Deeeeeppp Trouble!

[Darkhamr]

I don't have the time to read through all the posts made, but I've seen it before and I can imagine the range of opinions. Either way the speed you were doing especially with another car was stupid and we've all done stuipd things before. The best advice I can give is get a lawyer. You do not want to risk getting the full weight of the law on this one as it will cost you big time on insurance and a suspension will limit your insurance options. It's your right to get the best representation available so use it.

[eslai]

Originally Posted by husker boxster

There was a speeding ticket thread a couple of months ago and all the guy did was blame everyone but himself. We need to remember we're responsible and accountable for our actions.

LOL I hope that isn't referring to my thread from a year ago. It could be construed along those lines, although I beg to differ. Y'all are high-horse-riding, condescending bastards about some things.

[luxury1]

Originally Posted by cfos

"Excessive speeding could happen to just about any of us out here."

A shame the rest of Pittsburgh isn't so understanding of things like this when it comes to Martha Fleishman. Not that she was speeding, but "mistakes" apparently happen. Ah, but woulds heal and Big Ben is now a Fathead.

The Martha Fleishman/Ben R. situation couldn't be any more different.

Also, I am not saying he was right to speed but come on, have you ever done more than 20 over the speed limit? Have you ever had your porsche to 90 or 100??? I think that almost everyone on the forum has "opened up" their porsche a little and we were all lucky that we didn't come accross a radar gun (or even worse, an accident).

[jeffsquire]

Originally Posted by TriGem2k

Does it make it any better that the Officer circled INFRACTION rather than MISDEMEANOR?

I just spoke to a friend of a friend who said he received a similar ticket going 101MPH and his ticket read MISDEMEANOR and he received 2points, 30days license suspension, and a $1500 Fine.

_____________________
I respond to you via PM and yes it makes a big difference if it's circled infraction. I sent you a PM. read it and get back to me.

[jeffsquire]

Originally Posted by yellowbox

so how much does traffic attorney typically charges? if you haven't done traffic school, wouldn't it be better to pay the fine and pay for traffic school to avoid seeing the judge?? I guess if you got a misdeamonor, that's a diff story.

_________________

I think at this point his main concern is not money or insurance but suspension. That's the kicker.

[jeffsquire]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

misdemeanor is bad.

another story on racing....
during my short stint in LE we went down to a state court to visit with the DA. I was working with federal agency at the time.
The state prosecutor came over to us to shoot the shoot and told us that the two defendants in the court aka 'racer #1' and 'racer #2' were being represented by different lawyers. One expensive one cheap.
During "the race" the cars got sideways and they ended up killing the driver of another car. Well to make a long story short, the guy with the good lawyer eventualy got a plea bargain for if memory serves me right manslaughter and a short jail sentence, now the guy with the cheap lawyer got 'death by auto' and got a long prison sentence! The things I saw coming out of state court would make your eyes pop out.

_______________

Sorry, but I don't buy ANY of the retained versus court appoint/low cost lawyers. Statistics bear out that there's no difference on the quality of legal representation when it comes to how much you pay, if your poor and appointed a lawyer.

I'm a prosecutor. I know plenty of court appointed attorneys I deal with who I'd have represent me in any sort of case, including murder, than many "high" priced lawyers.

[Topless]

We have all acted foolishly and at some point we all stand accountable. How we conduct ourselves during these times is really the measure of the man.

TriGem2k, good luck in facing this challenge. Let your father know about this but don't let him bail you out. He did this stuff too when he was your age. Take this opportunity to show him that he raised you right. It may sting a little though.

[djomlas]

you know what sux the most, is that for that little fraction of the time that u sped up (and i hope u werent planning to drive at that speed for long) you are going trouugh all this BS.
yes a lot of us have been at that speed or even higher, but in reality we all should have been cought, ticketed, cars impounded, licence suspended. but it just happened that you got cought.
when you think about it, on a day to day bases, you can get so many tickets, going a few miles over the limit, maybe not signaling when changing lanes, maybe not having the seatbelt on, no front plate if required, possibly going trough a yellow when its about to change to red...you get the point.
but it is frustrating, it will cost you money, it will cost you time, it may mess up your record and screw up your insurance (and your family as well since its under their name if i read that correctly), having to try to explain to your dad/judge why in the hell you were going that fast.

but still, if you were cruising at about 75 lets say, and you kinda get used to that speed, going up to 120 or whatever doesnt seem like much, so theres that as well, its like getting off the highway and trying to adjust from 65 to 34

hope it all works out tho man, please do let us know how it all turns out

[cfos]

Originally Posted by luxury1

The Martha Fleishman/Ben R. situation couldn't be any more different.

Also, I am not saying he was right to speed but come on, have you ever done more than 20 over the speed limit? Have you ever had your porsche to 90 or 100??? I think that almost everyone on the forum has "opened up" their porsche a little and we were all lucky that we didn't come accross a radar gun (or even worse, an accident).

