BAW BAW, lamest street racing ticket ever

[staticpat]

I feel like such an idiot that I had to post this story I don't expect any sympathy, you play you pay.

I just put a new spec stg 3 clutch in last week. I've been driving like a grandmother everywhere I go for the break in period. I was hanging out with some buddies of mine I hadn't seen in a while (none of them car enthusiasts).

Anyway we were driving around the city, and my friend (honda accord, stock economy car) pulls next to me at a red light and revs on me. He knows I've been babying the car and he was just fooling around. I just hit 500 miles (break in period for clutch) and thought it couldn't hurt to give it a half throttle run.

It's late at night and no one is on the road, so I make sure not to speed. Anway we take off, chirp a little tire. I push halfway thru second and then shift to fifth at 40mph (limit is 45), and drive casually. My buddy pulls off the road, and 2 minutes later I get pulled over :<.

I got 2 citations for street racing and reckless driving. The cop even said I wasn't speeding, its just the way I burned out was reckless. This is the first time I punched the car basically ever (stock clutch has always slipped at WOT before). Pretty lame for what could turn out to be a $500 ticket. Hopefully if I can get the officer to explain the terms to the judge I can get at least 1 ticket thrown out.

 

[Insidious Surmiser]

that sucks man :-/... i got 3 tickets the other night... i kinda deserved it, but not really... 54 in a 35 (cop wrote it as 44 in 35), and my freind failed to tell me his 300zx had not been registered nor did it have the right liscense plate + no insurance... that was gay as hell, and he got two tickets and he wasn't even in the car w/ me

 

[swaq]

If you only chirped the tires and were only doing half throttle I don't know how he can call that reckless or racing. Especially since you stayed under the speed limit. I would try to fight it...

 

[NDBoost]

fight it and explain that you had a shop install a new clutch in your car and you were not used to it as it was still under the adjustment period that the shop required you to go through.

Tell them it was a mistake, and that you were not speeding so therefore it cannot be reckless driving. SHit if you have to call a friendly mechanic and tell them the situation im certain they would agree that clutches sometimes once installed need adjustments and can be a bit tricky to drive at first.

edit:
One last thing, when and if you goto court. Dress very business like, and CLEARLY (good grammar) explain your side of the story. Make sure the judge can understand you easily. They tend to get frustrated easily and you appearing as a well educated contributing citizen would only benefit And use yes your honor and no your honor after ever question.

 

[MassSupra89]

Tell them your tire chirped because of the new clutch, you were just getting use to it. Bring in the receipt to prove you bought/installed the clutch shortly before. If you weren't speeding, and didn't drop the clutch and leave a huge burnout then that's ridiculous. People spin a tire on sand, or in the rain all the time, I don't know if they'll see this as the same type of accident but it's not like you were speeding or endangering anyone.

 

[tlo86]

take it to court, he does have to prove you were being reckless =P and by not speeding it wouldn't seem reckless to me. was your friend pulled over as well? (can't race against yourself) did you admit you were racing?

two very bs tickets to me

and mass is very right anything could have made you spin your tire too, low tread anything... shouldn't hold up in court at all i think the cop was just having a bad day

 

[staticpat]

If you only chirped the tires and were only doing half throttle I don't know how he can call that reckless or racing. Especially since you stayed under the speed limit. I would try to fight it...

Well half throttle on the supra is still faster than most cars around. And the officer said I burned out, but I'm positive I just chirped the tires. My buddy may have squealed his a little.

Yeah I was wondering about the clutch thing. Especially since I didn't go above the speed limit. I bought it from MVP though, so I don't have a recepit or anything and I put it in myself :< I do have the paperwork discussing the break in period, maybe I could show the judge all that.

I really think I can get the reckless driving thrown out, its pretty ridiculous that 40mph is considered reckless. There were no other cars around for miles.

And it was pretty obvious to the officer that we were racing, as my buddy turned off immediately. And dumb me, the only words out of my mouth were "you got to be kidding me, we were just fooling around. I didn't even hit 40mph". And he said "Yeah I would have gotten the other guy too if he didn't turn off."

I need to decide whether to play it straight, and act like a dumb kid. Try and get the reckless driving thrown out and go to driving school. Or go for the clutch malfunction

I'm going to try and talk to a judge this week instead of waiting for the trial, so the event is fresh in the officers mind. Maybe he'll cut me some slack.

 

[NDBoost]

just tell the judge you didnt admiit to anything, and you can contact MVP for a receipt of the purchase print it out and show it to him.

If you work on the "case" yourself and show all your evidence going against the officers tickets it will more then likely get thrown out.

Also if there are no witnesses and you take it to court, if the officer does not show up and you contest the ticket. It is dropped, most of the time officers do not even show up for court dates.

I had to goto court last week and the officer that was at the scene for my accident didnt even show up and she was on MY side.

You can even probably get BOTH thrown out or at least one reduced.

You were not racing because of the breakin period and you were not going over the speed limit.

Reckless driving did not happen because you again were in the breakin period and because of this couldnt control the clutch slippage properly. You dropped the clutch a little too harsh and caused it to chirp the tires.

 

[Wills7MGTE]

Fight it man, my dad was a cop 15 years and I'm in process of becoming one, those two tickets can be easily gotten rid of as long as you do like previos persons posted. Dress well, speak well, and it all should go well. I have had 2 tickets, one for running a stop sign although I shoulda gotten reckless driving as I was in a manual sonoma and decided to dump it around a corner, drift through a small residential intersection behind a jackson speed trap. The other ticket was BS, the officer said I did not stop completly for a yield sign (running a yiled, not a crime I ever heard of) I slowed down and looked then drove off, he pulled me over 3 miles from where it "happened" and had 3 backup units. A personal note the cop had pulled me over 3 weeks before for DUI well he looked retarded when my supposed beer was a 12 oz bottle of diet mountain dew as I am in fact diabetic, both of these incidents took place in moms 99 eclipse, the other in a 92 GMC Sonoma 5 speed. So far none in the dawg knock on wood.

FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT THOSE BS TICKETS!!!!!!!!!!

 

[LuvMySilverSupra]

fuck it, flee to mexico, it's your only chance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[EvoLuTioN]

fuck it, flee to mexico, it's your only chance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:runaway: :wtf:

 

[92turbo4life]

wtf^ lol

 

[Tanya]

If you only chirped the tires and were only doing half throttle I don't know how he can call that reckless or racing. Especially since you stayed under the speed limit. I would try to fight it...

Almost exactly one year ago, same thing happened to me. I was riding next to my best friends 280zx and I guess I decided to be an asshat at the wrong time. Was cruising at 35mph and downshifted from 3rd to 2nd barking the tires, got both of us pulled over and cited for "racing on highway".

Too broke to try to fight it (public defenders FTL in my old town) we just plead no contest and took our ass raping. $510 fine and 3 points.