Thanks for the replies, I am going to pay the ticket. Still not sure if I should appear to see if I can get the fine reduced, I will think upon that matter. Have a great 3 day weekend.

:seeya

 

:lurk:

 

That's a big problem I see constantly :mad !!!

Anyone who drives the I10 in CA/AZ where it's only 2 lanes in each direction outside of the metro areas is very familiar with the truckers doing the 1mph faster passing maneuver... Real fun when you're going over long grades like Chirocco (sp?) Summit... :rolleyes:

My father's good friend has been a trucker for probably about 40 years and he even admits that most young truck drivers today are **** orfices... But that's understandable, as most motorists in passenger vehicles are pretty much the same way compared to many years ago...

The one thing I don't understand about all of this is that the CHP do absolutely nothing about bad driving by truckers, but don't hesitate to pull a car over... I've seen maybe 2 rigs pulled over by CHP in my entire memory, always with a CHP truck and not a police cruiser (weight scales maybe???) And since a truck at 15mph over the limit is more dangerous than a car at 10mph over the limit, I fail to see the logic of CHP letting truckers run 70mph (+15mph) on the interstates, while pulling over cars doing 75mph (+10mph)

 

Hey Oly, you whipped around traffic, took an offramp, and got tagged. Big deal, we all see this kind of driving every day.

As a matter of fact, as Corvette drivers, most of us (not all of us, but most) are guilty of the same kind of thing from time to time since we tend to be........ uhhhhhhhh........ "performance orientated" drivers. :lol:

It looks to me like the Officer didn't get a cherry when he wrote you, 'cause the post title says "another ticket", and I suspect that's where the real issue lies........you don't need the grief of another tag.

Why not plead NG and take it to court? It's a no lose proposition for you. If the officer doesn't show, you get a dismissal; if you testify the truck driver flashed his lights for you, then maybe there's "reasonable doubt" for the Judge or Referee to consider. Just my .02, but good luck to you, and maybe the purpose of the tag is served without your "financial contribution".

Oh and by the way, contrary to popular belief, citations aren't written as a source of revenue, they're written to deter traffic accidents thru controlling non compliant driving habits. If you stop and think about it, the best source of revenue is to have an Officer on the air and ready for a call, not dealing with a traffic stop and unavailable. :D Again, best of luck! :cheers:

 

Some of these responses are too funny for words. Oly said how many times...at least twice, that he is gonna pay the ticket, and yet this has somehow turned into trucker bashing (on a mild scale) For all you know it alls....California (I spell it with a C, not a K) boasts, especially the CHP, that it is the most anti-truck state in the lower 48. The laws governing commercial vehicles in California, are the strictest in this country. California also boasts to having the highest $$$$$ fines in the country for commercial vehicles..ie: trucks. The speeding fine in Kern County for commercial vehicles is $100 per mile over the speed limit, so you guys that are flapping your pie holes about something that you know nothing about, should just step back, and cool your jets. Alot of CHP officers are somewhat lenient on truck speed because contrary to what you smart guys believe...A 15 MPH difference in speed limits between trucks/cars is MUCH more dangerous than all traffic moving at the same speed. Check your stats guys. California ranks numero uno in the country in rear end collisions. Cars are slamming into the rear of trucks all the time out there, because most people aren't expecting a truck to be moving that much slower out on the open road. FYI...There is at this time, talk concerning a nationwide truck boycott of California in protest of their discrimination against the trucking industry. If/when it happens...it's gonna suck to live in Ca. Too bad :nopity
Without trucks....America Stops :seeya


[Modified by Klimper, 11:29 AM 5/24/2003]

 

Oly, don't just pay the ticket; take it to court and tell your story. Your age is in your favor as will be a logically presented defense. Present yourself as someone who is a courteous & conciensious driver; and mention that it wasn't the trucks brake lights, it was his flashing you in( ;) ). Worst case you will pay the fine & costs; best case you will skate or get a plea or reduced fine.

As far as truckers are concerned, I periodically drive between the GW in NY and Akron,OH on I-80, which sustains heavy truck traffic. There most truckers travel close to the posted (65mph) and when I want to make up some time I trail one who is "flying" (they also tend to sweep errant deer for me).

Also, I always flash a passing trucker and many will flash me, mostly because I appreciate the rigors of their job and am courteous on the road as are they. I realize they too, for the most part, are skilled drivers, far more so than the average automobile driver.

If you want to see some real examples of gene-pool drop failures, travel the GSP at rush hour in NJ...no truck alowed there, just cars & SUVs.

 

:iagree:............ :D

 

As a professional driver with 30+ years of experience I'd say if Oly had 2 car lengths when he moved over he was being courteous and thoughtful .. that's way more than I seem to get when driving. If a car overtook me, signaled, then moved over, I would not be alarmed unless I saw brake lights.
Oly you seem to have become quite the scofflaw as of late :lol:
Oly I'd fight that one. I'll even take a day off and go to court with you as an "expert witness" if you want.
Let's look at some things ..
#1 if the cop was sandwiched between two trucks as you say, then A, he was following too close, and B, he wouldn't be able to see how close you were to the truck when you changed lanes.
#2 was the brake light flash the driver hitting his brake because A, he finally saw the cop behind him and realized he was speeding, B, it was a friendly reminder to the cop that the trucker wanted him off his azz, C, it was a courtesy flash of his headlights telling you with your turn signal on and traffic behind you that it was safe in his opinion to move over .. the cop WAS aware of which trailer light came on brake or tail right?
#3 could the brake light (if it was the brake light) have come on because the trucker was "covering" the brake? I've done that many times just in case the the overtaking motorist slows down once in front of me .. btw, you'd be surprised how many times that actually happens.
Have I established "reasonable doubt" here?
Don't use the "but the trucks were speeding and should have gotten the ticket" defense .. I can almost guarantee you the "other guy" defense won't work .. but you might casually mention that as you're stating all the facts and building your case :D
In my whole life I have received 5 moving violations, 3 of which were totally :bs and written by the CHP. Gotta love 'em :lolg:
Oly I think you have a shot at this one and since you just got one a couple of months ago you HAVE to fight this one :jester

