My question involves a traffic ticket from the state of: Minnesota
This will be long as it happened last December (2016) and I have done a lot of leg work already.
Back story, was traveling westbound after work on a rural 2 lane county road in Hennepin county west of Minneapolis just a few days before the new year (this last december 2016). Cruise was set to 56. was coming through a long sweeping left hand curve (my direction of travel would put me on the outside lane of the curve) when I noticed a local PD explorer following very closely to the vehicle (within a cars length at most) coming the opposite direction on what would be the inside lane of the curve. Thinking he was either about to pull that person over or was a jerk for tailgating I obviously continued on my way, but out of habit I glanced down at my speedo to confirm I was still doing the 56 I knew I was. About a 1/2 mile up the road, I see this same PO flying up behind me and then turning on his lights to pull me over just as he came up on my bumper. I pulled over immediately and then he announced on his PA system that he wanted me to pull up because there wasn't much of a shoulder to get out of the traffic lane. I obliged and pulled up to a nearby approach to allow more room.
The officer approached my vehicle and I asked why he had pulled me over. He said speeding... said I was going 63 in a 50. which I of course I disputed, explaining my cruise was set to 56 and that this was a 55 zone. I then said how could you have even gotten an accurate reading on a curve as such and following so closely to the vehicle in front of you. He then copped an attitude said i wasnt very observant because this was a "50" zone and took my license and insurance back to his squad.
When he came back with the ticket, he snidely offered to explain it to me and I said no thank you and went on my way.
Knowing I wasn't speeding and the real jerkish attitude the officer seemed to display I knew I had to fight it. So after arriving to pick up my kid from day care (my original destination) I went back to the road i was cited on and made notes, checked where the last speed limit sign was posted and took a few pics with my phone. the last speed sign was nearly 3 miles before my citation location and was posted 50, MN however has a law that says the road would default to 55 if not posted. I have always travelled that road and never once been pulled over for the doing ~56
I then proceeded to get online and gather all the info I could.
I started by writing very officially formatted requests for information using the MN data practices act to get a copy things necessary to defend my case.
I wrote and sent certified mail to the officer, his sergeant, the city administrator, director of public safety etc for the town where I was cited, the State DOT (to get a traffic study for the area) I also sent similar letters to the court administrator.
items requested include (not counting the MNDOTrequest)
#1: All notes, records, recordings both audio / video and log files made by P.O. in regards to the issuance of Citation #
#2: Calibration records for any speed detection equipment used by P.O. in regards to the issuance of Citation #
#3: The Operator’s Manuals for any speed detection equipment used by P.O. in regards to the issuance of Citation #
#4: The local town MN Police Department regulations and guidelines regarding the use, operation, and policies for the use of speed detection equipment.
#5: All engineering reports and studies performed in the determination of the posted limit, to include, but not limited to, the most recent 85th percentile speed measurement and any collision data used in the determination of the posted limit.
#6: A listing of traffic tickets issued by P.O. for the month of December 2016, to include: date and time issued, alleged violation, and disposition, (if determined).
#7: A total tally of all traffic tickets issued by the Local town MN Police Department for the month of December 2016, to include: date issued, alleged violation, the DSN of the issuing officer, and disposition, (if determined).
of these requests i received letters back from the PD stating they referred the requests to their city attorney for response.
several weeks later I received a reply with a copy of the radar cert from Nov 2016 and what looked to be a duty log from the day (computer generated) which wasnt very helpful and a letter stating they would get a dvd copy of the dash cam if I sent them $30
I sent a reply again via certified mail and a check to cover the dvd including my acknowledgement of the cert they sent and again asked for the above items
they then sent the dvd and a note stating they dont have to supply me with anything else.
fast forward to my initial "appearance" which was simply a meeting with a "hearing officer", the gal said she could look at "plea" options if i wished, I explained I was not interested in a plea as I wasn't speeding and asked for a court date.
I received an arraignment date and made the hike in once again to say "not guilty" and ask for a trial.
During that time I was called up to the table by the prosecutor, she asked what i wanted to do, and I explained I wanted her to either drop the case or sert for trial. She said she saw all my data requests and snickered. (thought that was odd) so i brought up, that I did indeed make several requests and asked why the discover wasnt provided to me as requested. she said she didnt have to and to refer to rule "9" of the courts if i wanted to know why, asked her what is rule "9" and she said "google it" (rule 9 is something along the lines of frivolous requests).
