reckless driving advice wanted

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beebeeri000

beebeeri000

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ok i wanna preface all of this by saying something that everyone should go by, if you dont have anything nice to say dont say it at all, so if you want to harass someone or judge them this isn't the post for you. now i'll go on to my story. on Thursday i was driving on highway 14 east in Washington on my way home from school. on my way home i was in the left of two lanes this '86 - '91 blue ford Taurus is merging on and cuts in front of me from the on ramp. then he immanently slams on his brakes so hard that his font end compresses all the way and his rear end pops up. at this point i dont trust him to not do this again, so to avoid him doing that again and possibly causing a a fatal car accident so i go to pass him. when i get in front of him i have to slow down because i had to speed up to pass the blue ford Taurus and there was a minivan going slower in front of me now(the minivan was going 60-65 and i had to speed up to around 70 to pass him also i think it was a newer dodge caravan lol XD), but the gut that was in the blue ford Taurus didnt slow down and rear ended me. i instinctual went to the left shoulder and the blue Taurus stopped behind me. when the traffic cleared i went to go to the right shoulder because on the left shoulder there is only 1/2 a land but there's a full lane width on the right shoulder, but when i was going to the right shoulder the blue ford Taurus side swiped me then he stopped on the right shoulder and i stopped behind him. we both got out of out cars and he started boasting about how i'm not going to get any money from him because he has no insurance and harassing me. i immediately called the police and about 40-50 minutes late a Washington state patrol car came out. he took both our statements and my paper work and went back to his car. about 10 to 20 minutes later he came out,started saying that he could take us both to jail and gave me a exchange of information forum and a summons for reckless driving and he gave the owner of the blue ford Taurus a exchange of information forum, a reckless driving citation, and a driving without insurance ticket. then he let the blue ford Taurus drive away and then i left.

now im not sure of this whole situation and cops around here are know for taking advantage of younger drivers(i'm only 20) and threatening them with massive tickets and jail time.

the main things that get me about this are
1. the other driver was knowingly breaking the law by driving without insurance
2. the police officer didnt see any of the accident at all
3. the police officer let the other driver drive away when law says the police officers supposed to impound the car, but he knowingly let the other driver off while the other driver was breaking the law
4. the other driver hit me
5. i was completely legal unlike the other driver

could anyone give me some advice or their experience if you've gone though this.i am in contact with my lawyer, but it'd be nice to just to get some advice or someones experience because i'v been having the worst week of my life so far and im starting to feel like sgt. pyle towards the end of his run in full metal jacket.
 
From your description.......I don't understand where you did anything wrong.
 
Go to traffic court. Explain to the judge what happened, that you were trying to be a defensive driver. if you have a clean driving record, use that as part of your defense also. Don't use what the trooper did or the other driver's lack of insurance as they are out of control. Be respectful.
 
Here is what you do. Tell them you want a jury trial. That's YOUR RIGHT. They will hem and haw around until it gets dismissed, because they will not spend the time and money on a jury trial. Trust me.
 
Rusty has a point. Do you have uninsured motorist insurance? Trial by jury has a chance to be dismissed solely on the trooper, or the defendant not showing up and you winning by default. If he does show up, he's got no eyewitness account of what he saw happen, only the the fact that the other driver had NO insurance and that he LET HIM GO. Explain that to the judge...Was the other driver lacking 'other' papers? Down here in the Socialist Republic of Kalifornia, our cops dont impound "their" cars anymore, it is "too hard financially" on them, but it flies with US citizens...unreal.
 
I can point you to the Jones County Georgia mug shot web site where you will see a LOT of mug shots for no insurance. They lock your *** UP for that down here.
 
Commando66 said:
Go to traffic court. Explain to the judge what happened, that you were trying to be a defensive driver. if you have a clean driving record, use that as part of your defense also. Don't use what the trooper did or the other driver's lack of insurance as they are out of control. Be respectful.
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yea i was mostley saying about the cop cause it just grinds my gears that he did that. i do have a pretty good driving record i only have 1 traffic ticket thats from going 70 in a 55 on my way to work.
 
