STrangers return to South Australia for court appearance

[johnnyYTED]

this week I received a "summons to Appear" in the Ceduna MagiSTrates Court.  those who went to Perth you would recall I was STopped by SAPOL at Yalata, and told by Mr Plod I was travelling at 131kph, to which I said politely CRAP!
So after phoning SAPOL and finding out how to lodge an application interstate, for Freedom of Information. I am requeSTing 10 tickets before and after my ticket to see if they have all been written at the same speed as mine.
I have also emailed the courts to ask for an adjournment till the end of Oct or early November AND requeSTed a change to the MagiSTrates Courts at Christies Beach in Adelaide.
I am preparing as much as I can to defend myself in this court appearance. I will keep you up to date as things happens.   

[Sicman]

Go get em Johnny    - Dont forget Capt Thunderbolt got let off for his little overspeed, but that was probably cause his beard made him look like a baddy biker 

[richo]

I hope you have some luck with the defence.  You will have to let us know when you are in Adelaide and if they let you out of court with some money left the SA riders may be able to catch up with you.
 

[Shiney]

Good luck, I hope you get a positive outcome mate

[Brock]

Do you have any proof of the speed you were doing at the time....

[Sicman]

Yep - He had to reapply the 100MPH tape on the right mirror in WA cause he was going that fast  -  Oh Hangon that may not help in court 

[johnnyYTED]

Do you have any proof of the speed you were doing at the time....

Brock I don't have proof, but I have Photo's taken at Penong then the next one at Yalata and they have geo tagging time date and location and it shows I took 30 mins longer than google says it should have. I will also explain that in 8 yrs on STranger I have never received a ticket. I'll just hope I am able to sway the magistrate and hopefully the other info I'm seeking under FOI will also discredit the Mr Plod. 

[Sabie]

Good luck JohnnYTED


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Wild Rose]

Best of luck with the court appearance Johnny
Just let them know that you are from OzSTOC and I'm sure that they will let you off 

[Langers]

Not sure if this is urban myth or whatever, but I assume that whatever the device is that clocked your speed needs to be calibrated on a regular basis - if this is the case you might want to ask for the calibration records for the particular device - you never know, it might have been overdue and hence was reading inaccurately.
On these bikes, in that environment, even if you were doing 131kph, which you weren't, it is not a danger to anyone - just another example of the fact we live in a Nanny State.
Good luck and I hope the truth comes out.
Cheers ... Mark

[johnnyYTED]

Not sure if this is urban myth or whatever, but I assume that whatever the device is that clocked your speed needs to be calibrated on a regular basis - if this is the case you might want to ask for the calibration records for the particular device - you never know, it might have been overdue and hence was reading inaccurately.
On these bikes, in that environment, even if you were doing 131kph, which you weren't, it is not a danger to anyone - just another example of the fact we live in a Nanny State.
Good luck and I hope the truth comes out.
Cheers ... Mark

Mark , part of my defense will be that the ticket was NOT filled out completely, The two boxes on the ticket 1 for the radar/LIDAR number and 2 the date of last calibration were left empty. I wrote to the SAPOL Expiation Office, and they replied with the info and a STatement that the officer said that 'I' said "yeah mate I was doing 130". When I read that it infuriated me. I decided then and there that I will fight this to the end... Hopefully I am able to discredit this KunSTable's claim successfully. If he has been writing tickets before and after mine at 131 kph I will claim he hasn't cleared the unit and is 'Revenue raising or QUOTA filling. I have always claimed my speed when they put on their lights I read  on my 2 k increment ex police speedo was 120. I will also argue that the extra turbulence at 130 would have alerted me to my speed.

[Brian]

I wonder if the law enforcement officer has video evidence as they have introduced body cams to many of the hwy ptrl units

[johnnyYTED]

I wonder if the law enforcement officer has video evidence as they have introduced body cams to many of the hwy ptrl units

Brian I asked the second officer if they had video and voice recording like their HWP buddies and other STates, to which he replied "NO"
further more I was unable to get my own video of the event as I had ridden thru a STorm and my cam had got very wet.. they weren't a HWP unit, they were the local Indigenous cops from Yalata.

[Marcus]

Good luck mate. Keep us posted

[richo]

I had a similar side of the road discussion a couple of years ago when I was pulled over In my then brand new new falcon. I was using my gps on the entire trip so I could gauge the difference from speedo to actual speed.  When I was pulled over he had me at 125 on the gun and I was 112 on the GPS and 120 on my speedo.  I questioned which would be more acurate, his radar gun or my GPS we had an interesting discussion with only a written warning.

[Langers]

Not sure if this is urban myth or whatever, but I assume that whatever the device is that clocked your speed needs to be calibrated on a regular basis - if this is the case you might want to ask for the calibration records for the particular device - you never know, it might have been overdue and hence was reading inaccurately.
On these bikes, in that environment, even if you were doing 131kph, which you weren't, it is not a danger to anyone - just another example of the fact we live in a Nanny State.
Good luck and I hope the truth comes out.
Cheers ... Mark

Mark , part of my defense will be that the ticket was NOT filled out completely, The two boxes on the ticket 1 for the radar/LIDAR number and 2 the date of last calibration were left empty. I wrote to the SAPOL Expiation Office, and they replied with the info and a STatement that the officer said that 'I' said "yeah mate I was doing 130". When I read that it infuriated me. I decided then and there that I will fight this to the end... Hopefully I am able to discredit this KunSTable's claim successfully. If he has been writing tickets before and after mine at 131 kph I will claim he hasn't cleared the unit and is 'Revenue raising or QUOTA filling. I have always claimed my speed when they put on their lights I read  on my 2 k increment ex police speedo was 120. I will also argue that the extra turbulence at 130 would have alerted me to my speed.