Let me know if I can help :cheers:

 

I would like to apologize to you Klimper and to any other "good guy" truck drivers that I may have offended, when I first wrote this I was pi**ed as hell. Just got back from traffic school, not for this offense but for speeding in the Vette a month and a half ago. I discussed the situation of the unsafe lane change with the instructor, I was wrong and I'll pay the fine. I honestly thought I gave him enough room and like I said before, I don't really know why the guys tail lights came on. He didn't slow down, no screeching tires, and no long blasts on the air horns. But by the law, I didn't give him enough room. CHP is cracking down big time here. One of the kids in class today said his friend's uncle is in law enforcement. His uncle wrote 200 citations in one day. If anyone from out of state comes through California, be on your very best behavior or you'll get to meet one of our finest.

By the way, these are the first tickets I have gotten since 1992 (that one was for not coming to a dead stop at a 4 way stop in the country... no other cars around but the cop who was 1/4 mile away), first speeding ticket since 1963.

Stay safe and have a good weekend.

:seeya

 

Hey Oly, no problem, man. No offense taken. I feel for you folks out there. CHP has gotten completely out of control over the last few years, and it seems that nobody in the Ca. State Legislature is able to stop the rampant idiocy in the CHP. It would seem that each officer plays by his/her own set of rules, and it's crazy :crazy: The Truckee scales were closed down for months after the Feds ran a sting op. The CHP inspectors were sabotaging trucks in the inspection bays, and then writing outlandish tickets. The feds ran some new trucks through there, with 0 defectcts, only to be written up for mysterious appearing defects. I know 99 like the back of my hand. I've hauled produce out of that area for years. WAY too much traffic for the available roadspace. Been that way for years, and only gettin worse. Anyway, take care, and good luck with that ticket. Your age/driving record should help your cause. Please let me know via E-mail, how it turns out.

Larry :seeya

 

:banghead:

 

The CHP:
Anyone who gets a ticket hates the cops, CHP in this case.
The Kid is in Q-8 with the Marines and he is a CHP officer out of Coalinga CA.
The Marines are paying him $1,700 a month while he is in Q-8. His salary with the CHP is $5,000 a month. Thats a big pay cut. The CHP is making up the difference. They're paying him $3,300 a month while on active duty in Q-8. City cops don't get that, the Marshalls Office doesn't do that.
The CHP takes care of thier people. Everyone is a professional.
Being a cop is the only profession in the world where if the public dislikes one cop:
"They're all dicks with a quota to fill". There is no quota with the CHP. Some 70% of thier calls are to help a stranded motorist.
No-one seems to complain when a CHP car pulls up behing them when they're broken down on the interstate.
The Kid's a CHP officer and a Marine. :flag

 

I don't hate cops that give me a ticket, but I do hate getting a ticket that I don't deserve and don't think much of the cop that gives it to me :mad
Last ticket I got was written by CHP Heywood aka "Twiggy" out of Los Banos, now deceased. I was doing 55 but he wrote me for 8 over anyway and bragged while he was writing the ticket about shooting and killing a hand cuffed suspect trying to steal his car .. a real piece of work :rolleyes:

 

Not bashing your kid Redwing, but the CHP has left a very bad taste in my mouth, especially here in the L.A. area... Drive rush hour traffic sometime and you'll see them constantly weaving in and out of the carpool lane, speeding, etc... They act above the law, and they pretty much are...

I've been pulled over and harassed by them many times while doing absolutely nothing, but I only received one speeding ticket in my life... It was by a CHP and belive it or not, he was the only one who I didn't have a gripe about... He was very professional and I was wrong... I don't agree with the speed limits in the very open CA deserts, but I was breaking the law and got caught so not really much for me to whine about...

I've lived and travelled in other states west coast, east coast, and a few in between... I've never seen the things or experienced the harassment that I have with the CHP...

It's like any other profession though... In general I hate car salesmen, although I did have one good experience out of about 20... Not all of them are the worst, but the majority that I've come in contact were just scum...

 

Oly, though you've decided to pay the ticket, check out this site first: http://g.msn.com/0US!s7.467_6199/80.b39/1??cm=LongHeds

Though it pertains directly to speeding tickets you might find some helpful leads.

I was in a local traffic court a few years ago on a truely bum rap and can say that it realy is a $$ mill...even the statie was getting OT for being there.

 

I was happy when I learned the cop, that wrote me a ticket for turning left at a stop sign with a no left turn sign, got fired for using the LEEDS criminal information system to look up information about his ex-wife's current boyfriends.

This was despite having a flawless record, and a polite attitude on my part. There was no traffic, it was middle-of-the-night.