Please. Ben R. felt like being capricious by not wearing a helmet and motorcycling -- something a person like him, a professional athelete, should have taken into consideration. I (surprisingly) side with Terry Bradshaw who I think was the person that said to him that he's making gobs of $$ and his team is counting on him -- just wait 'till you retire before you ride. Also, Martha made a mistake. That situation is different, in essence, because it resulted in an accident. Also, I don't think poor 'ole Martha was being egged on by a Buick Century nor did she choose to egg on any other car, willingly. She likely had a lapse and made a mistake. It wasn't a willing lapse, but it was a mistake. I guess since it happened to involve a person that was "important", no one in Pittsburgh can forgive her....?

And to answer your questions, no, I've never gone 20 over the limits (75 mph over here) no have I gone over 100mph in my Porsche. The reasons are simple:
(1) I'm not THAT important that I HAVE to be somewhere in the few seconds or minutes I would gain by going that fast.
(2) I think speeds like that should only be achieved on proper courses (or Montana...?) as we have no Autobahn.
(3) It's not going to change the size of my penis one way or the other. As Neil Young sang, "It doesn't mean much to me to mean that much to you." Translated for this scenario: I don't need any more "props" that would (?) be gained by telling a friend I got my car over 100 mph or from speeding away from a stranger.

[cfos]

Originally Posted by TriGem2k

" like our friend TriGem who may have only been mildly deceptive (?) when trying to exit. Obviously, we'll never know, but that is what I choose to believe."

CFOS - What is that supposed to mean? I didn't exit the highway nor change lanes until the Officer was on my tail with Lights and Sounds. If I had any thought of getting away why would I even slow down from 154MPH? What are the chances the officer would have got me if I continued that speed and maybe took an exit 5-10miles down the road?

Come on don't put words in my mouth or assume things I haven't said.

I'm not trying to put words into your mouth or make assumptions (hence the "?" -- see above). The way your story reads is that you pull over hoping that the police officer was going to go after the BMW, right? If THAT had happened, would you have gone up to the cop afterwards and accepted a ticket? Hell no. You would have likely pulled off at an exit parked somewhere off the road and sat for a hour or two hoping that no one came back, right? Then, instead of using "Deeeep trouble" your thread would have read "Cloooose Call". You gambled and lost. Rather than asking why you would slow down from 154, the better question would be what drove you to 154 in the first place. Seriously. Lots of people have piped in about speeding, but I haven't seen one say they topped 150 off the track.

Edit: Oh yeah, let's not forget that you are trying to NOT involve your dad in this even though you are on his insurance policy -- isn't that right?

[Brucelee]

Remember the origins of this thread.

The driver did over 150 MPH in a speed contest. He asked for advice on how to handle the aftermath, and received some very good advice from some of us.

Lets let it go now or at least stay on track.

Yes, it is "easy" to speed with these cars, and yes it is easy to rationalize it away.

It is also easy to kill yourself or someone else. When that happens, all you have is "sorry" to offer.

In some cases, that is faint consolation.

Then there is the law to deal with.

As they used to say on HSB, "Lets be careful out there!."

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by jeffsquire

_______________

Sorry, but I don't buy ANY of the retained versus court appoint/low cost lawyers. Statistics bear out that there's no difference on the quality of legal representation when it comes to how much you pay, if your poor and appointed a lawyer.

I'm a prosecutor. I know plenty of court appointed attorneys I deal with who I'd have represent me in any sort of case, including murder, than many "high" priced lawyers.

well that's true but leaves out some aspects of the question of quality of lawyer.

Most of the convictions that are reported in D.O.J statistics are for the crimes that law enforcement were of course able to make arrests on. This is overwhelmingly drug related where the evidence is as convincing as it gets. The conspiracy laws in the federal system were also a big help in convictions, as anyone who had any knowledge regardless of whether or not they actually directly involved were convicted. In my investigations and this was federal at the time, only the dumbest, slowest, most drug addicted def. were arrested, or their accomplices or the agency's C.I. set them up. The mules if you will..The evidence in nearly all of these cases was clear and convincing. Pretty hard to screw up a conviction unless you had a biased jury. Since this is the bulk of criminal cases where the quality of legal representation isn't going to make a difference its a bit misleading because the statistics don't distinguish between 'tough' cases for a prosecutor where the quality of legal representation is absolutely pivotal. But how do you measure that?
You can't.
not to mention after a conviction of a def. in the appellate courts, such as in capital cases where the average court appointed lawyer has an appellate budget so miniscule that its a nearly impossible task to do any sort of genuine research without assistance from legal charities. The indigent and destitute in states like Texas and Oklahoma are royally screwed. And since state courts are highly political where judges are often elected (vs. appointed by the President) their decisions have to please the public no matter what a skilled appellate lawyer is arguing. Well heck even the U.S. Supreme Court went political in Bush v. Gore.
That was a shock for even this jaded New Jerseyan.

