? Same thing And then that car who pulled out sideways and caused others to crash just drives away knowing what he/she did... I wasn't Tail gating I was about 2 car lengths away and I did nothing careless at all whatsoever besides being involved in a pileup caused by Mr./Mrs. Pull in to on coming traffic.I know the rule of thumb if you hit someone from behind its your fault yadda yadda yadda I'm responsible so my insurance pays yea, but why go through the effort of ticketing me and then lying,changing statements, excluding witnesses,ignoring the video, telling him to basically fake an injury and call an ambulance when everyone said not to. ALL THAT to make me appear to be at fault when it wasn't and obviously knew it.

Because he hates you and wants you to pay. Why else? Or it could be that you were following too close and didn't leave yourself enough room to avoid the accident.

 

[CdwJava]

Well if you are on a highway and a car pulls out completely sideways across the highway and causes a pileup and a chain reaction of cars hitting each other how can you say it I the fault of anyone involved in the pileup? Same thing And then that car who pulled out sideways and caused others to crash just drives away knowing what he/she did... I wasn't Tail gating I was about 2 car lengths away and I did nothing careless at all whatsoever besides being involved in a pileup caused by Mr./Mrs. Pull in to on coming traffic.I know the rule of thumb if you hit someone from behind its your fault yadda yadda yadda I'm responsible so my insurance pays yea, but why go through the effort of ticketing me and then lying,changing statements, excluding witnesses,ignoring the video, telling him to basically fake an injury and call an ambulance when everyone said not to. ALL THAT to make me appear to be at fault when it wasn't and obviously knew it.

Two car lengths behind was clearly NOT enough distance to stop safely. In a rear-end collision without one of the parties changing lanes, there are generally (as in more than 9 out of 10 times) one of only TWO possible causes: Unsafe speed, or, following too close. That does not mean that there are not other factors in play, but that the primary collision factor belongs to the party doing the rear-ending. Law enforcement in every state I know of (and that does not include all 50) are only permitted to assign fault to ONE party. They can mention associated factors and other partially involved parties, but only one party can be assigned fault. Insurance companies are not obligated to adhere to that assignation of fault and may assign fault as they see fit (70/30, 50/50, etc.). And if the officer's assignation of fault effects your insurance rates, there may be a way through your state's DMV to challenge the assessment of fault/points as a result of the collision report. You'll have to look that one up.

As stated, you can challenge the citations in court and hope the court sides with you. You can also argue with your insurance company and the other company over fault, though even if the mystery person is determined to hold all or most the fault, I suspect the other party will still seek payment from your insurance. AND ... you can complain to the officer's agency about what you believe to be unprofessional behavior.

All you can do is tell this tale to whomever might listen and hope it gets you somewhere.

 

[not2cleverRed]

Well if you are on a highway and a car pulls out completely sideways across the highway and causes a pileup and a chain reaction of cars hitting each other how can you say it I the fault of anyone involved in the pileup? Same thing And then that car who pulled out sideways and caused others to crash just drives away knowing what he/she did... I wasn't Tail gating I was about 2 car lengths away and I did nothing careless at all whatsoever besides being involved in a pileup caused by Mr./Mrs. Pull in to on coming traffic.I know the rule of thumb if you hit someone from behind its your fault yadda yadda yadda I'm responsible so my insurance pays yea, but why go through the effort of ticketing me and then lying,changing statements, excluding witnesses,ignoring the video, telling him to basically fake an injury and call an ambulance when everyone said not to. ALL THAT to make me appear to be at fault when it wasn't and obviously knew it.

What are your medical qualifications to make such a determination that there was no injury?

I have been injured in a car accident. I thought it unnecessary to call an ambulance, but it's something the police do automatically in MA, which I knew from my First Aid training. I suspect that NJ is similar.

Not all injuries are immediately apparent or noticeable. My injuries were relatively minor, although they eventually required surgery. Another relative has a brain injury from a minor low velocity accident that has affected cognitive skills (woman has a masters in education but can no longer add and subtract, among other things).

Before such standards existed, people who looked and felt okay didn't get medical treatment and sometimes died. A family member died when her son was only 2 - she looked to have a minor scratch on her forehead after a car accident, and was ignored in favor of those with more obvious injuries. Everyone else survived their injuries - she suddenly dropped dead a few hours after the accident due to the bleeding on her brain. The medical treatment that would have kept her alive was simple, but because she "looked fine", she died. It is heartbreaking looking at the baby book she kept, where she diligently recorded every "milestone" of her son... until the handwriting just abruptly... ends.

In short, Jason, your attitude rots.

The officer was looking out for *you*. How would you like it if an ambulance hadn't been called and the other driver had some fluke injury that killed him? Legally and financially that would not bode well for you.

Also, "Tailgating Tailgating is the act of driving on a road too close to the vehicle in front, such that the distance between the two vehicles does not guarantee that stopping to avoid collision is possible." Source: Wikipedia. What's your definition of "tailgating"?

 

[Zigner]

Just to add to the anecdotal information...a few months back, I was involved in a very minor accident. In essence, the back half of my car was sideswiped at a very low speed. It felt just like someone jostled me as I was walking down the street. At the scene, I felt fine. The next morning (and for 2 additional days), I had a very mild pain in my neck and a very mild headache. I didn't claim anything over it, but I was affected.

 

[HighwayMan]

Law enforcement in every state I know of (and that does not include all 50) are only permitted to assign fault to ONE party.

Just as an FYI, in NY we don't assign fault - the Police Accident Report is simply a report of whatever facts are known, apparent contributing factors, damage to vehicles, occupants information, etc. Unless a vehicle occupant is seriously injured/likely to die no real "investigation" is conducted. It's up to the insurance companies to figure out the fault part.