BatmanMan

Will do. Thanks,

Daniel

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Do you want to ride in the Batmobile?

Phant84

Ok, here is my question. After doing some searching and not being able to find anything, I figure I'll go ahead and bug you guys.

The Problem:

I was driving back to Laredo, TX from San Antonio, TX after a day trip to pick up some things. I was driving a 2005 Chevy Crew Cab Pickup, using the cruise control set at 70mph (speed limit) when I was pulled over by TX DPS. After I had stopped, the trooper came up and asked me to get my license and insurance and get out of the truck. Told him that my insurance was in the glove box and got it and got out. He had me stand in behind the truck while he checked my record and what not. While he was doing that, another trooper who was sitting in the DPS car got out and walked over to the front of the truck and started looking around the inside, didn't open any doors, just looked thru the rolled down window. The 1st trooper told me that I was pulled over for speeding, that I was doing 84mph. I nicely asked where it was I was speeding, not that I was arguing it, I was just curious where it happened, He responded by saying "Oh, back there a ways." He filled out the ticket, handed it to me to sign, I signed, and was on my way. After everything was done and over with, I was looking at the ticket a little more closely and noticed that the year of the vehicle is wrong, and instead of 84mph, its listed as 86mph. Since I was pulled over by DPS, the court is in Pearsall, TX.

My Question:
Is there anyway of fighting this? It is my 1st speeding ticket.
BTW, I checked the cruise control after everything, and it stayed on 70 the entire time.

Thanks in advance for your help

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Phant

Irrationality is the square root of all evil

AVoiceOfReason

Sure, you can fight it. You'll have to go where the court is and persuade the judge that the officer was wrong and you're right. I know, I know, the presumption is that you were innocent, but let's be realistic. This is the same judge that heard this officers' tickets last week and will hear them again the week after you're gone, but that MAY not be against you if the officer has a reputation for writing squirrelly tickets.

When I was a prosecutor in the mid-80's, there were five troopers writing tickets in my district. Of those I lost at trial, I'll be willing to bet that half of them came from the same officer. Do the math: He wrote 20% of the citations and lost half (if not more) of the tickets in court. Why? The judge knew he was a loser.

Depending on the cost of the ticket and the effect on your insurance, you may want to talk to an attorney that handled traffic offenses in that area. There may be a "deferred sentence" arrangement under which you are placed on probation for a short time, and if you don't have any other tickets in that time (90 days or 6 months), your ticket is dismissed and not reported to the agency that counts the points against your driving record. However, most places require the offender to pay the ticket and court costs in order to get such a sentence. Being in Arkansas, I couldn't tell you what a traffic court in Texas would require.

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AVOR

A Voice Of Reason, not necessarily the ONLY one.

Phant84

Yeah, I kinda figured as much. I thought about how many times a judge must hear that when I first thought about fighting it. I guess I'll just be going for defensive driving. There goes $97 down the drain because some trooper was an asshat.

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Phant

Irrationality is the square root of all evil

RusCrimson

Also you might want to check into a "Good Driver Statute" that some states have. If you have a clean record for a certain amount of time, some states are willing to dismiss the ticket.

pattycakes

I put a friend on my car insurance for almost 12 months. Everything was going good, till they got fired, and i was like alright ill float you the car insurance. In order to have them on my insurance my name had to be on the title, so i never really drew up a contract saying that they would have to pay me x amount of x. This friend desides they want the easy life and married someone they met once to go live with em on an army base.

Now here is where my problem is the friend owes me 350.00, and since they are currently living on an army base i cannot just go and take the car and drive it myself. I live in pennsylvania, and they are in south carolina? or georgia.

I have contacted them before and they say its in the mail, and i would like to ask your advice first. Do i tell them that i will sue for half of the blue book value of the car if they dont pay? My name is still on the title, so do i find out who they have insuring them and tell them my name is on the title, hence they cannot insure it if im also not on their insurace.

I could solve this myself if they didnt move on an army base, because i could just go drive around their car, untill they paid me because my name is on the title

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AVoiceOfReason

You've got some leverage, but you won't be able to use it just yet. Someday the car will be part of a trade in or a sale, and your friend won't be able to convey a title on it. When that happens, you'll be contacted about executing the title. You'll be able to charge a movie star's price for your signature.

