...and the cop supposedly paced me going 65 in a 45. i dont believe i was going that fast. anyways, is there some kind of law in va that describes proper pacing procedure. i always tought they have to follow you for a specific amount of miles/time to get an accurate reading.

im definately going to fight it(i beat my last speeding ticket too) and already have a nice defense lined up. im just curious about pacing.

 

anyone?

 

One of my police officer buddies explained it to me a few weeks ago - let's see if I can reiterate what he said.

In Virginia (well Norfolk) an officer must tail/pace someone for 30-45 seconds. Now, this is the loophole:

If you can find out what type of car the officer was in (call the station with the car number), and then check to see what type of speedometer the car has (car manufacturer). If the car uses a digital speedodometer, it will be tough to beat the ticket - BUT - if it is a rotary style, then the officer has ABSOLUTELY no way of telling EXACTLY how fast you were going

Of course, all of this plays on the judge - the argument for the rotary could only come down to a reduction in the ticket (maybe 60 in a 45), as most police cars are calibrated every 3-6 months. If you do not use a lawyer, then I would print out a picture of the cop car's speedomoter (also, with the car manufacturer) as back up for the judge.

Good luck

 

If my (extensive) speeding ticket experience is any gauge, this is what will happen:

Whatever he says happened, happened. Whatever the law states is what he did. That's what he'll say and the judge will believe him because he is the cop.

A good lawyer might help you here but don't get your hopes up. Also, it's VERY important that you're polite, truthful, and cooperative with the cop at all times. Any hint of disrespect and he'll burn you.

Sad but true...good luck.

 

respect is key, truthfulness isnt very important especially if he cant prove otherwise. I got out of a 63 in a 45 recently cause the cop that pulled me over was my dare officer in elementary school. For some great tips on future pull-overs check out the recent sport compact car that features "Dont get Busted" with a cop car on the front. The best of luck with the ticket, I think you'll be doing good if you find out about his speedo and it's a mechanical type.

-Dave

 

I agree with dave22 on this one. From my own experience it's pretty much your word against the cop's, and the cop wins if he shows up in court. If he doesn't show, the ticket could get dropped or at least reduced. I got a reduction in fine (it was not a speeding ticket) because of my good driving record. So that's probably the most you can hope for. Good luck!!!

 

I dont know how you beat that other ticket. I never went to court in northern va for speeding tickets, but down in the south, it dont matter if you're polite or nasty or whatever. the law wins everytime.

one time I got all dressed up in suit and went to the court and politely asked the judge if he could reduce my sentence.

Now if you're a judge, and you see a nice young man who made an effort to come to the court, and he's in college and you can tell that he's not a california weed surf bum and he doesnt need that reckless driving ticket, right?

It took the judge .5 seconds to tell me NO. He looked at me like i was crazy. his eyes were doing the talking. i could see he was an racist.

so good luck!
haha.

 

I am well versed in the world of speeding tickets. You have the best odds of beating the ticket if you have a clean driving record. I received 3 speeding tickets within a year and a half of getting my license. I paid all of them and my insurance went through the roof.

Five years later I got another ticket. By this time my record was clean again and I went to court. In VA sometimes the judge will let you take traffic school in lieu of the ticket. I presented the judge a copy of my clean record and asked for traffic school. This is something that is usually given to younger drivers to give them a second chance (this is what the judge told me in court). He asked if I had ever taken traffic school before which I hadn't so I beat it. All I had to do was pay court costs, pay and take the class (which you can do online), and mail in my certificate. No points, no insurance hit, however your record will show that you took the class. Might be your best bet if your record is clean.

You may already be planning to, but I would recommend that you wear a suit and tie to be taken seriously.

 

RazorV3,
My brother is an officer and I asked him about pacing. In VA there is no law that states how long an officer has to pace you for. As explained to me the standard, accepted procedure is pacing for .2/mi and if the vehical speeds up past the specific officers predetermined speed, then they have the right to stop you. My bro said he has his speedometer calibrated every 6mo. Of course from his perspective it's always..."oh I don't think I was doing 65mph". I would say that it is probably rare to find a case where an officers speedometer is so far off calibration, someone walks because of it. Not to discourage you, just to inform. The officer has to prove beyond reasonable doubt & usually they will bring their own evidence to support their case.
My question to you would be...didn't you see the cop pacing you? Also where did this happen at?
-j

 

i took off fast from a traffic light and i didnt see the cop at all. he was a couple cars behind me. all of this happened within 1/4-1/2 mile. i think he got me at 65 mph b/c he had to speed up this fast to catch up with me .