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Hello,

Question, last week on the 401 I was pulled over in Kent Chattham.

Details: I was given a ticket for speeding and for failing to stop nearest edge of road.

When I pulled over I told the officer I was on the phone with 911, because it was unsafe for me to pull over, and I was trying to find a safe location

-Ticket 159 (b)

I pulled over on to the should of the road, which is not considered part of the roadway, and also the ticket section indicates this is for roads with more than 2 lanes. The section of 401 I was travelling had Only 2 lanes. I am not sure why I got this ticket... I pulled clear on to the shoulder.

Question:

The officer approach the passenger window, and then handed the ticket to the passenger, NOT the driver. Is this grounds to fight the ticket since I was not actually served with an offense.?

Is the officer required to give the ticket to the driver?

-(I had a passenger in the car, but the ticket indicates no witness)

-What does code 8994 in the witness box mean, is this some code to the crown?

-Can anyone point to the Highway traffic act, which says how a notice or ticket must be given to a driver.

Thank you

Cheers

How far did you keep driving for before you pulled over? I'm guessing that's why you were charged, not because you pulled over incorrectly. Remember, the section states "shall immediately bring such vehicle to a standstill".

As for the passenger being handed the ticket, that would NOT be grounds to argue you weren't served in Court. Your obviously well aware of the charge and were present when the passenger was handed the ticket.

The witness box is to alert the Crown if there's additional witnesses for the prosecution that need to be called (i.e. a second police officer or another driver if an accident is involved). Your passenger would not be a relevant Crown witness in this case.

Hi Stanton,

I drove less than 1.5-2km on the highway. So at highway speed we are talking about 1 min distance.

Additional notes:

-I signaled to the officer I was going to pull over however there was shoulder debris, and it looked unsafe. thus drove another few hundred meters until I could pull over safely.

-Additionally, Although I was in the car I never actually got the ticket, as it was handed to the passenger. How is this being deemed served. Ie passenger then refuses to give me the tickets.

-Also on one ticket the witness box was checked and the other ticket for fail to stop the box was not checked.

Questions Stanton,

As the operator of the car should I not be able to deem when it is safe to immediately pull over?

Additionally I had to make sure I was the one the officer actually wanted to pull over which took a few seconds to establish, and was hard to see in review mirror because of extreme sun.

The ticket 159(1)(b) says for roads with more than 2 lanes, my section of the highway only had 2 lanes, was I given the wrong ticket.

Any suggestions on how I should proceed.

If you AND your witness are both willing to take the witness stand and swear to tell the truth and testify that it was unsafe, then you have good chance of getting that one dropped. When it is you versus the officer, the JP will almost always side with the officers version of things. But if you can provide another witness that will side with you, then you have much better chance of JP siding with you.