ticket for 57 (I doubt however) in 30 zone in upstate NY

[Nick]

Hi everybody.

Couple days ago I was driving to my school (I am a foreign grad student). I stopped at a gas station, at the bottom on a hill, filled my tank, and then continued driving to my school which was uphill. It is a zone of 30 mph, with 2 uphill slopes on an angle of probably 15-20 degrees.
Soon after, still in the slope area, the speed limit becomes 35 mph.

I was quite concerned about my exams and projcets and the road was empty. I did not pay attention to my board and very likely I was sppeding.

After probably 300-400 yards I noticed a police car on my back. I was anyhow turning left to get to the school, and the police car followed . I stopped and waited for the policeman. This was actually my first encounter of this kind with an American policeman.

The policeman asked me if I knew which was my speed. I told him I was unsure and it may have been somewhere in the 40 mph zone. he replied that I was driving 57 mph in the 30 mph zone, which really surprised me, but I did not know how to react. He filled in a ticket and told me to go in Court in late december.

I really do not know which would be the best stepts to take from now on.
I am considering pleading not guilty, claimng that it would have been hard to reach that speed in my 4 cyl saturn going going uphill withtin half a mile and staring from a stop...

Also I would underline that I was in a special condiiton, as I had been under a lot of stress with exams and assignments adn projects, and that I understand that I have to be more focused and responsible in the future.

Also, I hope to registre for a preventive driving course (it is to late to have it taken by the day Court) and showew the judge that I try to improve in this way.


Also, I would try to explain that this is my first incident of this kind. So far I have been in a minor collisison and got no ticket for any kind of moving violation (only got tickets for parking violations).

It would be hard for me to hire a lawyer, and I am quite worried, particulalry in terms of insurance but not only.
My goal is to obtain eithther a deal, such as fwere points (for a lower speed) or even better just a fine for a non-moving violation.

The action takes part in capital region, upstate NY.

As I have no experience with the American law system any advice is highly welcomed.

 

[mike]

Hi everybody.

Couple days ago I was driving to my school (I am a foreign grad student). I stopped at a gas station, at the bottom on a hill, filled my tank, and then continued driving to my school which was uphill. It is a zone of 30 mph, with 2 uphill slopes on an angle of probably 15-20 degrees.
Soon after, still in the slope area, the speed limit becomes 35 mph.

I was quite concerned about my exams and projcets and the road was empty. I did not pay attention to my board and very likely I was sppeding.

After probably 300-400 yards I noticed a police car on my back. I was anyhow turning left to get to the school, and the police car followed . I stopped and waited for the policeman. This was actually my first encounter of this kind with an American policeman.

The policeman asked me if I knew which was my speed. I told him I was unsure and it may have been somewhere in the 40 mph zone. he replied that I was driving 57 mph in the 30 mph zone, which really surprised me, but I did not know how to react. He filled in a ticket and told me to go in Court in late december.

I really do not know which would be the best stepts to take from now on.
I am considering pleading not guilty, claimng that it would have been hard to reach that speed in my 4 cyl saturn going going uphill withtin half a mile and staring from a stop...

Also I would underline that I was in a special condiiton, as I had been under a lot of stress with exams and assignments adn projects, and that I understand that I have to be more focused and responsible in the future.

Also, I hope to registre for a preventive driving course (it is to late to have it taken by the day Court) and showew the judge that I try to improve in this way.


Also, I would try to explain that this is my first incident of this kind. So far I have been in a minor collisison and got no ticket for any kind of moving violation (only got tickets for parking violations).

It would be hard for me to hire a lawyer, and I am quite worried, particulalry in terms of insurance but not only.
My goal is to obtain eithther a deal, such as fwere points (for a lower speed) or even better just a fine for a non-moving violation.

The action takes part in capital region, upstate NY.

As I have no experience with the American law system any advice is highly welcomed.

You should probably plead not guilty if it comes to the court. You may be able to make a deal with the prosecutor, which is something that freqently happens. However, you should be prepared to ask a number of questions and provide proofs as well. Taking pictures is good if you feel that it is highly unlikely that you could ever have done 57.

You will probably want to obtain the information concerning the basis for the charge, whether a radar gun was used, what type (and do research on those that may be faulty), when it was last calibrated, where it was situated and whether this might have provided an inaccurate reading (perhaps on inclines/declines speed could be inaccurate), etc. You will need to be proactive and make discovery requests to obtain some of this information prior to your court date.

You may want to take pictures of the area and make some determinations (i.e. distances, etc.) which can be useful later. They can also help you cross examine the officer who claims that he clocked you. Good luck with this.