Before I tell you about a great case I handled, the Virginia State Bar wants you to know:
CASE RESULTS DEPEND UPON A VARIETY OF FACTORS THAT ARE UNIQUE TO EACH CASE. PREVIOUS RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE OR PREDICT A SIMILAR RESULT IN A FUTURE CASE THAT I UNDERTAKE.
Got it? Every case is different.
I’ve written before about school zone speed limits and how they may be illegal in some places. It’s a complicated area of the law that some attorneys don’t even understand.
Last week I had a client in Spotsylvania County General District Court who was charged with reckless driving by speed in a school zone on Route 1. The precise charge was 56 in a 35 mph school zone. (That’s reckless driving because it’s more than 20 mph over the limit.)
I did all my homework on the case. I re-read the school zone speed limit statute several times. I found out the precise location of the school zone and used Google Maps to view it. With a combination of Street View and satellite imagery, I had a clear picture of the area and the school zone signs.
I also checked into the schools in question and found out their normal school hours, since that’s the key factor in determining when the special speed limit can be in effect (30 minutes before and after school hours).
The day of court came. We plead not guilty. The deputy testified to the basics of the case, but he left out some key details.
I made a legal maneuver called a “motion to strike.” It basically argues that even if the judge believes every word the deputy’s said, there’s still not enough evidence to convict the defendant.
In this case, there were a number of problems with the deputy’s case:
1. He charged it under the wrong statute. He used the statute for reckless driving in a parking lot. He testified that my client was on Route 1, definitely not a parking lot.
2. He didn’t testify that the school zone lights were flashing at the time of the stop. They have to be flashing for the 35 mph zone to apply.
3. He didn’t even testify that his radar unit was checked for accuracy that day or that his tuning forks were calibrated. This was a required element of the case.
The judge dismissed the charge completely. He might have worked around one small error, but three glaring problems were just too much.
It pays to fight traffic charges, especially school zone tickets. The outcome isn’t always this great, but you never know what will happen unless you try.
Photo by kate e. did