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View Full Version : Ticket for tailgating on the Freeway



redevil9mr
07-20-2007, 10:09 PM
Hey guys, I just recently got a ticket for tailgating a toyota hybrid.
I was dring northbound on 280 on the fastlane fartest to the left. In front of me was a white toyota hybrid driving like 55-60 mph. The car next to me on my right was dring at 60-65mph. So the toyota hybrid was driving like a turtle so I decide to speed up change lane to avoid that slow hybrid driver. So the CHP car came out from no where and pull me over to the right shoulder on the freeway. He issued me a ticket for tailgating. This is what he said and what I said:

Officer: Did you know why I have pulled you over??
Me: No officer, I do not know.
Officer: Driver License, Registration, issurance please.
Me: There you go officer.
Officer: You were tailgating that car pretty close, 5-6 feet away.
Me: Officer, the car in front of me were driving 55-60mph, holding up flow of traffic. I was just trying to change lane to avoid that.
Officer: I'm going to give you a break this time.
Me: Thanks officer.

Got a ticket for tailgating. Anyone here know how much is the ticket?? Do they offer traffic school online nowadays or do you have to attend traffic school in person??

evilboi77
07-20-2007, 10:25 PM
Sorry to hear what happen, if it was in SF, you might be able to protest it and get away or get a discount and you can take traffic school online.

Hot8Evo
07-20-2007, 10:29 PM
That cop gave you a warning? or he gave you a reason to hurry the process so he wont explain it to you.. The ticket you got is a MOVING VIOLATION and it will consider a record and you will need to go to the court and prolly a traffic school...... I would suggest to go to court and plead guilty and tell the judge that the hybrid is in the fast lane doing 55-60mph in a busy freeway....Just wait for the letter from the city and it will tell you how much and when and where your going... Good luck!

redevil9mr
07-20-2007, 10:39 PM
The CHP officer was from South San Francisco also.

redevil9mr
07-20-2007, 10:42 PM
The cop didn't even give me a warning. He said that he was giving me a break. At the end, I still get a ticket.

Hot8Evo
07-20-2007, 10:42 PM
The CHP officer was from South San Francisco also.


If so, you gonna have to go to Redwood city court for that.....

Just wait til you get the bill in the mail....

Hot8Evo
07-20-2007, 10:43 PM
The cop didn't even give me a warning. He said that he was giving me a break. At the end, I still get a ticket.


Breaked in your pocket......

redevil9mr
07-20-2007, 10:45 PM
The address on the ticket said, something like mission road, south san francisco, ca, that's where the police station is located at. Â*Some where in south san francisco.

redevil9mr
07-20-2007, 10:46 PM
I'm planning to do traffic school, does anyone here knows how much it will cost to do traffic school online???

Hot8Evo
07-20-2007, 10:50 PM
I'm planning to do traffic school, does anyone here knows how much it will cost to do traffic school online???


I think $80 online course and you have 3x to pass and when you pass the test the traffic school will send the result to the court and you will your copy...

LIKE I SAID!!! WAIT TIL YOU GET THE LETTER and go to court and LET THE JUDGE DECIDE WHAT YOU NEED TO DO.............

gohdunlam
07-20-2007, 10:54 PM
i think he probably wrote you down for something else, i made a left turn during the hours your not suppose to, and i told him i was in this program that is part of opd, and he wrote me down for obedience of signs, instead of getting a moving violation, so hopefully that is what he meant by giving you a break so you dont get a point?

redevil9mr
07-20-2007, 11:05 PM
on the ticket, he wrote me down for tailgating as a violation.

Limeyboy
07-20-2007, 11:20 PM
plead not guilty by mail. post bail in same envelope (written on ticket as fine amount). Request trial by written declaration (theres a form). On form put "I stand by my plea of not guilty. I was not tailgating". Wait a while. Usually you will get away with it - no traffic school, no record, no nothing (they also return bail money).

If you don't, then you get trial de novo. If it gets to that, go and ask for evidence. Your conversation stated, from when you were originally stopped, seem to imply no guilt. Ask the officer about flow and speed of traffic in the area in front of your vehicle and behind. If he cant tell you what the speed was, then ask how can he remember what the distance was ;)

I dunno, it shouldn't get to that. Most cops dont bother returning the trial by written declaration forms - they dont get overtime for it like they do for actually showing up at court. Who likes paperwork in their spare time?

RgistRdShowoffIX
07-20-2007, 11:26 PM
:x all my officer said to me when i got my speeding ticket was "try to have a better day"

WTF?