RustyRatRod said:
Here is what you do. Tell them you want a jury trial. That's YOUR RIGHT. They will hem and haw around until it gets dismissed, because they will not spend the time and money on a jury trial. Trust me.
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yea i'll definatly keep that in my pocket and see what the lawyers think.
 
pishta said:
Rusty has a point. Do you have uninsured motorist insurance? Trial by jury has a chance to be dismissed solely on the trooper, or the defendant not showing up and you winning by default. If he does show up, he's got no eyewitness account of what he saw happen, only the the fact that the other driver had NO insurance and that he LET HIM GO. Explain that to the judge...Was the other driver lacking 'other' papers? Down here in the Socialist Republic of Kalifornia, our cops dont impound "their" cars anymore, it is "too hard financially" on them, but it flies with US citizens...unreal.
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i think he had his other papers i kept away from the driver when the cop got there because he was harassing me before the cop got there. i only know that they should impound cause around the same area when i was in my friends car and he got pulled over and they impounded his car for "no proof of insurance" even with his pregnant girlfriend in the car with us.
 
RustyRatRod said:
I can point you to the Jones County Georgia mug shot web site where you will see a LOT of mug shots for no insurance. They lock your *** UP for that down here.
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i wish they did that to the guy that hit me, but it'd probably end up being a hit and run if they did that here lol.
 
I'm not quite sure why the cop would have inferred that you were driving recklessly. If the other driver struck your vehicle from behind and then side swiped you, the damage to your car should indicate who was at fault.

If the other driver has no insurance that doesn't mean that he has no liability. There's a good chance your insurance company will go after him if your damages are severe enough.

If your description of the events is accurate, it sounds as though the other driver may have been intentionally trying to cause an accident when he slammed on his brakes in front of you. Had you rear-ended him he would most likely have tried to collect from you or your insurance company. He may be someone that's done this type of thing before. I've heard of scam artists that make a living doing such things. Maybe a search of public records would reveal past shenanigans.
 
If it were me, I would have changed lanes and let him move on down the road, instead of putting myself in front of him.
 
1967 'cuda said:
I'm not quite sure why the cop would have inferred that you were driving recklessly. If the other driver struck your vehicle from behind and then side swiped you, the damage to your car should indicate who was at fault.

If the other driver has no insurance that doesn't mean that he has no liability. There's a good chance your insurance company will go after him if your damages are severe enough.

If your description of the events is accurate, it sounds as though the other driver may have been intentionally trying to cause an accident when he slammed on his brakes in front of you. Had you rear-ended him he would most likely have tried to collect from you or your insurance company. He may be someone that's done this type of thing before. I've heard of scam artists that make a living doing such things. Maybe a search of public records would reveal past shenanigans.
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yea my honda had damage from me passenger side quarter panel just in front of my rear tire all the way to the front of my car and ripped off my bash bar(i cant remember what it's called) and the front of his car was the only part damaged on his car.
 
This is bad. Even if you "get off" you really need a lawyer for something as serious as reckless. So even at that you have lost money.

Sounds like either you or the other guy (lied?) and the cop concluded you did something wrong. This amounts to your word against the guy who hit you. Too bad you don't have witnesses.

But the weird thing, is, most of the time a rear end deal is the guy's fault who is in the rear. "No matter what you are doing" someone following is supposed to allow enough time to stop. Maybe he claimed you suddenly swapped lanes.

I know it's too late, but investigate Chinese imported "dash cams" "for next time." You can get them with front and rear cameras, I got one for about 80 bucks.

I would supena / request the cop's and the other guy's statements. I hope YOU did not "blab" too much. This idea that cops are "trying to help you out" is bullshit.
 