I didnt get to stand and enter a not guilty plea, simply told to go see the administrator and get a new date.
I felt I was being steamrolled for a basic speeding ticket worth a whopping $130 (had already spent over 30 in postage and another 30 for the dvd, not to mention countless hours) but I am innocent and I wont just fold.
I mentioned to the admin that I thought what happened was odd and she said the judge should hear my concerns and brought me back in.
I was called up to the bench and told the judge what had happened, the judge asked the city atty if what i said was true and she lied point blank and said she told me she would mail the remaining items
I called her out and said no, you told me I could "get them on the date of the trail" "if the officer brought them" and "i could show up early if i needed time to prepare a defense" the judge lit her up and said she needed to give me all discovery and had me itemize the list in front of her. she went on to say anything they produce the day of the trial will not be admitted if I don't have a copy already
Well my trial date is 1st week of May (long time away) I have since received the officers notes and official police report and a letter today that says the officer doesn't have a log of daily radar calibrations along with.
so i have a dvd showing thew officer wasnt using radar, his notes says i was heading east when i was actually heading west, that there were no other cars on the road, although you can see in the video otherwise. says I was on a hill when he asked me to pull ahead and the road is completely flat. officer sped 75+ mph without sirens or lights just before pulling me over and went on to say that i accelerated when we passed.
The State DOT says (have 3 studies to prove it) that the 50 mph zone ends 1/4 mile out of town so by default it goes back to 55.
I have a copy of the radar manual (I had to find online based off the model on the cert they sent me) saying they recommend a log be kept and that daily calibrations need to be done via internal tests and the tuning forks listed on the certificate, also mentions that proper classroom training is needed for use. (they have no records of such).
The is nothing in his log that mentions my citation, nor the calibration when he started or ended his shift.
I have maps printed and graduated by 1/4 increments to show the curvature of the road, (for radar cosign errors) and my testimony that he was tailgating for the other obstruction errors. the notes he made says i stopped on a hill but no hill exists
most of my discovery was ignored
My assumption was theyd have tossed it already with the leg work I have made them do, but appears they want that $130 pretty badly
Whats my best plan for defense here? I have tons of stuff in a folder on this if you all need to see what i am working with.
Would love some solid advice
This will be long as it happened last December (2016) and I have done a lot of leg work already.
Back story, was traveling westbound after work on a rural 2 lane county road in Hennepin county west of Minneapolis just a few days before the new year (this last december 2016). Cruise was set to 56. was coming through a long sweeping left hand curve (my direction of travel would put me on the outside lane of the curve) when I noticed a local PD explorer following very closely to the vehicle (within a cars length at most) coming the opposite direction on what would be the inside lane of the curve. Thinking he was either about to pull that person over or was a jerk for tailgating I obviously continued on my way, but out of habit I glanced down at my speedo to confirm I was still doing the 56 I knew I was. About a 1/2 mile up the road, I see this same PO flying up behind me and then turning on his lights to pull me over just as he came up on my bumper. I pulled over immediately and then he announced on his PA system that he wanted me to pull up because there wasn't much of a shoulder to get out of the traffic lane. I obliged and pulled up to a nearby approach to allow more room.
The officer approached my vehicle and I asked why he had pulled me over. He said speeding... said I was going 63 in a 50. which I of course I disputed, explaining my cruise was set to 56 and that this was a 55 zone. I then said how could you have even gotten an accurate reading on a curve as such and following so closely to the vehicle in front of you. He then copped an attitude said i wasnt very observant because this was a "50" zone and took my license and insurance back to his squad.
When he came back with the ticket, he snidely offered to explain it to me and I said no thank you and went on my way.
Knowing I wasn't speeding and the real jerkish attitude the officer seemed to display I knew I had to fight it. So after arriving to pick up my kid from day care (my original destination) I went back to the road i was cited on and made notes, checked where the last speed limit sign was posted and took a few pics with my phone. the last speed sign was nearly 3 miles before my citation location and was posted 50, MN however has a law that says the road would default to 55 if not posted. I have always travelled that road and never once been pulled over for the doing ~56
I then proceeded to get online and gather all the info I could.
I started by writing very officially formatted requests for information using the MN data practices act to get a copy things necessary to defend my case.
