Reckless Driving- Failure to Maintain Control of Vehicle

[benny50309]

On September 25th, I was driving north on I-81 in Augusta County, VA when the car hydroplaned towards an exit ramp sign. I tried to avoid the sign, but the car simply spun out of control down the exit ramp, hitting a parked semi-truck and ending up in a ditch. The police who investigated the crash did not believe me and issued a ticket for Reckless Driving- Failure to Maintain Control. There was a lot of rain that morning but up to that moment it was still safe to drive in, I was goind 3 to 5 miles per hour belwo the speed limit to account for the wet roads and then all a sudden the car was out of control.

I'm told hydroplaning can occur at much slower speeds, and am wondering if it would be a valid defense that the accident was unavoidable on my part- certainly not constituting a willful and reckless disreagard for safety on my part. The court date is next week, December 10th. The police report says the car did not hydroplane but rather I lost control of car and crashed in the ditch (they deny the semi-truck was even there). There were no other witnesses to the accident. The damage to the front end of the car proves however that I did hit a semi, I took pictures of the car afterwards to document this. Since the police investigation overlooked that aspect of the crash, will it help me in proving the car hydroplaned?

I'm told the fine could range between 25 and 2500 dollars. I have no money and am unemployeed. First, what chance is there that I could be found not guilty? (ie: would hydroplaning constitute reckless driving?) If not, what might a ballpark figure of the fine possibly be?

 

[mightymoose]

Don't focus so much on the "reckless driving" part of it... look more at the "failure to maintain control" part.
You apparently misjudged the road conditions and were going a bit too fast, even though below the speed limit. Sounds like a safe speed would have been a lower speed.
THere is probably a good chance that you can beat the citation in court though.... unless the officer or other witnesses are available to say that you were seen driving too fast/recklessly for the conditions. In court, the officer would have to explain how he determined you were driving recklessly and you could probably punch a ton of holes in his reasoning.
Your defense is hydroplaning, and I would think a judge would buy that since it happens all the time to unsuspecting drivers. You would still be on the hook for any damages you caused... but may beat the fines and points associated with a citation.