Speak Up! - View Question #660

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Question: If a cop pulls me over for speeding, what are my rights? Can I ask for a print out of the radar gun? What else am I entitled to in this situation?

Answer: First, an officer has to have reasonable suspicion that you have done something wrong in order to pull you over. That suspicion was that you were speeding and he obviously got that from either a radar or from pacing you. Your question leads me to believe that you were caught by radar.

While you can ask for a print out of the radar gun, you won't get it. You can also ask to look at the radar, but the officer is not obligated to show you it. It's essentially the officer's word against your word. You would be entitled to fight the ticket in court and hold the officer to his/her burden in proving beyond a reasonable doubt that you were speeding. If you can offer evidence that you were not speeding or you can show that the officer's radar was flawed somehow, then you will win.

How do you show that the radar obtained an inaccurate reading? What was the weather like? Was it day or not? Was the radar gun calibrated before the officer's shift and after it? Was it working properly when it was calibrated? All of those things matter when determining whether the radar gave an accurate reading.


Comments
1 thru 5 of 21 comments
On 09/01/08
Adam from AZ said:
It's always going to be the cop's word against yours. So if the officer really wants to give you a ticket, however irrational it may be, there isn't really much you can do.
On 02/28/08
Doug from MI said:
What is the law in Michigan for cops running radar. Do they have to have parking lights on at night or can they be hidden by the dark.
On 01/10/08
Mark from AZ said:
Didnt they come out with a new so called law that cops have to use radar and show it as proof in court. They can't just guess what speed you were going because they could be writing "false" tickets?
On 10/29/07
Peter from NY said:
I got pulled over today from a cop. It was near my school. I was sitting in a parking lot with the cop a few feet away from me but I was ahead of him near to the exit of the parking lot. there was no other car in there but mine and the cop posted up. So i leave the parking lot to the school. Mind you i did NOT pass the cop i was moving away from him. While i was coming back he pulled me over claiming i did 50mph to the school and 45 coming back. he gave me two different summons and i asked him fro his print out but he acted like he didnt know what i was talking about. Im going to argue this..
On 07/18/07
Nate from FL said:
If the cop or sherrif that pulled you over is not an officer from the town or county you were pulled over in, you can have rights to tell him you can't do that. Only because its true.
1 thru 5 of 21 comments



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