And yes, contacting the insurance company is another possible avenue. In order to tag the vehicle in some states, proof of insurance must be given. If she can't insure it due to your name being on the title, we're back to where she needs an expensive signature.

Threatening a suit with her in the South and you in PA would be laughable if she knows anything about the law. Don't go that route, just sit tight and she'll come to you eventually.

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AVOR

A Voice Of Reason, not necessarily the ONLY one.

pattycakes

Does anyone know the traffic laws in pennsylvania?

I was going 80mph in a 55mph zone

i was about 1 1\2 miles past the 55 mph sign, and there are no other signs for the next 10 miles.

I would like to know if Pennsylvania allows any way to get your points fromt he ticket expunged or the best way to try to negotiat a regual fine with no points

The officer said he would mail me my ticket ( i also forgot my drivers L at home)

any suggestions i figure 3 - 5 days before i get the letter w\ 10 days to respond

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Master_Shake

For a summary conviction or plea of guilty to going 25 over the posted speed limit PennDot will impose 4 points on your license.

If you are really worried about points on your license or any kind of traffic infraction on your record, call or speak with an attorney. You will not be appointed a public defender for the traffic citation, so you must contact your local bar association for a referral. An experienced traffic attorney can negotiate with the police, as well as spot any potential technical arguments. If the officer is unwilling to negotiate and you have to go through with a hearing, an attorney can properly cross examine the officer and make additional legal arguments.

Having said that, most police are willing to work with you if you have an otherwise clean driving record and explain that the points will increase your insurance or have some other deleterious effect.

For example, you may be permitted to plead to a "thirty-one eleven".

This is a summary offense which carries a fine, but no points on your license.

If convicted of the speeding charge you could theoretically have the ticket and subsequent summary conviction expunged, but you would have to hire an attorney and it might be a difficult process. Also, this will not affect the amount of points imposed on your license.

The Pennsylvania Point system:

Provides that only after the accumulation of six points do administrative penalties set in (beginning with a lovely safety-refresher course).
3 points are removed every year after your violation in which you do not receive a ticket.

Read more about the Point System here:
http://www.dmv.state.pa.us/pdotforms...rms/dl-71p.pdf

EDIT:
If you are interested in hiring an attorney to represent you at the hearing, feel free to PM me for a recommendation.

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You know something, I don't think the sun even... exists... in this place. 'Cause I've been up for hours, and hours, and hours, and the night never ends here.

pattycakes

i didnt find out for sure yet, but i believe that the car that had my name on the title was sold or traded in... i am going to find out tommrow on the 24th. I have recieved no money nor did i sign the title. whats the best advice you can give me?

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iblade

Do any of you know good (free) internet ressources for Business Agreements and Contracts: drafts, advice, guidelines, etc...?

Sage

Man, I know I complain about dogs a lot, but...

The neighborhood across from where I live (in an apartment complex) has a lot of dogs, two of which bark almost CONSTANTLY day and night. Is there anything I can do about this? Do most cities have ordinances about dogs barking in the city limits?

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HalcyonDaze

I got hit by a car (while on my bike) and fractured my right tibia about 5 days ago. The driver repeatedly admitted guilt and said he was sorry, but the police did not give him a ticket nor officially deem him guilty (they didn't say anybody was at fault).

I have a copy of the police report with the other guy's insurance, and showed it to the hospital when I went in.

Is there anything I have to do to insure the driver's insurance covers anything? Are there any particular legal options or responsibilities I should know about?

I've never been involved in so much as a car accident, so I don't know a lot about insurance claims.

Master_Shake

Most cities do have such ordinances, call the police if it's keeping you awake.

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You know something, I don't think the sun even... exists... in this place. 'Cause I've been up for hours, and hours, and hours, and the night never ends here.

Master_Shake

His insurance probably won't cover anything up front. You may have to sue to make sure your hospital bills are paid.

Contact an attorney, who should help keep track of your medical progress. I generally wouldn't recommend filing suit until you are done treating, so make sure you hold onto all of your documentation.

