cmanns

So I'm curious, my car slid out while it was slippery, rain turned to a drizzle and it wasn't raining much days prior, busy road was slippery that even your feet would slip on the road. The chp's said if I didn't get a letter by a few weeks that nothing would happen.

So after I turn 18 I get this letter

I violated

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d10/vc20002.htm

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d07/vc16028.htm

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d11/vc22107.htm

The road is straight so I don't see how I made a moving violation my car started spinning and spun into the other lane and took out a road at that intersections signal lamp.

I had proof of insurance in the car so I don't get why that is there either :S

I have some feeling they want me to go to jail sucks I got a new car and such just a few weeks ago, was planning on moving out and such, this is gonna be a bitch.

socalrotor

iTrader: (1)

What did you hit that was private property? If you had ins they will throw that out? So you were driving in a straight line and just lost it or what?

They want money not a prisoner. Fight them all!

cmanns

It was a slight turn, I was very tired n such I think I snapped the wheel, all I reemember is the fc spinning, where theres no cars going through the car spun slowly (As if there was little oil there) I remember my friend shouting something (he thought it was done spinning) then it spun again super fast as it was in the other lane and took out a signal lamp.

It was the city's property the CHP told me that spin outs happen and I probably wont need to pay for the pole, then I get a letter from the DA.

Well I don't have money so the only other option is jail man, I only get enough to buy food and insurance

Oh and fc's spin very easy in damp roads me and my dad knew, but I never drove much through the rain I wondered why he was always VERY cautious in the fc, now I know to go slower then the limit in the rain even if its just wet.

socalrotor

iTrader: (1)

Did this happen in La or OC county? You still live at home? Worst case, you get on a payment plan or community service. Ever been in trouble driving before?

cmanns

Never been in trouble w/driving, when I went to get insurance a few weeks ago my license has 0 points. I got a ticket for loud exhaust lol but they dropped it cause that CHP didn't write the ticket correctly LOL.

no no I'm inthe bay area.

Kinda funny if they make me pay them, all my money is from the government (Benefits from both my parents deaths) so it'll just go them to me to them rofl.

My friends forced me to leave the car...we were at a party like 6hrs prior and I guess there was a box of beer with 5 full in it

I came back and they asked me what happened and took us home said it wasnt a big deal just maybe a fine, I don't see why court is needed for a fine nor why they waited till I was 18 to do this... one of my friends was pulled over n such and he got his letter from the DA like a week after he gotpulled over, this was like 2 1/2 months later for me.

maybe I'm just afraid cause the cops in my town were talking about taking me to county asap, they tried to when I broke no law but found out I wasnt 18 for another week, then he tried asking a higher up officer if they could still put me in county jail but I know thats illegal and I overherd them so I let them know I know my rights and the cop was shot down..

I really want to move, I hate this ****. I learned lessons from what I did, tried to better my life and now it could be possibly all done for nothing. I've been working on starting a business with a friend but if I gotta pay a huge ole fine thats gonna set me back another few months, hell the FB's almost unsafe to drive and I can't afford to fix it either

boyee

iTrader: (3)

that sucks dude i hope everything gets straightened out alright for you.

socalrotor

iTrader: (1)

Well just be glad they didn't get ya for unlawful impersonation of a man. J/k....... They are tryign to throw the book at ya. Don't worry it was raining and slick. Just go tell a judge what the deal is and your situation. Worst case you pay some, and they give you monthly installments.

DivinDriver

iTrader: (15)

You might want to skip the "very tired, party for 6 hours, open case of beer in the car, just turned 18" part. As well as the "I guess I should drive slower than the speed limit" part.

20002 is "leaving the scene of an accident, or failing to notify owner." Did you do either of those things? Sounds like it, as you say "...friends forced me to leave the car..." and then "I came back and they asked me..." If you left the car without leaving a note, you're pretty much busted, here; you beter have a better excuse than 'your friends forced you to leave.' If you did it to conceal evidence of alcohol in the car, then that's a serious problem.

16028... did you have VALID proof of legal-minimum insurance? Was up-to-date? In your name? Presented when asked for? No lies on the application? If yes to all, they have no case on this.

22107... I guess they expected you to signal your spin before you made it? Or are they saying that you made an unsafe lane change/turn? Or maybe their argument is you tried to turn at the intersection, and lost it?

I'm surprised they didn't just go with "speed unsafe for conditions." They got you dead to rights on that, as any speed that leads to a solo spin absent tire failure or road debris is by-definition "unsafe for conditions."

