Advice Needed

[MZBLTZ]

hey guys, to cut a long story short i was pulled over last night and accused of doing 107 in a 70 zone which i know i wasn't doing. The police had a hand held radar and were hiding on the opposite side of a large 4lane road. There was another car that sped past mine in the exact spot he has accused me of speeding in. When i was pulled over i had asked to see the radar reading which i know he isn't legally obliged to show me but he said he couldn't because as he was getting into the police car he "accidently bumped" the radar gun and it cleared the reading. How is it that he can book me for speeding without any proof? He says he had the alleged incident on video, does this show speed if it's on video? I will be going down to the police station to see the video anyway. Also should probably tell you that he was hidden over the crest of a hill with no lights on. Is there anything i can do or is he legally allowed to book you with no proof? Thanks guys.

[JAS-25T]

Did you get a written fine on the spot? or did he tell you he is going to send you one?

The only ways you can get out of it, if you honestly weren't speeding are one of these.

1 - Write to the address on the fine and explain your story. This is probably unlikely to get you off but doesnt cost anymore than a postage stamp.

2 - Opt to take it to court on the back of the fine. I'd suggest getting some legal representation for this, as in court the magistrate and DPP can be very pushy and daunting. You then have to prove that you were not speeding.....i.e. show with proof (or by showing doubt in the fact) that the cop had made a mistake

Importantly, write down your version of the story ASAP so you don't forget any details if/when it finally goes to court.

[Yeedogga]

+1

Great advice.

[MZBLTZ]

thanks for the advice. I wrote down my version of events as soon as i got home so all the details were spot on. I will be making an appointment to view the "footage" at the police station, if it is shown that there is no hard proof of the incident can they revoke the penalty? I've never been done before and fined on the spot so i'm just confused.

[JAS-25T]

They can't revoke a fine as far as I'm aware.

It will need to go through a formal process as explained above.

Again, I would suggest seeking legal advice if you choose, or are forced to take option 2.

[GoldZilla]

Also, if you've got a good driving record, you *MAY* be able to either get out of it with no recorded fine/conviction.

Please note, I did say *MAY*...

But, yeah, get some legal advice to clear it up.

[MZBLTZ]

**UPDATE**

I went to the police station tonight to view their evidence of my breaking the law.

All that the video footage shows is a group of cars driving past the police vehicle on the other side of the road.

There is no proof of speed, nor speeding or breaking any laws.

The cars featured in the footage are all travelling in a group (I do not know these other cars).

So basically, there is no proof of speeding and why the officer singled out my vehicle I'm not sure.

Probably as it's the only one with P plates on it (It's n/a & legal)

WHat do I do now

[oweban]

I think all you can do is really just ask the question, how do they determine which car was travelling at what speed? Like in a completely non-smartass way, ask the question and let them know you're unsure how it works.

If there's a laser-lock or something, you're screwed, but if all they have is a bunch of cars driving along and they've gone BAM it's you, then that's just not right.

Is there a speed on the video at all? If the gun they have has lost the reading because of being "bumped", they don't have a shred of evidence to say how fast you were going. As long as you're sticking with the crowd and not accelerating past them, you should be sweet.

[MZBLTZ]

There is no evidence of speed what so ever because the radar didnt lock in the "supposed" speed I was doing because he bumped it.

The video shows a group of cars drive past, all travelling at what appears to be similar speed... nobody is accelerating past anybody else.

[oweban]

Hm. Hang on, I'll ring a mate of mine who's a cop, he might know how this goes on.

[MZBLTZ]

Thankyou :-)

[oweban]

Yeah, unfortunately he said it's based on what the cop "saw". So his word vs yours, basically.

The only way you're gonna get anywhere with this is in court. If he hasn't locked in the speed....

Only problem is court fees can sometimes cost more than the fine, which is bullshit. They waste your time, then you have to pay to make your name good.

[oweban]

Might be handy just to ask a question to a solicitor. Like just as a general enquiry.

[08r3308]

i always thought it would be laser lock on speeding car or they can do what has happened here

[GTR-N1]

**UPDATE**

I went to the police station tonight to view their evidence of my breaking the law.

All that the video footage shows is a group of cars driving past the police vehicle on the other side of the road.

There is no proof of speed, nor speeding or breaking any laws.

The cars featured in the footage are all travelling in a group (I do not know these other cars).

So basically, there is no proof of speeding and why the officer singled out my vehicle I'm not sure.

Probably as it's the only one with P plates on it (It's n/a & legal)

WHat do I do now

I'd take it to court if time permits.

If you represent yourself, and it goes against you on a copper's word, the court cost isn't that great.

I'd try and get the question subitted as to what speed the HP officer thinks you were doing & where's the proof?

If you take a legal rep (solicitor) and lose, the solicitor's fee costs more than court costs.

You MAY still get off due to a good record in which case the fine MAY be waived BUT you may still incur points.

If you take a legal rep along & win, you lose no points, there's no fine; but there's the solicitor's fee.

[Shell]

So by the cops reasoning, the entire group of cars must have been doing 107, if the whole group are clearly shown in the video going at the same speed.

That just seems strange to me... not very often that a bunch of cars who do not know each other all decide to do 37km/h over the limit

Seems a lot more likely that you'd all be doing very close to the actual limit..

Maybe you could mention that in your defense if you fight it?? How fast so you think you were going? Like 80 or something? Maybe he was trying to get you to admit to speeding by accusing you of a higher figure?

[MZBLTZ]

i spoke to my lawyer today who i will be speaking to properly at his office. He seems to think they have little chance of winning if i contest it in court. The court fees and solicitors fees don't really bother me, it's more so to prove a point that he should NOT be able to do this.

[GTR-N1]

Good on you Steph for taking the time & having the intestinal fortitude to do this.

When you win, can you post up your case # as an extrapolation of past precedents please?

[Aleckr33]

unlucky, hope it all works out for you.

[br3tt]

Just curious - are you on your Red or Green p's?

From what you have said, it looks like you have a good chance winning in court due to the lack of "proof" and the fact that all these things are taken into account

1) "Bumped radar" so no speed (I know that this does genuinely happen though.. and is quite common).

2) Footage - group of cars.. no direct speed/proof you were doing x speed.

AFAIK a HWP officer is trained to "determine speed". And this is permissable in court. So if you drive past a HWP cop who has no radar/lidar evidence etc they have been 'trained' in determining speed.

I guess this factor, and at the end of the day its your word vs the cops are the only downfall... IF you do fight this, definitely use a Solicitor.

I regret never fighting my 1st speeding offence.. still makes me angry to this day lol.