brotherj

I hate to say this but this is the way law is enforced in rural Iowa. I lived there for a while and was in an accident. A local farmer came around a blind corner on the shoulder, hit my car and nearly tore the front end off while I was sitting at a stop sign. I was cited for failure to yield. I had a friend that was an attorney and we took the case to court. The deputy sheriff, under oath, said "when I arrived at the accident scene I recognized the driver of vehicle number as xxx a well respected local resident and ticketed the driver of vehicle 2, an individual whom I didn't know."

Thankfully the judge didn't think that was proper. I was found innocent and the judge said, "This was a total travesty. I have no doubt that a ticket should have been issued to one of the drivers, but since you (the deputy) failed to exercise even a modicum of proper investigative procedure I can't determine who was at fault for the accident. If I had the authority I would issue you a citation for incompetence. Case dismissed"

I still ended up with a totaled car, minor injuries and a stay in the hospital. But because I was the stranger I got the ticket. If I hadn't had the lawyer friend it might have gone down differently.