Good luck.

I get that distinct feeling that there's more to the story, though. & I'm looking for the part where the CHP lied.

cmanns

they lied where they said they'd drop all the stuff and that at the most I'd be charged for the pole.

I have a good feeling I'm gonna have to do timefor the 20002 and I just bought a car and such, if I get locked up my fb's gonna be given away along with all my other stuff.

but its cool, I've almost gotten the shaft all my life.

I don't know about the insurance, the cops told me they got the info I don't have the papers anymore I don't believe.

Well there was a intersection right there I guess they think I was going to go up the highschools road and yep.

& Nope I don't got a better excuse I plan to plea no contest or whatever it is and get whatever from that.

Montego

iTrader: (1)

EXTREMELY STUPID!!! leaving the scene of an accident thats a ******* felony Consider yourself lucky that they aren't charging you with one. WTF man??? What you all should had done is just walk the damn beer 300 yrds and dispose of it.

you need to get your story of why you left. Something credible, as in you were trying to get help to tow it out something. Right now it seems that fled the scene of an accident.


I seriously doubt that they waited till you turned 18 as it has no weight given that you committed the offense while you were a minor. And so you will be punished as one. Quit worrying about the letter arriving late.


Well leaving the scene of an accident is a serious offense. Consider yourself very lucky.


******* kids....

Now you will go to court. The first court hearing is your arraingment. Becasue you are being charged with a misdemeanor you will be assigned to a public defender. On this day you will plea not guilty to all charges. And you will be given a second court date.

The second court date is your pre trial where basically the charges are discussed with a judge. Now he/she decides whether there is enough evidence to go to trial. This is where you plea bargain and MAKE IT KNOWN THAT YOU WERE A MINOR AT THE TIME. The reality is that no one really wants to go to trial. It's too expensive.


If you truly spun out you should push this to be dropped

"Turning Movements and Required Signals"


If you truly had insurance (at the time) this will be dropped

"Evidence of Financial Responsibility Upon Request"

This is your problem:
"Permissible Action: Duty Where Property Damaged"

You will need to explain that you didn't mean any wrong doing and you are just an ignorant kid. And you did infact come back, you werent runing as the car can be easily traced back to you. Keep reminindig them that were a minor at the time. EXTREMELY IMPORTANT make sure you know what the punishemnt is for a minor being charged with that offense. Now if by some miracle what they are charging you does not apply to a minor you can push for that charge to be dropped and the DA has to start the whole process all over again...

You will have to do the leg work and almost argue for the public defender as he/she does not really care. But in the end you will see it won't be that bad. DA's are freaking ******** they push for anything but the judge decides what the punishment is. Most importantly dress up!


Just recently I was charged with:

Street racing
Going 150 MPH
Modified vehicle (single turbo with all of the goodies)
No insurance (just like you I had proof)

I kept my wit as the cops questioned me. Basically very repectfully I admitted to nothing, and told them nothing. The result was that my car was not towed and I wasn't arrested either. In the end all charges were dropped except for the street racing which I was given an extremely low fine and I kept my license.

cmanns

^Yeah man it was dumb

The 20002 says 6 months or 1000 fine or both max, not a felony it says on the dmv site. Well we were honestly trying to get to a friends house but his grandpa died and he made us leave...

I did truly spin out, the car spun forever, slowed down where the road is less oily and spun quicker again on the other side and hit the pole, it's a slight turn in the road where it started spinning out
I've had my fc spin out before on a straight road, I did all I could this time to prevent it and the chp said they believed me that the road was slick and that it appeared I tried to prevent it from crashing :S, the other time it spun out was from hard breaking the tires locked it spun 3 times and I saved it, this time it was spinning over and over turning the wheel and the brakes did nothing

Nobody was injured but the pole and my rx7, there should of been insurance my guardian was controling that being under 18 I couldnt get my own insurance.

I have 0 points on my license, I drive everyday by cops all the cops in my town know me I don't speed or drive like a nut.

GREENMAN!

iTrader: (5)

lol

Montego

iTrader: (1)

I know it wasn't a felony that's why i said consider yourself lucky you weren't charged with one. Like I said earlier given that you were charged with a misdemeanor you will have a public defender assigned to you.

Remember one thing you aren't going to jail over this.

Very important the police was not there to witness you crash so unless they have an eye witness This charge "Turning Movements and Required Signals" is pure speculation and should be dropped. Note your passengers are your witnesses as to what happened and BRING THEM TO YOUR PRETRIAL.

