thrllskr

Bikes, Laws, & Life Blog - Hottman Law Office, P.C.

Matariki

They'll argue that CO laws don't apply outside of CO!

dougmc

Cops usually won't argue with you on *any one*, not just this one.

That said, sometimes they'll respond favorably to being shown the exact wording of the law -- but I'd expect most of them to get turned off by the lawyer's interpretation of things included with the law.

If the law is clear by itself, you've got a chance. But if you need to show them an analysis of the law by a lawyer, and that differs from what the officer thought the law meant ... they've got a ticket for you, and you can tell it to the judge.

El Cid

Never argue with a cop on the side of the road. You won't win. Take the ticket politely and argue it in court.

This isn't to say that the officer is right or fair -- most of the time they are neither. But they have all the power, and you can only make things worse for yourself.

If I were to get a ticket that I thought was unfair, I would do more than fight it in court; I would also file a misconduct charge against the officer for harassment. The exact process would vary from state to state, and it probably wouldn't even require an expensive lawyer. I'll bet most people could get help from a paralegal for a reasonable price.

Chris516

I was thinking the same exact thing. Even though Maryland also has a three foot passing law. The codes in Colorado's traffic law, cannot be applicable to another state.

That aside. The fact of your mentioning, saving the respective state law to the cell phone is still worth doing. Some officers will actually look at it. ATST, some officers like L.A. County Sheriff's Dep. Douglas Duvall in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_I7J...vg1ebazu2jz51a

While understandably unwilling to go by what it says on cell phone, instead of going by what it says in a code book. His attitude is bad enough. L.A. County Sheriff's Dep. John Young, Jr. is just as bad.

kickstart

If I was getting stopped so often by the police while riding a bicycle that I felt the need to carry the traffic code, I would take a hard look at how I was doing things.

There's an old axiom, the faster the rider, the slower they look.

Digital_Cowboy

The sad thing is that even if you are just trying to explain to an officer what the law actually says they’ll accuse you of “arguing” with them.

That being said, I would still say that it is not a bad idea to keep a copy of one’s state, city or county laws with you either on your cell/smartphone or in your pannier bag.

As there are plenty of officers who are willing to listen.

mconlonx

If you have a phone to save something like that to, chances are you can also use that same phone to look up every motor vehicle statute...

kickstart

The side of the road really isn't the appropriate place to conduct such a discussion, that's what traffic court is for

Digital_Cowboy

I would agree up to a point. IF the cop is wrong s/he will continue to think that they are right and will continue to issue tickets when no offense occured. I would also say that it depends on how one conducts oneself when dealing the officer. I know one person who will sit there and argue, not politely explain, but argue why they are right and the officer is wrong.

That's just asking for trouble. But usually IF one is polite about it, there is nothing wrong with enforming an officer why s/he is wrong, regardless of where one is.

kickstart

Being a commercial driver I've had to deal with them on a regular basis, IMO, its best to simply say that you believe what you did was legally correct to the best of your knowledge, you disagree, and plan to contest it, and leave it at that unless the cop asks why.