Speeding ticket. Do I have grounds to contest this??

[jrandom]

He blagged some Pythagoras and the officer bought it (or perhaps took pity on him). The funniest thing was that this guy believed it himself. He didn't realise that his argument, if calculated properly, would have revealed his speed even higher.

Heh! That's quite funny; I had the same thought myself when I got my last ticket, closely followed by the same realisation that I'd better shut my pie-hole in case the officer concerned remembered any of his high-school trig.

I wonder if I should share here the fascinating corollary that riding in a perfect circle around the cop's doppler radar unit would make your speed completely undetectable?

[peasea]

Ever considered just taking it like a man if you get caught breaking the law?

OUCH!
(Walks off bow-legged......)

[jrandom]

(Walks off bow-legged......)

Walkin' bow-legged, eh?

I prescribe either less throttle, or a lot more...

[Swoop]

But will it prevent ya getting demerits???????????

If that was coupled to the main driving wheel of the bike, I think demerits wouldn't be a problem.
Getting anywhere on time and the amount of batteries used up, could be another matter entirely.

[Patrick]

got 18% in School Cert maths and shit like that makes my head hurt!)

Cheeze boy..... did ya speld ya name rong in the maffs test? That will be wirf a pass at least these days....

[Banesto John]

A guy I know got out of a speeding ticket at the roadside by arguing successfully that because the officer detected him at an angle that the speed detected wasn't accurate. He blagged some Pythagoras and the officer bought it (or perhaps took pity on him). The funniest thing was that this guy believed it himself. He didn't realise that his argument, if calculated properly, would have revealed his speed even higher.

It's called cosine angle effect. It's always in the driver's favour, because cosines go from zero to one.

Multiply your speed by the cosine of the angle of deflection between the axis of the laser/radar beam and your vector of travel, multiply that figure by the inverse of the cosine, and you will have your actual speed.

Suggestion two is look at your speedo, and hold your wrist so as to adjust the colourful little needle to within coooeeeee of the speed limit.

Just think yourself lucky the ticket doesn't cost more.

The cosine angle effect is negligent most of the time, that's why they don't worry about it. Interestingly (well, I'm interested), the speed cameras have a slant radar principle, and factor in 22.5 degrees as the fixed cosine. I have heard they set it at 23 degrees, to give the motorist a break.

Wow. Is all the stuff I wrote true, or did I just dream it?

[Patrick]

Multiply your speed by the cosine of the angle of deflection between the axis of the laser/radar beam and your vector of travel, multiply that figure by the inverse of the cosine, and you will have your actual speed.

Say waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhttt????????????

Thats almost geeky.....

[Banesto John]

Geeky it is. Factual as well.

[slopster]

Don't write a letter making excuses. Write in asking for a defended hearing and I'll bet you won't have to go - the police will probably back down a couple of days before the hearing is scheduled. I'm sure the policeman wouldn't be able to convince the judge that he can estimate speed that accurately coming head on (its not like he saw you were doubling the speed limit or anything silly like that). At the end of the day the worst that can happen is a small chance of getting hit with $130 court costs.

[Speedracer]

All the Police need to prove is that they saw that speed on their radar, they dont have to lock it on or show you by law, it is only a courtesy.

R U B B I S H
Got a ticket for 120, locked in radar said 110. Cop who gave me the ticket was a bit of a knob and I didn't think I was speeding at the time. So I spent the next 7 months wanking around to clear everything up after the ticket was issued but I got the speed reduced to 110 without even seeing a judge, spending $ on a lawyer or travelling to court.
PS Cop said: "I saw you doing 120" exact words
http://www.fastandsafe.org.nz/Pages/...nce18Feb05.htm
They tried everything to get me to incriminate myself, very subtle sometimes.

According to the article: (one example out of the several in there)
Cops opinion:
Canterbury Road Policing manager Derek Erasmus reiterated the police stance, saying an officer did not have to lock a speed in.

"Best practice indicates that we do it because it removes those arguments further down the track but sometimes ... it's not physically possible to lock it in."

An officer may have to act quickly if a driver was coming around a corner and would not have time to lock the speed in, Erasmus said.

Judges opinion (i.e. the one that counts!)
The Rangiora District Court ruled in McHerron's favour, with two Justices of the Peace saying: "This issue for us is whether there has been a burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt regarding the excessive speed ... to cast light or doubt on the actual speed under consideration and in the interests of justice we think it is not unreasonable for the driver to see the actual locked-in radar speed.

"In this instance it was not available and does create an element of doubt to the actual speed for the defendant."



Feel free to PM me and I will explain what to do and what to expect if you are in this situation. Defending a ticket can be confusing at first.