That is your ace in the hole. Your witnesess... with that you can go all the way to trial and may win. Even if the cops have a witness its going to be a case of his/hers word vs all of your's. The DA will want to avoid that.

Understant this : Since no one was hurt there isn't a vendetta or a point to prove. To the DA you are just a number. A small notch of his/her belt that they can call win, and by the same token he/she will not want to risk losing nor drag it out in court for such a small matter. So you have to spell it out for them at pre trial that you are willing to take this all of the way if they don't cut you a great deal.

Then that's what you tell them. If you are telling the truth this whole case seems like a waste of resources.

DivinDriver

iTrader: (15)

Provided they don't say anything, you know, stupid.

Adam P

iTrader: (19)

Im not as harsh but if your doing stuff like this you really dont need those friends or a drivers license...if you hit someone would you have even helped??

thunkrd

iTrader: (1)

hope you learned from your mistakes. treat everyone with respect, and you will be respected.

when i got my car i was pretty stupid, but now i don't do stupid stuff in the streets, at least not as much.

no one's perfect. better humanity by helping your friends learn that leaving the scene was a bad idea.

btw its too late and i can't see straight

Meiogirl

iTrader: (2)

man i feel for you.

it does sound like you have a rough life but in this situation you did it to yourself. "The man" isn't coming down on you. Driving around under 21 with beer in your car? Although you were not caught for it that is a situation that will always lead to disaster. I don't do that and I'm 36.

I do think men your age are profiled but you have to be slick, understand this and work with it rather than against it. Thus driving around late at night with a car full of young people is questionable in the least.
If I was you dude, I would let someone else drive you guys around at night so you don't take the downfall. Enjoy your driving time in the middle of the day

You gotta man up and honestly take charge for your own actions. Your friends are your friends, there for fun and making you happy. When it comes to serious situations that might envolve the law, the decision to leave was purely yours. Its a hard pill to swallow but recognizing that is part of taking consequences for your own actions.

I think if you said something to this affect at your hearing in a calm manor and let them see you have learned it might help. If you come at them with a pity party story about how you were the victim for all of this they will look at you and just see another punk kid, not you. You see what I mean? Take account for some of it and perhaps they will throw out the rest. In saying this I would not plead guilty to anything. If you do I think your are automatically charged and they won't hear your side. Its confusing, someone else have an opinion here?

I think Montego had the best advice of bringing your friends. Make sure they dress up too because credible witnesses will help you the most.

Miata_mx5

+1 good words of advice right there.

I made similar mistakes too, (although not with alcohol). But you have to man up.

RotaryEvolution

iTrader: (30)

just go to court and plead your case, be sure to take pictures of the area and the car and witnesses(in or out of the car) for evidence as well. dress appropriately and a little sympathy, courtesy and hardship plea doesn't hurt either. i doubt they will slap you very hard but they may make you pay for the pole in community service even if it was an accident, you still damaged property(if the insurance won't cover it).

respect is #1, we adults do not take it lightly when we feel even the slightest bit that you are not remorseful for any mistakes you make.

mike_merryguy

iTrader: (8)

just remember **** happens, i am sure the judge has been in a legitimate accident in his/her life, so tell the truth and they will most likely drop it, and like karak said, what you wear to the trial can make or break your case, if you show up looking like a punk you will get treated like one, get some nice khaki's and a decent button up or polo tuck it in and wear some decent shoes and a belt too...

RotaryEvolution

iTrader: (30)

yep, or at least the nicest looking clothes you have, not just some street **** that gets you through the doors.

trinity03

sorry to hear that mate.. it sucks!

cmanns

thanks guys.

It was actually around 9am in the morning, going in on monday.

HOZZMANRX7

iTrader: (43)

1. Damage to private property.
2. Evidence of Insurance
3. Unsafe lane change

1. If you caused damage to private property, and can't prove you gave notice to the owner of the property, then they got you. A BS citation, but without proof otherwise you get to pay a fine. Good new, no points.

2. Did they ask for evidence of insurance? If not, another BS citation that you can fight. But since it's your word against his you'd most likely loose since he is the expert witness. Best plan is to show the clerk of the court evidence of insurance in effect at the time and paying a dismissal fee.

3. As you described, sounds like they concluded you lost control by driving too fast for conditions and you lost control in the course of making a lane change. I've actually had the same thing happen to me under similar slick road conditions. If you told they that's what happened, you're stuck.

DJDINO

I didn't read the whole thing but sounds to me you might need a lawyer.