Legal Question in Traffic Law in South Carolina

You raised a good question and I understand your concern. Basically, the officer is allowed under the law to speculate whether a person violated a traffic law. This opens the door for unfairness at times. I've seen this particular citation issued a lot in the past when the weather was really bad and someone had an accident.

For example, it may have been raining real heavy and/or there was a lot of fog, and then someone had an accident. Under this situation it is not uncommon for the police to write a ticket for Too Fast for Conditions, since they feel that an accident probably would not have occurred if the person was driving slower. Under these circumstances, it is not abolutely crucial that the officer know what speed the driver was traveling, as there is enough other evidence that there probably would not have been an accident if the driver was going slower.

However, your son't case is different and it would seem that your son's case required more speculation that normal. And obviously, the more one speculates, the more of a chance of making a mistake. I can therefore understand your concern. I can also see how easy it would be for the officer to be wrong in a situation like your son's.

The one thing that you didn't mention was the extent of damage to your son's car. If the damage was very minimal, then that would be in support of your son not driving "too fast for conditions." On the other hand, if the damage was significant, meaning that it was obvious that a person had to be driving fast for that much damage to occur, then that would support the officer's conclusion that he was driving "too fast for conditions."

So, to answer your question (you were probably wondering if I was ever going to get around to answering it), no, there is no legal requirement that the police officer put the speed on the ticket. It would be interesting to see what he wrote on the police report what the speed was. There is a place on the police report for stating the speed. In my experience, they always, or almost always put the speed on the report.

Your son has several options. One, he can just pay the ticket and be done with it. Two, he can have a bench trial, where the judge makes the decision. Three, he can have a jury trial, which is what attorneys always prefer. Or four, its possible to talk with the police offier and make a request that he/she re-write the ticket for another one that has less points, or no points.

Whatever decision your son makes, I strongly advise to make it after having a consultation with an attorney. Although I have provided you information in this answer, it is not a substitute for a real live conversation with a lawyer.

My office is in the Myrtle Beach area if your son should need to talk with a lawyer. I wish him well.

Robert Johnston Attorney

Location: Myrtle Beach (Horry County)

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 843-828-1137

Web Site: RobertJohnstonLaw.com

Areas of Practice: Criminal Defense, Traffic Defense & Personal Injury