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You know something, I don't think the sun even... exists... in this place. 'Cause I've been up for hours, and hours, and hours, and the night never ends here.

:::OshnSoul:::

I'm screwed. Hope you can help me....

I had a Honda Passport- stupid choice buying it in the first place- come to find out (although we knew it wasn't Honda-made) we bought it for almost 2x the amount it was worth. Well, my husband got laid off, sat on his ass, ending up making me get a FT job which finances didn't even compare still. Fell behind on payments......we get divorced....I chose to take responsibility for paying for the car, yet it is in both our names. Well, I looked at the big picture--- Pay almost $500/mo. on this car for the rest of my life that has no value and not be able to move, save $, etc. OR try to sell it (didn't work), trading it in (didn't work), or voluntarily have it repo'd. I chose C. Ya, I knew what it would do to our credit, then found out that we would owe the remaining balanced after it was auctioned off. The bank did not warn us of this at first.
Well I have been trying to touch bases with the "recovery services" guy from the bank early last month, who seemed really willing to work with us. Well, being that our schedules and time zones were conflicting, we never got a chance to proceed. Last week a lady called me from an attorney's office informing me that her "client" is now in ownership of the vehicle and is looking to collect the remaining $10,000 from us in a lump sum- no payments. She has been really trying to encourage me finding someone to loan me at least $5,000 to help this out so that it won't cost as much. I have no one who can help me- I tried. She also said she would try talking again with her client to see if they'd be willing to drop the total amount or accept payments.
Well, I know I'm screwed, but I just at least want any valuable insight or advice when handling this. All I can do is go through it and learn from it, but hopefully it won't be as bad as I will be prepared for. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

Cynthetiq

I used to use NOLO some time ago. They used to have lots of free forms. I just browsed the site quickly but couldn't find the same amount of resources that I used to.

I'll keep looking for other resources.

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I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

thebeat

Greetings...

I have a quick question...I am interested in returning to college in hopes of gaining a degree in Meteorology.

A quick background...

4 years ago, I attended the University of Tennessee - Knoxville for 2 semesters. Unfortunately, I was place on academic dismissal for having less than a 2.0 GPA for the year. I will not make excuses for my lack of satisfactory grades, just that college wasn't for me 4 years ago.

Now I am ready to go back, and I am afriad with my lack of success in college a few years ago I will have a hard time being accepted.

I have since moved to Tupelo, MS and am Interested in applying to Mississippi State for their "distance learning" Geosciences course with an emphasis in Meteorology.

Now for my question....

The application asks for my previous college transcripts, however I am curious under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act am I allowed to legally (for a lack of a better word) "lie" about attending college previously?

Thanks...

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random

shakran

not a lawyer, but as an ex-member of a student justice board (think of it like a grand jury composed of college students) I can tell you that if they find out you omitted this, they can kick you out for academic dishonesty.

You're not the first person to try getting back into college with a shitty GPA. The usual route is to do a semester or two of community college to show the regular college that you're now ready to put some effort into it.

lurkette

http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthread.php?t=62460

Ask a lawyer thread

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"If ten million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing."

- Anatole France

I Spit Hot Fire

So just recently I just got a ticket in Edmonds, Washington...which is Snohomish county. Anyways, I was at a stop light and he was right behind me. As soon as I turned right, he turned his lights on and pulled me over. It turns out that my license tabs were suppose to be renewed in March. He cited me with a RCW 46.16.010.0. Well I can only find RCW 45.16.010---I couldn't find the last zero. So I actually read that and it said

Ok so operating it without initial registration and on a public highway is a TRAFFIC infraction. But what does initial registration mean and I wasn't operating on a highway...from what I understand, highways don't have stoplights. Furthermore, when I was stopped, I asked the cop if it was a traffic infraction, and he responded with a "no." But on the front of my ticket, it is marked as a traffic infraction. So I'm really confused right now. If it does end up being a traffic infraction, is it one where it will be on my driving record for the insurance companies to look at? If it ends up being a non-traffic infraction, what should I do next? Should I subpeona the officer to appear? If I do subpeona the officer to appear, can I get the recorded conversation he had with me when he pulled me over? If I am able to get that conversation and prove that he did indeed say that this was NOT a traffic infraction, would it be of any relevance to my case?

