jspeeddemon

Over the weekend I was traveling down a slight grade on a four lane highway, with my cruise control on 64 in a 65 mph zone. This area is notorious for writing speeding tickets, so I was being really careful. I had been riding beside a lady in a small SUV for 2 miles, she in the right lane, me in the left. I was hesitant to speed up to pass her because I didn't want to go over 65. As we rounded a sweeping right at the bottom of the hill, a cruiser was comiing in the opposite direction. i looked down at my speedo, it said 64, I hit my brakes anyway, and he flipped his lights on. He pulled my over, let the lady in the SUV that I was riding beside move on. He said he clocked me at 76. I pleaded that was impossible, and he listened for a second then wrote me up anyway.
Can anyone shed light on the issue to fight this ticket. My limited understanding of how radar works, is that it is a beam that widens in triangular fashion as it moves from the gun. He measures the speed of the fastest vehicle, because it gets the fastest bounce, and the radar user has to determine the speeding vehicle by visual recognition. Input would be much appreciated.
Also when I pass the radar boxes on the side of the road my speedo is never off by more than 2 mph, ceratinly not 12. I haved passed them at various speeds from 30 to 60, and my speedo is usually real close.

Team Gary

I was told by a person who has done this, You can go to the police station and request a copy the officers log for that particular shift. They have to give it to you. Their may be a charge. The officer has to show in his log that he has calibrated the radar gun every so many hours. Not sure what those hours are. If he hasn't, you can beat it in court. Not sure if this applies to your state.

Shane

Sorry dude. Check with Troutly. He's a cop and may be able to help you.

Shane

boot

I think radar targets the largest object also .Which could be you unless there was a bigger truck near you . And I think they have to calibrate every day at the start of their shift . I could be wrong . I would fight it anyway ,even if you don't have anything on your side . Maybe the judge will under stand ...........

Good luck !

sha- mat

Go to a book store and ask for a book called "Beat the Cops". I'm not sure who the author is, but you should be able to find it. There is some pretty good info in there about fighting speeding tickets in court.

Griff

There are several different kinds of radar. Most clock the strongest/largest object. Generally though, you need a steady reading to be accurate not just a quick blip. Policies are different for many depts. I'm a cop and I doubt I could beat a radar ticket issued by an experienced officer. Good luck though. I would say your best bet would be to talk friendly to the prosecuter and work out some type of plea.

Cord

iTrader: (2)

Next time don't argue the point. Tell them that you were showing 65 and are interested in knowing what they clocked you at. I once got hit for 95 in a 75 zone. The cop invited me back to his car to write me up. I freeked when I saw the gun (thinking in Wisconsin terms that I was in a 65 zone). The cop started getting defensive, and I disclosed what I was really showing on the speedo (84). He looked up the reduced speed and said that it wasn't much less than the one he had clocked me at. I thanked him for giving me the lower number. A year later my insurance company was reviewing me and the citation only showed 7 mph over. I assume there was a major price break between 7 and 9 mph. Still got the citation (that I deserved) but at least it wasn't quite as painful.

jspeeddemon

Thanks for the info, maybe Troutly will chime in.

Organdonor

The best thing to do once you recognize you are being pulled over (Based upon my experiences).

1. Rip down the radar detector!!!
2. Once you see the lights flashing even if he is not right up on you pull over and off the road as soon as possible, but move the vehicle off the road in such a manor that the officer will not be in harms way when approaching your vehicle.
3. Fasten your safety belt (If this is state required).
4. If you have power windows place them all in the lowered position (This is especially important if you have tinted windows). If you have manual windows lower only yours but lower it all the way down.
5. Turn off the radio.
6. Turn off the vehicle.
7. Place your hands on the steering wheel until the officer arrives.

At this point the officer approaches the vehicle and ask you if you know why you were stopped.

8. The answer is " Yes (Sir/Mamm ), I was speeding and I know better I usually drive the speed limit however I was in a rush to get to (wherever it is that you going,) , I know that that's no excuse and I feel bad I was just stressed about getting there late, but I do know better.

At this point the officer usually ask for you License and Registration.

9. Give him/her your License and Registration, If you can let your attitude reflect that you are shaken up over being pulled over and that you are nervous, concerned about violating a state speed limit.
The officer will return to their vehicle run your information and then return to your car.

10. At this point your fate has already been determined so relax and hear what the officer has to tell you.

Hopefully at this point the officer will tell you that you need to slow down, and have a good day.

That has not happen to me yet, however in my two incidences that I have used this exact same technique I was traveling at least 20mph over the speed limit. The first time I received a ticket for failure to obey a traffic sign. That time I was doing 95mph in a 70mph zone; the sign was a speed limit sign. In Florida that is over a $225 dollar ticket, but I only received a $75 ticket instead. My second experience I was going 56mph in a 35mph zone. I did not have my insurance paper work with me so she gave me a ticket for that instead, which cost me $26 once I showed them proof that I had insurance. So you can see the cost savings to me has been beneficial, and in both incidences I received no points on my license.

The friend who taught me this approach has walked away from both of his traffic stops without any tickets at all. In his experiences however his speed was much closer to what the law requires.

mopower

I got a 72 in a 55 a few years ago. Fought it with a receipt for speedometer repair to r+r tailshaft housing of trans and gear replacement(from a friends shop). Said I was guaging my speed by other cars.(passing some but still being passed by others). They reduced it to an equipment voilation $60 and no points or insurance surcharges. I deserved that much ,I mean I was speeding . I just hate the thought of the insurance company getting probably 5 times as much as the state does a they didn't have to do a thing. Good Luck