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How can technology help you fight a traffic ticket?

On Behalf of | Dec 20, 2021 | Traffic Offenses

Technology plays a role in the issuing of many tickets. For example, if the police give you a speeding ticket, they use something to measure your speed. If they give you a DUI, they probably use a machine to measure your blood alcohol content.

Yet, no technology is entirely reliable.  A clock can tell the wrong time if it is not set right, a software glitch can cause a computer program to fail, and in 1983, a software error almost caused a nuclear war. Here are some things to consider.

The police were wrong

In the same way that you need to set your watch occasionally, the police need to calibrate machines used to take breath samples. If you can show they did not do so as per requirements, you may claim the reading was a false positive.

The same could apply with a speed gun the police used to clock how fast you were traveling. They do not come with a lifetime accuracy guarantee. They need maintenance and calibration.

Your speedometer was wrong

You are meant to keep your car in working order, including the speedometer. So why would you tell a court yours was faulty?

Unfortunately, there is no intent element to speeding, so that you did not mean to speed makes no difference.  Where it might help is with the prosecutor who might be convinced to charge you with a lesser offense.  Judges do not have the power to change the charge in front of them.

Your dashcam disproves the police claim

The police sometimes arrest you based on their perception of events. For instance, they see you traveling faster than the other cars and think you must be breaking the limit. What if the other vehicles were in a funeral procession and crawling along? Or they accuse you of weaving across the road to justify a drunk driving ticket. If you have dashcam footage that shows you were traveling under the speed limit or were maintaining a straight line, it could help you fight the accusation.

When faced with a traffic ticket, it is crucial to examine all defense options. However outlandish something may seem, trying it may be a better option than accepting the consequences of a ticket.

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