I wrote and sent certified mail to the officer, his sergeant, the city administrator, director of public safety etc for the town where I was cited, the State DOT (to get a traffic study for the area) I also sent similar letters to the court administrator.
items requested include (not counting the MNDOTrequest)
#1: All notes, records, recordings both audio / video and log files made by P.O. in regards to the issuance of Citation #
#2: Calibration records for any speed detection equipment used by P.O. in regards to the issuance of Citation #
#3: The Operator’s Manuals for any speed detection equipment used by P.O. in regards to the issuance of Citation #
#4: The local town MN Police Department regulations and guidelines regarding the use, operation, and policies for the use of speed detection equipment.
#5: All engineering reports and studies performed in the determination of the posted limit, to include, but not limited to, the most recent 85th percentile speed measurement and any collision data used in the determination of the posted limit.
#6: A listing of traffic tickets issued by P.O. for the month of December 2016, to include: date and time issued, alleged violation, and disposition, (if determined).
#7: A total tally of all traffic tickets issued by the Local town MN Police Department for the month of December 2016, to include: date issued, alleged violation, the DSN of the issuing officer, and disposition, (if determined).
of these requests i received letters back from the PD stating they referred the requests to their city attorney for response.
several weeks later I received a reply with a copy of the radar cert from Nov 2016 and what looked to be a duty log from the day (computer generated) which wasnt very helpful and a letter stating they would get a dvd copy of the dash cam if I sent them $30
I sent a reply again via certified mail and a check to cover the dvd including my acknowledgement of the cert they sent and again asked for the above items
they then sent the dvd and a note stating they dont have to supply me with anything else.
fast forward to my initial "appearance" which was simply a meeting with a "hearing officer", the gal said she could look at "plea" options if i wished, I explained I was not interested in a plea as I wasn't speeding and asked for a court date.
I received an arraignment date and made the hike in once again to say "not guilty" and ask for a trial.
During that time I was called up to the table by the prosecutor, she asked what i wanted to do, and I explained I wanted her to either drop the case or sert for trial. She said she saw all my data requests and snickered. (thought that was odd) so i brought up, that I did indeed make several requests and asked why the discover wasnt provided to me as requested. she said she didnt have to and to refer to rule "9" of the courts if i wanted to know why, asked her what is rule "9" and she said "google it" (rule 9 is something along the lines of frivolous requests).
I didnt get to stand and enter a not guilty plea, simply told to go see the administrator and get a new date.
I felt I was being steamrolled for a basic speeding ticket worth a whopping $130 (had already spent over 30 in postage and another 30 for the dvd, not to mention countless hours) but I am innocent and I wont just fold.
I mentioned to the admin that I thought what happened was odd and she said the judge should hear my concerns and brought me back in.
I was called up to the bench and told the judge what had happened, the judge asked the city atty if what i said was true and she lied point blank and said she told me she would mail the remaining items
I called her out and said no, you told me I could "get them on the date of the trail" "if the officer brought them" and "i could show up early if i needed time to prepare a defense" the judge lit her up and said she needed to give me all discovery and had me itemize the list in front of her. she went on to say anything they produce the day of the trial will not be admitted if I don't have a copy already
Well my trial date is 1st week of May (long time away) I have since received the officers notes and official police report and a letter today that says the officer doesn't have a log of daily radar calibrations along with.
so i have a dvd showing thew officer wasnt using radar, his notes says i was heading east when i was actually heading west, that there were no other cars on the road, although you can see in the video otherwise. says I was on a hill when he asked me to pull ahead and the road is completely flat. officer sped 75+ mph without sirens or lights just before pulling me over and went on to say that i accelerated when we passed.
The State DOT says (have 3 studies to prove it) that the 50 mph zone ends 1/4 mile out of town so by default it goes back to 55.
I have a copy of the radar manual (I had to find online based off the model on the cert they sent me) saying they recommend a log be kept and that daily calibrations need to be done via internal tests and the tuning forks listed on the certificate, also mentions that proper classroom training is needed for use. (they have no records of such).
The is nothing in his log that mentions my citation, nor the calibration when he started or ended his shift.
I have maps printed and graduated by 1/4 increments to show the curvature of the road, (for radar cosign errors) and my testimony that he was tailgating for the other obstruction errors. the notes he made says i stopped on a hill but no hill exists
most of my discovery was ignored
My assumption was theyd have tossed it already with the leg work I have made them do, but appears they want that $130 pretty badly
Whats my best plan for defense here? I have tons of stuff in a folder on this if you all need to see what i am working with.
Would love some solid advice
Speeding Tickets: Tagged for 63 in a 50 That Was Really a 55 and Lots of Discovery, Need Help Minnesota
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