People too frequently assume that police officers always perform their duties properly. Up until the point when they discover that they have been falsely charged with a driving offence. Here’s what you should do next if you find yourself in this awful predicament to give yourself the best opportunity of getting things straight with the police.
Record Everything Which Lead to Incident
You need to take a few minutes and write down what happened before you call your attorney or try to contest your infraction. It’s no secret that memory loss occurs with age. It’s absolutely amazing how easily tiny details can be forgotten in the hours following an occurrence. This is especially true when your emotions are at their highest.
Write down all you can remember about the situation, including what the officer said to you, as a favor to yourself. This covers all the minor details as well as the essential information pertaining to the fictitious traffic infraction. You never know when it might be crucial to stand up for your innocence. To make sure you recorded every last detail, close your eyes and mentally relive the events several times. You’ll probably need to refer back to this written account of the circumstances surrounding the infraction, so make sure you store it safely.
Know What you are Being Charged
A police officer can issue several different kinds of traffic penalties. Some of these infractions are determined by equipment readings, such as when you’re driving too fast. Others, like a dangerous lane change, are dependent on the officer’s subjective judgement. Others, like texting while driving, are also based on what the police observes.
The first step in establishing your innocence is to understand the alleged offence and the officer’s methodology. Violations based on an officer’s judgement are considerably simpler to contest than equipment-based offences like speeding. You can more effectively decide how to argue your case to be the most successful in a court of law by better understanding the fundamentals around your violation.
Speak to the Attorney
The next action you should do is to seek the assistance of a knowledgeable lawyer. They will be able to assist you in gathering proof to back up your version of events. You should choose a lawyer who specializes in the area of law where the violation occurred when making your hiring decision. For instance, if you were charged with a DUI traffic infraction, you should seek DUI attorney in San Diego, CA. This is due to the fact that attorneys with experience in a particular area will be better equipped to defend the violation than those who specialize in general law or another area irrelevant to your offence.
Split the Offence into Pieces
Each State must provide proof that specific factors were present in order to establish your guilt. To better comprehend how you’re going to demonstrate your innocence, you need to split down these components. For instance, the State will need to prove two fundamental aspects if you are accused of driving while distracted. The first need is that the disputed vehicle was actually being driven by you. The use of an electronic gadget is the second component.
For you to be found guilty of the violation, the State must establish that each of these case components is present. You’ll probably be found not guilty of the violation if even one of the essential parts of the offence is disproven as being false or unable to be adequately established with evidence. Take the time to break down the violation into its component parts, then check if you have any evidence to refute any of the pieces.
Try to Refute Officer’s Arbitrary Judgement
There are numerous kinds of driving offences, as you have just learnt. Some of these call for the officer to offer a personal assessment of what they think transpired. Making an unsafe turn or lane change are two examples of these offences. With this kind of traffic infraction, your best course of defense is to merely object to various points of the officer’s subjective judgement.
Consider the scenario where you were charged with making a risky left turn. You were allegedly squealing your tyres when the officer pulled you over because you were travelling far too quickly through the turn. You could contest this piece of subjective judgement in traffic court. You may claim that your new tyres on a smooth road caused the screeching rather than your car’s speed. Determine how to cast doubt on each of the different subjective elements that contributed to the officer’s subjective conclusion during your court case.
Ensure that you Appear at Traffic Court
You should still appear in traffic court even if you’re having trouble coming up with a compelling defense to support your side of the story. The police officer must appear in traffic court to present their defense, according to the judge. The judge will ordinarily throw out the traffic infraction if the officer fails to appear. So, if you’re lucky and the police doesn’t show up in traffic court that day, don’t lose your opportunity to have the charge dismissed.
When you are falsely charged with a traffic infraction, you could believe that the government’s judicial system is working against you rather than for you. Even when the truth is on your side, you must explain it in a way that the traffic court judge can perceive the situation from your point of view. The aforementioned advice will give you the best chance possible to contest your traffic infraction in court.