:? that sucks man... I'd say wait like Marlon suggested. It'll buy you time since it still takes like a month or so after you're entered into the system for your insurance to catch up. :?

esco
07-20-2007, 11:28 PM
Id call b.s. on the cop. have him explain his angle of attack and how he can verify the distance between the car in front of you.

homi mike
07-21-2007, 12:25 AM
+1 for another BS ticket. Take LimeyBoy's advice and don't be "afraid" of hassle, because if you are like that, the city got exactly what they wanted.
Fight it. Just think about it, the cop isn't going to stay up all night typing a letter to fight a ticket right?

redevil9mr
07-21-2007, 08:12 AM
Thank a lot for the advice guys, I probably just use up my traffic school. If I didn't have traffic school choice, I would go and contest this bs ticket.

esco
07-21-2007, 09:22 AM
Thank a lot for the advice guys, I probably just use up my traffic school. If I didn't have traffic school choice, I would go and contest this bs ticket.


dont give in to traffic school. you still pay the fine in full and if you contest it you could still plead for it at a later date

redevil9mr
07-21-2007, 09:47 AM
I have two points in the record and the price on the insurance is hella high. I have heard that if you choose traffic school, the judge will reduce your fine down to like $80.00 or some plus you won't get a point in your record after traffic school.

esco
07-21-2007, 10:09 AM
I have two points in the record and the price on the insurance is hella high. I have heard that if you choose traffic school, the judge will reduce your fine down to like $80.00 or some plus you won't get a point in your record after traffic school.


no reduction. i have the paper here in front of me, you pay the fine in full. but they dont put it on your record.

redevil9mr
07-21-2007, 11:34 AM
Anyone here know how much the fine would be for a tailgating violation??

mtsevovii
07-21-2007, 02:35 PM
i dont think anyone has ever gotten a ticket for tailgating....


but officer i wasnt tailgating i was drafting.... :p

dl_EVO
07-21-2007, 02:42 PM
my gf got a ticket for tailgating...

redevil9mr
07-21-2007, 07:55 PM
Dang, all these Police have nothing better to do but to give bs tickets.

Bagsik_EVOVIII
07-21-2007, 08:02 PM
officer probably tryin to meet his quota....close to end of the month...easy money..hate it...

chrisw
07-21-2007, 09:14 PM
I have two points in the record and the price on the insurance is hella high. I have heard that if you choose traffic school, the judge will reduce your fine down to like $80.00 or some plus you won't get a point in your record after traffic school.


no reduction. i have the paper here in front of me, you pay the fine in full. but they dont put it on your record.


Its a misterminor (sp) on your driving record and no points are assigned to your driving record.Â* Insurance is not likely to go up unless the insurance company checks.


been there, done that...

I got caught because of some silly idiot driving the same way.Â* As soon as the slow driving idiot merged into the right lane, I goosed it (a little) but didn't notice that the car behind me had a light bar because the bar was blocked by the rear wing...

lights came on, I pull over and the after handing over the license and reg, the cop says to me

"you know, by the time your rear bumper reached the front bumper of the car you passed, I clocked you at over 80." (it was easy to do, he was right behind me... :( )

I said "No shit, really?!? :shock:"

"yeah, I could easily get you for an illegal lane change, speeding, tailgating and agressive driving. But you also stopped pretty quick too, so I am going to give you a break..."

and I got a ticket for tailgating... Insurance never went up,

mtsevovii
07-21-2007, 09:21 PM
how much was the fine?

uhoh_evo
07-21-2007, 10:39 PM
Under different circumstances I would say do EXACTLY as limeyboy has said. Request a "formal -something-". Sorry can't remember the exact name but it's basically the cop's notes on the incident. If they never took the time to write any, case closed! But for the sake of not having your license suspended I would say go ahead w/ traffic school. 3 points depending on insurance and incidents, may mean suspension er governed driving. To from work/school. And dun trip. It's not a misdemeanor. Only an infraction. Misdemeanors are like 20mph over limit type stuff. Bigger than tailgating (like 90% sure).

Waiting is usually khu, just not w/ Sac cops. I waited and it turned into a warrant for my arrest. Letter was serious stuff.

Anyways, imo, take traffic school now and just be khu for a bit to get them other points off.

redevil9mr
07-22-2007, 10:40 AM
On the ticket, the chp officer charged me for following too closely. I will have to wait for the letter to be mailed to my address. I might just use the traffic school option since I never use the traffic school otion for the past 18 months. I'm kind of curious how much the fine would be for tailgating violation.

chrisw
07-23-2007, 10:11 AM
how much was the fine?


~$100 I forget exactly, this happened a few years ago.

traffic school will have no effect here because no points are going on your license. It might help with any potential insurance rate problems, but that depends on
a) the insurance company finding out, they are not notified by default
b) if they even care...

PANGES
07-23-2007, 03:57 PM
The address on the ticket said, something like mission road, south san francisco, ca, that's where the police station is located at. Some where in south san francisco.


That's actually the courthouse, not the police station. I just served jury duty there last week. lol.

redevil9mr
07-23-2007, 07:18 PM
Do you get a point in your record for tailgating?? I know for sure that it's cosider a moving violation.