Never Fought A Ticket Before! 134km/h In 100km/h Zone (401)
Hi guys, great site by the way, definitely going to recommend it.
So, got speed-trapped by the OPP at 134km/h on the 401 near Kingston. The ticket as is comes with a $259 fine and 4 demerit points. To me, this exercise is two-fold:
1) I have never been to court for anything, so I am looking at this as an opportunity to learn more about our justice system (optimism!)
2) A lowered fine and (more importantly) a lesser demerit penalty.
Here is everything I remember:
- There were PLENTY of other cars near me on the highway doing similar speeds.
- I was in the left lane going faster than normal to get past a semi (they make me nervous) but I don't recall my exact speed (paying attention to highway, not speedometer blah blah blah)
- I did not request nor was I shown the radar
- The speed trap was on the INSIDE shoulder of a 4-lane concrete barrier divided section (similar to this image.) I doubt this is relevant but it still seems highly unorthodox and dangerous. The officer literally had to step INTO the left lane of the highway to wave me over.
- She (the officer) specifically mentioned that she had ticketed me the full amount due to her expectation that I would fight it, giving the Crown so-called "wiggle-room" (her words, not mine).
- The day was dry and sunny with good visibility
Now for a tricky part: I was driving my father's car, and thus assumed all registration and insurance was up-to-date. Not so; Both the insurance and the sticker were expired. The officer made me aware of this and DID NOT issue a fine. I have since spoken with my father and in fact the insurance has been renewed but the new card was not put in the glove box. The sticker, however, has been expired for about two weeks. I'm really not sure if this is relevant to the case since all discussion relating to this was not documented and was verbal (unless she put something in her notes I don't know about). However I figured I should definitely let you guys know in case it is important.
I definitely don't want to pay voluntarily, pleading guilty with an explanation is just making excuses, so it looks like I'm going to trial! So now, I bow humbly to your superior expertise. Let's have some fun!