144 (18) - Turning Left At An Intersection
I was in the left turn lane going to turn left in an intersection. There was a car in front of us that proceeded to turn left so my car creeped forward into the intersection (past the pedestrian lines). The light was green during this time. The car in front made its left turn but was unable to clear the intersection because a few pedestrians were running across the road. By the time, it was clear for that car to go, the light turned yellow. Because my car was partially in the intersection (past the pedestrian lines), I figured I should clear the intersection so I wouldn't block traffic. The light turned red just before I cleared the intersection.
I was stopped by the police who charged me for failing 144-18
Is it possible to fight the ticket and argue that I was in the intersection and to avoid blocking traffic, I cleared the intersection?