Legal Question in Traffic Law in Pennsylvania

Legal Stop?

I had come up behind a municipal police car at an intersection. The officer turned in the same direction i was heading and quickly accelerated around a corner that was a half mile away. When i rounded the corner i seen him sitting in a driveway and was surprised when he came chasing after me. Using vascar he claims to have timed me going 14 mph over the speed limit. I was driving a pickup with a trailer with a 10,000 gvwr. I feel he was intent on pulling me over from the instant he saw me at the intersection since he seemed more concerned with my trailer. The questions i have are... (1) Was it legal for him to tell me to turn on my lights to see if they were working properly? (2)Do i have a strong arguement about the vascar lines? The first vascar line in the lane i was traveling in is almost completely worn away. Since the officer was around 150 ft away i question his ability to take an accurate reading.


Asked on 11/08/04, 8:20 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Mark Johns Mark Johns, Esquire

Re: Legal Stop?

Your best bet is to have an attorney and attempt to have the ticket reduced to 5 mph above the limit or an equivalent ticket (Failure to obey a traffic control device). The fine is slightly reduced and no points are assessed on your licnese. While in a strictly legal sense what the officer did may be wrong (Though I am not sure based on the facts presented in your question) these officers appear on a regular basis in the district courts and it is not ofetn a winning startegy to denigrate there work there. I offer free consultations.

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Answered on 11/08/04, 10:08 pm


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