67Dart273 said:
This is bad. Even if you "get off" you really need a lawyer for something as serious as reckless. So even at that you have lost money.

Sounds like either you or the other guy (lied?) and the cop concluded you did something wrong. This amounts to your word against the guy who hit you. Too bad you don't have witnesses.

But the weird thing, is, most of the time a rear end deal is the guy's fault who is in the rear. "No matter what you are doing" someone following is supposed to allow enough time to stop. Maybe he claimed you suddenly swapped lanes.

I know it's too late, but investigate Chinese imported "dash cams" "for next time." You can get them with front and rear cameras, I got one for about 80 bucks.

I would supena / request the cop's and the other guy's statements. I hope YOU did not "blab" too much. This idea that cops are "trying to help you out" is bullshit.
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yea i immediatly called my lawyers and got a lawyer at this point to me it feels like the cop is trying to take advantage of me because he made the court date a week away from the accident and every other ticket ive seen has a court date of atleast a moth away
 
beebeeri000 said:
yea i immediatly called my lawyers and got a lawyer at this point to me it feels like the cop is trying to take advantage of me because he made the court date a week away from the accident and every other ticket ive seen has a court date of atleast a moth away
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That's not a court date. It's a plea hearing, that is, "arraignment." You go in and request a jury trial, plead guilty / not guilty, and they set the "real" trial date. You lawyer will walk you through this. He might try and talk you / them into reducing the charge. This is a two way gotcha. If you TRULY are innocent, and you stick with a jury trial, you might get convicted...........of the full deal........and there is no reducing that

So if yo plead it down to "something less" even though you "did nothing," you have cut your losses.

This whole deal smells. If you are being ABSOLUTELY honest here, you could get screwed real easy. No witnesses except your accuser --who is likely the guy that hit you-- it's going to depend on "who they believe."

You might check into "if" there are any LEO freeway cameras nearby.
 
The two best things you have going for you.
1. Cop watched an uninsured motorist drive off.
2. As was mentioned, Jury Trial.

Now if your lawyer could drop a bug in the Cops ear that watching an uninsured motorist drive off will be an issue in court, then the Cop would be a fool to show up. In other words he will beg the DA to dismiss the case before the first day in court. But if that happens you lose leverage in a civil trial which would be the only way to get a judgment against the other driver.

If it were me I'd take the dismissal, a judgment doesn't mean **** really.
 
I learned a long time ago, be completely submissive and defensive behind the wheel.
A little old man was slowly rolling along on the shoulder of the merge ramp. appeared to me that he hadn't intended to take the ramp onto the highway and/or disappointed that there was no way down to the Walmart parking lot. 2 other cars went right on past him. When I got to him he had ran out of ramp. I went all the way to the fast lane of the highway before the very end of the ramp. he suddenly came clear across in front of me and stopped with left turn signal on. Yep, I hit him. When we got to court, I had no attorney. His attorney shot down my every statement. Stuff like " He cant read minds and know what my client was thinking". You think the judge asked the little old man if he had made a wrong turn on his way to Walmart ? Hail no. Didn't matter.
So I lost, my insurance fixed his car. Best part of the story, today there is a raised concrete median in the highway and no left turn to that side road allowed.
See, the set up is about the same in that the path to these accidents began a block or more before impact.
We're better off to just take a seat, have some popcorn, enjoy the show those stooped asses are performing. Otherwise we become a player in their show.
 
Here in CA, the rear ender is 99% always at fault. There is no excuse hitting someone in front of you if you are paying attention (remember the second for every 10mph following rule from drivers ed?). Even "swoop and brake" collisions (staged?) dont fare well. Good luck, hope it gets dropped. Dont expect anything from the driver who will get a judgement against him and just throw up his hands saying that he has no money, thats usually case closed down here. Get your insurance involved, that is what you pay them to do.
 
Then you can part out your Honda and buy another Mopar..... see light a the end of the tunnel!
 
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