Getting the matter heard at Christies could make it interesting, as you will be disputing the officers statement regarding your alleged admission, the local officer, I would assume, will be required to make the trip from Yalata to be present to give evidence and go under cross examination and he will be well outside his comfort zone. I'm guessing the 131 gets you into fairly expensive territory in SA. If you intend to represent yourself it might be worthwhile engaging a solicitor unless you are experienced in dealing with Court matters. Magistrates are usually pretty fair with people representing themselves, but I've seen too many make a hash of it to recommend it to anyone. Apologies if stating the obvious. And good luck.
Cheers ... Mark

[Lionel]

I have to agree with Langers about getting legal representation.
The prosecutor will probably be an experienced senior constable or sergeant who will be used to most of the tricks pulled in a Magistrates Court.
My son decided to go before the Beak over a traffic infringement. He had legal representation. He did that not to avoid being found guilty and fined but to avoid having any more demerit points added to his existing total. At the time there was no formal link between the Magistrates Court (in Canberra) and the RTA. So he coped a fine but avoided losing his licence.
A local solicitor will know the "local" court scene.
However, if you're not in danger of losing your licence by having the matter treated administratively you would save money by simply paying the fine. You can also claim that you need time to pay.
Red Herring. SA's legal system seems to vary from the rest of the country. I believe that SA is the only state that has not produced a single High Court judge (7 on the bench at any one time) in the 115 year history of the Court. I could be wrong wrt to recent times as I have lost touch with such matters.

[Gadget]

I agree with Langers and Lionel. In your circumstance, I don't know if Legal Aid is available for this type of case.

sent using Tapatalk

[johnnyYTED]

 I will be going into court blind as such, I cannot afford legal rep. and I'm not sure about Legal Aid, so I can only go into court and hope that I plead my case well. I'm am hoping that this PLOD has written tickets before and after mine with the same speed and if so, I will argue that he has used a previous reading to further book others, and claim he is meeting quota's. 
Lionel I didn't know they could add demerit points above the penalty, for an unsuccessful court appearance.  I will certainly be asking for time to pay, and only offer $10.00 per fortnight MAX. I can only hope that if I lose the Judge dosent increase the fine and points too much.
 I was told by the Court clerk that my application for an adjournment wont be dealt with until the set court date also with the request for it to be heard in Adelaide. If the judge decides NOT to grant the adjournment and relocation, I wonder if he will make a decision in my absence and impose a high penalty,
I know I wasn't travelling at the claimed 131kph on that day in Yalata, and will admit as I have said before to the 120 my speedo read. I can only state my case in the hope that there is some 'Integrity' left in the justice system of SA, and that everything I can gather, including details on tickets before and after mine helps my case and the Judge on the day has enough doubt in Mr PLODs claim. If not I will accept the penalty imposed, and NEVER AGAIN enter or spend 1 cent within SA.
 I was planning to buy  my first home in SA when finally an insurance claim I have is settled but the outcome of this matter will decide whether that happens.

[Down Under]

In my experience you'll be wasting your time and the Court's time defending your own speeding matter.  You'll get a much better outcome if you enter a guilty plea with an explanation.  You'll get good free legal advice if you visit your local Court House and speak with the Chamber Magistrate or their representative.

[johnnyYTED]

In my experience you'll be wasting your time and the Court's time defending your own speeding matter.  You'll get a much better outcome if you enter a guilty plea with an explanation.  You'll get good free legal advice if you visit your local Court House and speak with the Chamber Magistrate or their representative.

Down Under, I intend to plead guilty to 120 as I STated  in my first letter to the Expiation Office, and I wrote that in the 1ST contact letter. I want to argue the speed of 131. Thanks for the advice about talking to the Chamber MagiSTrate, hopefully they can give me some good advice.  I am applying under FOI for the tickets written before and after just to make sure that Mr PLOD wasn't doing the wrong thing.

[gaz]

 

[spanner]

good luck. I too dpnt hold much hope because in QLD they don't care if the ticket has missing fields or incorrect licence etc as long as most of it collaborates that you were there and doing the infringement.

it really sucks but .....

Any way .... ill be sitting here eat my  and havinf a few  with interestst to see the result.

[johnnyYTED]

 well the ball is rolling in my challenge to this ticket. I have juST been to Narellan Police STation in NSW to have my ID witness and the form signed and STamped by a Police Witness as per inSTruction by SAPOL FOI office. I have sent the forms by regiSTered poST and will await a reply, within the 28 days.
   

[Oldie]

As an old magistrate said one day to people in court for speeding.."don't dare stand there and plead not guilty then say I was just doing xxx over the speed limit, 'cause if you do, you are speeding"...