[Brucelee]

Lets stay on point guys!

This poster has admitted to the crime.

Lets move on.

PS- if you want to debate the criminal justice system that is fine. Simply start a thread in the Porsche Lounge.

[Patto]

Originally Posted by MNBoxster

Hi,

I think the wrong perspective is being taken in this. No, no one here wants to see this kid suffer unecessarily, that's been said by almost everyone.

But, this infraction was not such as you describe - being pulled over the limit by the flow of traffic, or not noticing how fast one was going. Nor was the lister culled out of a herd of fast traffic by a Cop with an attitude toward Porsches, or a desire to swell the State coffers.

This was a deliberate decision to accept a throwdown from the driver of the BMW and knowingly exceed the legal limit. Those are two entirely different things.

I hope TG2K doesn't have to pay too severe a penalty for his poor judgement - something we have all been guilty of from time-to-time, especially in our youth.

But, this is now one of his life's experiences. One from which he can draw when making future (hopefully better) decisions.

One can only hope that the contrition which he now seems to be sincerely displaying will not fade over time, or become diluted if he's fortunate enough to avoid the harshest penalties, which we all hope for...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

Well said Jim.

A similar thing happend to me many years ago and I lost my license for 6 months and paid a hefty fine. In hindsight it was the best thing that happened to me as I've not done something that stupid again. It was also the catalyst for a very big life change but that's another story. Worse thing that 'could' have happened was I hurt someone else. A fine and a suspension is small price to pay in comparison.

Not trying to bash on you TG2K, you know you did something stupid as you've stated. Just be glad you're lucky enough to get a fine and possible suspension. If you were in Australia especially NSW as young driver doing that speed you'd be locked up and your car taken away for sure.

[MNBoxster]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

if I'm not mistaken the male brain doesn't finish developing until the age of 25(frontal lobe?). The part of the brain that manages risk and its consequences...

Hi,

What is that? The All-American excuse? His brain wasn't developed, so he's not accountable for his actions?

While we're at it, let's include the Twinky defense, Latchkey Kid Syndrome, ADHD, and too much violence on TV.

I'm sorry, but this Country has young people between the ages of 21-25 in all sorts of positions of responsibility from OTR Truckers hauling all sorts of hazardous materials, to Police, Firemen, Air Traffic Controllers, Nurses, even some Doctors and Airline Pilots, not to mention about 65% of the Armed Forces to name only a few. Most of them perform these responsibilities splendidly.

And, let's not forget that society has determined that these people are old enough, mature enough, to buy alcohol, firearms, enter into contracts to buy Homes, Cars, and the like, not to mention, running for Office and casting a vote.

The Brain may not be fully developed, but that's no excuse. It is also said that a person has the ability to distinguish between right and wrong by the age of 7. And that's what didn't happen here.

Let's not cast aspersions on the entire age group because of the irresponsible behavior of a relative few. My hat's off to these kids!

I'll be counting on them to take care of me in my old age in 20 or so years, the same way I took care of their Grandparents and Great-Grandparents when I was their age...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

[Brucelee]

I'll be counting on them to take care of me in my old age in 20 or so years, the same way I took care of their Grandparents and Great-Grandparents when I was their age...

You are not kidding! I was looking at the Federal Governments accounting statements recently. Frankly, without A LOT of these kids paying big time into SS and Medicare, we are toast.

Long live the 20 yr olds and I hope we have a ton of them in wage paying jobs!

[Chills]

WOOT, Jim mentioned Air Traffic Controllers.

I became a controller at age 22.

[dharrisonwu]

TrimGem - -

You're looking at a fine of up to $500 for first offense under Section 22348(b) and the Court can also order license suspension for up to 30 days for the first offense pursuant to Section 13200.5. You're also looking at traffic violation point count of 2 points pursuant to Section 12810(d)(1).

With mandatory penalty assessments and surcharges, the $500 will be much much more.

You're lucky that you weren't hit with reckless driving - - a misdeameanor.

By the way, which county were you pulled over in?

[Perfectlap]

Trigem2k,
explain to me again why you sold your Radar Detector? I believe that's what you once said. That has to be a first!

[TriGem2k]

I just got off the phone with a gentleman by the name of Mark from www.traffic-ticket-attorney.com. That law office is asking $4,000.00 flat rate to fight the ticket for me. According to him they have a 90% chance of winning the whole thing.

What do you guys think? Is $4k a little too much? Should I try and negotiate with them? They seem very helpful and he even said that if I decide not to go with them that he is more than willing to answer any question I may have free of charge.

@Perfectlap - You got me there. As soon as I saw the Highway Patrol Officer pull out of the dirt road I thought to myself WHERE IS THAT DAMN RADAR DECTOR WHEN I NEED IT MOST!

@dharrisonwu - I was cited in Banning, CA, that’s just 15 or so miles from Palm Desert.

~James