Advice on fighting tickets?

Quoted message said:

Any policeman who's there will just say, limited ability to enforce a law is no excuse not to
obey a law.

=v= Finite ability to enforce and SELECTIVE enforcement are separate issues. Certainly a police
officer won't be able to ticket everybody, but it is her/his Constitutional duty to be impartial
about which offenders get tickets. <_Jym_

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

in NYC, cyclists have always used the few bike lanes in both directions, because for one thing it
is almost unknown that is against the law (I didn't even know until this ticket, and I've been
riding here for many years), and for another thing, there are so few bike lanes that they
automatically draw cyclist looking for safe routes. Generally, bikers slow down as they approaching
each other from opposite directions, and the wrong-way rider takes the inside.

You are obviously new to riding in NYC. Real messemgers ride in traffic, not on bike lanes. Bike
lanes, like any other lane of traffic, are one way only. I ocassionly use bike lanes, I mostly ride
in the regular traffic lanes, and it is annoying to have some clueless rider coming at you in the
wrong direction expecting you to move over for them. The wrong way rider taking the inside is also
stupid because in the USA all traffic is supposed to keep right.

Quoted message said:

This city should be going out of its way to sponsor bike riding, to aid riders, and even to reward
riders. We cut traffic, reduce air pollution, and activate public space. If cyclists don't stand
together against unfair laws, dangerous motor vehicles, and the theft of roads for inefficient
uses, than cycling will never become the powerful mode of transportation it should be.

Inefficient use of the few facilities we have makes them less usefull.

As far as your tickets go, first thing to do is to plea not guilty. Then you should prepare a
defense. Where were the cops relative to where you were when you allegedly ran the first light.
I would guess they were no where near you. If they were, they would not have waited for you to
run three lights before they stopped you. I'm curious as to where this occured? Was it by any
chance on CPW?
-----------------
Alex __O _-\<,_ (_)/ (_)

In article <[email hidden]>, the robotic servitors of
[email hidden] (B.C. Cletta) rose up with the following chant:

Quoted message said:

"J.M. Rudder" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

I work intermittently as a bike messenger, and received the tickets on two occasions. The first
time, I got three tickets for running three consecutive red lights, for a total of $800.

huh?!? the cop let you run "...three consecutive red lights" before citing you?

If it's a place where a bike messenger can make a living, a bicycle can probably *outrun* a police
car for at least three blocks.

-------- Scott Eiler B{D> -------- eilertech.comeilertech.comOpen ↗ --------

"It seemed an unlikely spot for a sensitive songwriter from Greenwich Village... She ordered
the 20-ounce steak." -- Lin Brehmer, Chicago DJ, describing his meeting in a steakhouse with
Suzanne Vega.

In article <[email hidden]>, the robotic servitors of Jym Dyer <[email hidden]> rose
up with the following chant:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Any policeman who's there will just say, limited ability to enforce a law is no excuse not to
obey a law.

=v= Finite ability to enforce and SELECTIVE enforcement are separate issues. Certainly a police
officer won't be able to ticket everybody, but it is her/his Constitutional duty to be impartial
about which offenders get tickets.

As policemen love to say, tell it to the judge. If you're claiming that a policeman is not impartial
in ticketing, you'd better have something plausible to say about that particular policeman. Like
maybe he said "your type needs to learn a lesson..."

But on the other hand, the odds are you won't even see that policeman in court. Most police
departments send a representative to the first court case. If you appeal or if the police do, *then*
the police department has to send that particular officer to the next hearing - and the guy isn't
always available.

-------- Scott Eiler B{D> -------- eilertech.comeilertech.comOpen ↗ --------

"It seemed an unlikely spot for a sensitive songwriter from Greenwich Village... She ordered
the 20-ounce steak." -- Lin Brehmer, Chicago DJ, describing his meeting in a steakhouse with
Suzanne Vega.

Robert Haston said:

I would throw myself on the mercy of the court.

The argument is that it is really unfair to apply a law designed to prevent motorists from killing
other citizens to a cyclist who poses a small threat of maybe causing an accident.

There are three issues involved in cyclist running red lights:

1) A cycle is a vehicle with the same rights, and hence the same duties as other vehicles

2) the cyclist could get himself killed

3) the cyclist may cause other vehicles to take evasive action, leading to follow-up accidents

Running a red light is no laughing matter. Just try to imagine a truck with 40 t of some hazardous
material tipping over trying to avoid you. We had such a situation here in Germany a couple of years
ago (not caused by a cyclist, though). The tankload of gasoline set fire to a whole block including
a fully occupied restaurant, killing, iirc, some 40 people.

However, assuming American law to be similar to German, judges have some leeway to adjust fines to
the financial situation of defendants, or to convert it into communal work. It may also possible to
arrange payment in installments. You may even be eligible to free legal advice (ask social welfare).

So we have the cyclist being blamed for the truck-driver's error that killed many people rather than
just the cyclist. That is not required by law.

The law must be enforced even-handedly across motorists and cyclists - both groups run 'stops'.

The law may charge a consequent collision as a separate event and force the parties to civil court
where the standard is NOT (US-centric) 'innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.'

The cyclist may get himself killed. THE CYCLIST CANNOT KILL ANOTHER IN A COLLISION!!

"Dr Engelbert Buxbaum" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

There are three issues involved in cyclist running red lights:

1) A cycle is a vehicle with the same rights, and hence the same duties as other vehicles

2) the cyclist could get himself killed

3) the cyclist may cause other vehicles to take evasive action, leading to follow-up accidents

Running a red light is no laughing matter. Just try to imagine a truck with 40 t of some hazardous
material tipping over trying to avoid you. We had such a situation here in Germany a couple of
years ago (not caused by a cyclist, though). The tankload of gasoline set fire to a whole block
including a fully occupied restaurant, killing, iirc, some 40 people.

Doug Huffman said:

So we have the cyclist being blamed for the truck-driver's error that killed many people rather
than just the cyclist. That is not required by law.

Some idiot ran a red light in a car this summer (Lansing, MI, USA). Somebody who had the right of
way over the idiot took to the shoulder to avoid hitting idiot. There was a runner on the shoulder,
now dead. Idiot was facing homicide charges last I heard. Mitch.

(Scott Eiler) said:

But on the other hand, the odds are you won't even see that policeman in court. Most police
departments send a representative to the first court case. If you appeal or if the police do,
*then* the police department has to send that particular officer to the next hearing - and the guy
isn't always available.

We have a better system: all trials are scheduled for when the officer is working. If the
deft. shows up for the trial, the officer's command is notified and the officer leaves
patrol duties to respond to traffic court. And 90 percent of the time, when the deft. is
advised that the officer is reporting to trial, he or she cops a plea and the officer
resumes patrol. Loss of patrol time - approximately ten minutes to a half hour.

Regards, Ken (NY) Chairman, Department Of Redundancy Department, Vast Right Wing
Conspiracy (VRWC)
____________________________________
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