Another thing, and under the VIOLATION/STATUTE CODE where he cited my RCW 46.16.010.0, there looks like there is another statute written there but I can't read the middle word(s). It looks like E_C 8.06.010.

Or am I just confusing a non-traffic violation with non-moving violation and they infact cannot be used interchangebly?

Thanks in advance for any advice

genuinegirly

I realize you might not know this since your speciality is in Colorado, but maybe you can point me in the right direction. Wondering if it is legal in the state of California to dump 40+ gallons a week of raw unprocessed industrial waste down the drain.

I worked for this "environmental testing lab" that took the samples that they test for contaminants and simply dumped them (actually had me dump them) down the drain when they were finished with them. Some of the samples were harmless, but we did process technicolor film processing chemical wastes, American Airlines waste engine oil, biochemical wastes, etc.

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"Sometimes I have to remember that things are brought to me for a reason, either for my own lessons or for the benefit of others." Cynthetiq

"violence is no more or less real than non-violence." roachboy

Hard8s

My wife has a business which she purchased a domain name and set up a website for. Her only competition in the area recently purchased and set up a domain name almost exactly the same, (minus one letter) and directed it to their real website. Is their anything that she can do about it? She has a business name and business liscense which is the same as her website, based on her name (i.e. w_w.mabelsdishwashing.com their new one would be w_w.mabeldishwashing.com). They have no one working for them with my wife's name, which is not Mabel and she does not have a dishwashing business, although she does do the dishes now and then. Both business do basically the same things just differently.

We are in California, but I am sure this has been done before around the country. Can we send them a cease and desist letter, for using her basic business name? Should she get her name trademarked or copyrighted, and then deal with them? Any other options?

Thanks

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If ignorance is bliss, then wipe this smile off my face!

Master_Shake

Certainly she can send a cease and desist letter, but that won't prevent them from continuing to use the site. The only route you'll have to effectively shut them down is to contact an IP attorney to sue for trademark infringement. This could potentially be a ridiculously expensive process so make sure it's worth the effort to protect this similar website name.

http://www.uspto.gov/ - to conduct searches of registered trademarks
http://www.netpolicy.com/ - for more information on domain names as trademarks

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You know something, I don't think the sun even... exists... in this place. 'Cause I've been up for hours, and hours, and hours, and the night never ends here.

Master_Shake

First, recognize that the people you've been talking too, however nice they may have been on the phone, are not your friends. They want money from you, as much money as they can possibly get. You need to stop talking to them on the phone, demand everything in writing, and contact a non-profit credit counseling service or an attorney. If your financial situation is as bad as it sounds you may qualify for reduced fee or pro bono legal services from a local organization. Call your county's bar association for a referral.

Act immediately; don't let this continue to sit, and don't make another payment without consulting with someone.

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You know something, I don't think the sun even... exists... in this place. 'Cause I've been up for hours, and hours, and hours, and the night never ends here.

Master_Shake

We really need to know your specific jurisdiction down to the county, city and/or township. Sewage services are almost exclusively handled on a local level.

Although it does sound pretty nasty it may very well be legal if the proper permits are acquired. You'll have to contact your local sewer services to determine the answer to this question.

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You know something, I don't think the sun even... exists... in this place. 'Cause I've been up for hours, and hours, and hours, and the night never ends here.

Master_Shake

No one's going to throw you in prison for not being honest on a college application (assuming your not under oath or otherwise made aware it is a testimonial) if that's what you mean. But as another poster mentioned, it is possible they may kick you out if they should discover it later.

Note that this doesn't apply to applications to federal or state agencies for aid or loans (i.e. the FAFSA). As I recall those documents do require an oath or affirmation, and you can be fined for false statements.

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You know something, I don't think the sun even... exists... in this place. 'Cause I've been up for hours, and hours, and hours, and the night never ends here.

kutulu

You mentioned used engine oil, I'm pretty sure that it's illegal to dump that. Engine oil has to be recycled.