Docket Number?

[creina]

First off I'd like to say Hello to everyone. I'm new here. I just have a question regarding a traffic citation. I was given a citation while traveling on the Pennyslvania turnpike (I476) I was pulled over by a state police officer and cited for speeding. 82 in a 65. I was going with the flow of traffic but I'm not going to say I wasn't speeding. Now, on the citation in section 2, he did not fill out a docket number? I have gotten a ticket about 3 years ago and I remember it did have a docket number on it? Is the officer required to put a docket number on the citation or does it not matter. Also, was are my odds of fighting the ticket and getting it dropped (3) MPH. I would just like to get it under 15 MPH over the limit? I tried calling the trooper about these questions but he was on the road and never called me back. I'm yet to enter my plea and any advice would be great. Thanks in advance!

Chris

[mcsap]

IN PA, the docket number is assigned by the judges office not the officer.

You may have been going with the flow of traffic but that is NOT an excuse. 82 in a 65 zone is 17 over, period.

WHY should the trooper be willing to drop it to 15 over ? He could have done that when he had you pulled over. I suspect that if he wanted to call you back he would have.

I get calls like this and will not do a deal. And , our judges cannot reduce mph on a ticket nor can they award or take away points. Points are issued by PennDOt.

Slow down, it obviously doesn't pay to speed. One more ticket will put you over 6 points and you will have to go back and re-take your drivers test with the 16 yr olds. And they will know why you are there.

Don't forget the 10 day rule. You have 10 days ( including weekends) to respond by mail or in person. FAilure to respond will result in a warrant out for your arrest and your license will be suspended.

[creina]

Thanks for the response, however I do disagree with what you're saying. I dont mean to question your authority by any means, but I'm sure this trooper and the magistrate have given bigger breaks than 3 MPH. I'm not going to get all hot and bothered if he doesn't agree to drop the ticket but he himself was unprofessional. He was in a rush. The address on my license was wrong and I told him that when I handed him my license. He didnt write me a citation for it nor did he warn me that there could be sanctions taken. Also, what he did after the stop was much much more dangerous than my speeding. He backed all the way back to the spot where he was sitting around a blind corner on the shoulder of the road. What if someone is dialing a number on their cell phone and doens't realize they're veering off of the road? Not too sure on this one but I don't know if thats what they teach in the state police academy. Also, I was only calling him to check on the signifigance of the docket number, not to ask for a break, but obviously like you said, It's very professional police officers today to not return phone calls. Also, He only put the street the magistrate is on, he didn't put a number address. How am I supposed to send in the thing. I'm going to go in person but thats besides that point. I respect police officers very much, Im actually studying criminal justice and plan on entering the state police academy, however this specific trooper was just very un-professional in my opinion.
Thank you.

[Hightower]

The real question is....Was he wearing his hat???

You know I heard that if they are not wearing their hat when they pull you over, the ticket has to be dismissed. (This was just a joke)

[creina]

sorry I even bothered. I asked for help and I got kicked in the face. I guess this is what cynicism does to you guys, but hey, when I get the job, then I'll critique. Thanks a lot of all your sarcasm and professional help, it was greatly appreciated.

[gijoeyl33]

uncalled for. if you dont wanna help him, then simply dont post.

When you get on the job, then you can critique. All I'm hearing now is bitterness over the fact that you didn't get a break.
And if your license address is wrong, no problem...just ignore the whole ticket then.
(Note: That was sarcasm.) But it's not the officer's fault that you can't take care of your own personal business and change your address. And you're mad because you didn't get a warning about it? You obviously knew then that you were wrong, so quit complaining and pay your ticket already.

Or better yet...go to court and whine there like you're doing here.

And don't forget to mention that the trooper wasn't wearing his hat. That always gets tickets thrown right out.

[mcsap]

So far I am the only PA officer who has responded to the poster asking about a PA issued ticket.

She has come to a pro-police site looking for ways to either get a ticket reduced or dismissed by perceived errors.

She isn't happy with the lack of response by the trooper and his being "unprofessional " and in a "rush".

She thinks that if anyone anywhere ever got a break, she deserves one too.

She was going 82 in a 65 zone. No oopsie, she was going 17 over and knew it. Her excuse is that of " everybody else was doing it".

Perhaps the District Justice ( they are not magistrates in PA) has an address which only has a street name ? I suspect there is an actual street number though. She should reply by certified mail to insure delivery or to prove the attempt.

The sanctions for a traffic offense are CLEARLY and I mean CLEARLY printed on the back side of EVERY citation issued in the Commonwealth. We ALL use the same cites.

Since none of us here are judges and cannot do anything for her, she should plead not guilty and raise all of the non issues she is referring to in court.

Judge, the officer was unprofessional, in a hurry, didn't put a docket number on the cite, backed up on the road, didnt' use my correct address, didn't warn me about sanctions on the ticket and he didn't return my phone call ! I demnad to have the speed reduced or that I be found not guilty due to these actions.

Oh and by the way, regarding the ACTUAL offense of doing 82 in a 65 zone, yes I was doing it but so was everybody else and he only got me !

I detect a slight whine that seems to be getting louder.

Copwatch.com will offer her the support that we don't.

[creina]

Look, the only thing that really bothered me about being pulled over was the fact that since he was in his cruiser, he had the right to break the law himself, put himself and others in harms way by backing at least 3/4 of a mile back to the spot where he was sitting around a blind corner. The fact that he was in a rush and didnt' tell me about my license address isn't really a big deal to me, I was just stating my opinion. I just don't agree that since he's in a uniform, he himself was above the law. I did plead not guilty and I'm simply going to ask for leniency. I'm not going to bring anything up in front of the district Justice. One...because I'm sure the trooper has had hearing there before and knows the D.J. personally and two because it wouldn't look good for me to challenge the authority of a state trooper. I don't plan on getting completely out of the ticket and when I started this post, it was only to see the significance of the docket number. I found my answer and it doesn't have any significance so I'm just taking a chance here. If I do lose the hearing outright, I may say something about his backing up the shoulder, but to him, not the judge. I plan on talking to him anyway, win or lose if he has time after the hearing just to see if he likes his job and other things along those lines considering that might be what I want to do with my life when I graduate college. I'm sorry for sounding like a young punk trying to beat the law, but thats now how I meant to come across.

[metallicat]

I like the quote of the great philosopher mcsap, it reads: "If you break the law, we will come."

You got yourself into this mess.