Officer said license won't be suspended

[Wycliffe]

Preparing my defense

Cited for 87.5 in a 45 zone ... court date is Tuesday. Please tell me if my defense is logical and convincing:

I was timed between two white lines spaced 0.025 miles apart, allegedly travelling at 87.5 mph over a distance of 0.025 miles = 1.029 seconds. I'm trying to argue that I was doing 70 mph over a distance of 0.025 miles = 1.286 seconds, a difference of 0.257 seconds (about 1/4 second). Would it be wise to attempt to convince the judge that the officer was 1/4 sec. quick on the trigger -- that, given such a short distance, the reading was inaccurate?

I honestly don't believe I was going anywhere near 87.5 mph, although I'm unsure of my actual speed. I was stuck behind a car going 35 (road is two lanes, one in each direction ... dotted yellow line), and after I had passed him, I drove through the (as I later found out) speed trap. Could I argue that my car could not possibly have accelerated from 35 mph to 87.5 mph in such a short period of time?

Pennsylvania law states that if a minor is convicted of a high speed violation (26 mph over), his license receives a mandatory suspension for 90 days. This will be the case with me if my speed is not lowered to 70 mph or below. However, after questioning the officer issuing me the citation about losing my license, he informed me that I would not lose it. Will his word hold up in court at all?

Or, would it be better to plead guilty and hope that the judge is lenient and reduces my speed? Would it be possible that he would reduce it to 70?

Does Pennsylvania offer any traffic school programs to reduce points? Are they available to minors? High speed infringements?

I'm open for any suggestions... money isn't the issue here -- it's the suspension I'm concerned about.

Thanks for your time.

 

[lwpat]

Vascar Speeding Ticket

Vascar is basically just a glorified stopwatch. A switch is attached to a computer. The officer throws the switch when you cross the first mark and again when you cross the second. Since the distance has been preprogramed into the computer, it then spits out your speed.

The problem here is that the distance is so short that the officer's reaction time can make a substantial difference in the determination of the speed. The manuals I have seen recommended a minimum distance of 0.1 mile for an accurate reading. If you could obtain a copy of the manual of the particular unit used you might have an argument.

However it is not unusual for a traffic court judge to ignore any arguments presented by someone who is not an attorney. In addition, since you are a minor, you will need one of your parents present in court. In other words you need to go ahead and break the bad news to them since they will find out anyway.

My suggestion would be to either negotiate for a lesser offense or plead not guilty and retain an attorney.

 

[Wycliffe]

Thanks for the advice. I got lucky, and the judge lowered my speed to 50.