Cop, court system (don't speed)

bmwturbopower · 10-21-2008, 03:50 PM

Summary of what happened: (before court)

This was over a year ago when I owned a previous car (350z). There was 3 of us in 3 different cars heading to go get dinner at around 9pm. It was raining and visibility sucked very foggy. I was new to the area and didn't know my way around so I was following one of the 2 people with me. one of the guys got stuck at a red light before entering I85 We were on I85 in Montgomery and I was going around 85mph. (keeping up with the lead car) I know I was speeding. We past a median divider and my radar detector beeped once and was on the lowest tone. I thought nothing of it really because I was keeping up with traffic. Our exit was coming up and we had to slow down to around 70mph for our friend to catch up to us because he had gotten stuck at a light before coming onto the interstate. Not even a minute later we were all together and were exiting I85 when a Motorcycle cop (remember it's raining) came flying up to all of us and pointed all of us over. At this point i'm like well he is just going to give me a speeding ticket for going 85mph. So I got my insurance card and dl ready and cracked my window.
All the sudden the Cop starts screaming to turn off our cars and hold the keys out the window. At this point i'm (WTF OMG) and did exactly what he said. He came up to my window cussing saying "I saw you racing". my response "No, I wasn't and you are lying." he grabs my keys and said "Bullshit" At this point I'm very upset. I've never been into this kind of trouble and didn't even do anything but doing 85mph in a 70mph.

(1 hour wait on him writing tickets without talking to us)

He comes back to each of our cars. He said he clocked all of us (3) cars at the same time doing 109mph (109mph) Are you fucking kidding me? And the cop is trying to be as nice as he can be. Then he said we were racing and that he was giving up Racing and Speeding. At this point I was in shock. He said have a good night

Cliff notes on mph- Eric (350z)- didn't go above 80mph the whole time (cruise control)
My self (350z) going 85mph
Dan (lexus) going 85 mph

Fast forward 6 months....... (at City court)

I hired a lawyer for cheap $(750) this lawyer was out of Birmingham, AL and we talked multiple times over they said everything was going to be fine that we had a good case. Court date comes. I show up my lawyer is late for our meeting (we were supposed to meet a hour before my case). Turns out it's not the lawyer I hired but one of his co-workers from his firm. She has no effing clue what is going on and doesn't even know my name. She didn't represent me at all and never told my side of the story. She was just trying to talk to the DA to get me a lessor sentence. He denied and she told me if I didn't plea that I was going to go to jail. (i'm fighting with her at this point telling her to tell my side of the story.) I told her that I was going to talk and she said no that won't be good the judge will just get pissed off. After fighting with her and her scaring me into jail time I plead guilty. Judge gave me 90 days suspension of my license for each ticket. and fined me max fines $600 each ticket....

I immediately called a lawyer out of Montgomery County that was one of the top defense attorney's. I explained my story and he came right over and we appealed my case. and I had to wait another 6 months. (paid him $2500) and then I had to pay 2,000 to appeal both racing and speeding charges. I met with Mr. Bush (lawyer) for 5 or 6 meetings and felt really good about the case.

6 months later.....

(Yesterday) Walk into court i'm the only non felon in the court room and feel very awkward. All of the cases were murder/drug cases. We presented our case and the DA reached a agreement. Racing would be thrown out for lack of evidence and I would have to plea on the speeding pay the fine and it wouldn't go on my record. So now I feel 10x's better and now know not to ever hire a lawyer from this Birmingham firm again. I also turned them into the (BBB) and am still awaiting my money back that I paid them.

total money spent:
$750
$2000
$2000
$600
----------
total=5350

Moral. Don't speed. hopefully this will help someone reading.

Year's_End · 10-21-2008, 03:56 PM

What the FUCK is wrong with the first attorney!? He ditched you AND charged you?

Wow, I just got done with going through two speeding tickets this morning. God, that doesn't even compare to what you went through.

Blake · 10-21-2008, 03:56 PM

moral: cops are assholes.

Scorpion · 10-21-2008, 03:57 PM

Man, cops have been doing this stuff quite often it seems. Atleast you got it some what worked out. Hope you get your $$$ back man.

bmwturbopower · 10-21-2008, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bimmer Loyalist

What the FUCK is wrong with the first attorney!? He ditched you AND charged you?

Wow, I just got done with going through two speeding tickets this morning. God, that doesn't even compare to what you went through.

yeah and they sent me a letter stating how they did everything they promised and they did their job when they guy I hired didn't show up. pretty shitty. They also said I would never win the case. Yeah right.

Tondtar · 10-21-2008, 04:35 PM

Damn ...That must have really sucked. Nothing like having a cheap attorney messing up what's already a F'd up situation. Expensive lesson (They all are one way or another, unfortunately)

ideliver · 10-21-2008, 05:33 PM

The first thief (AKA lawyer) is covering his ass because he doesn't want you to sue him for malpractice...which I am not encouraging because your damages are limited...just get your refund...THEN report him to the state disciplinary board (if you are so inclined)

im spencer · 10-21-2008, 06:03 PM

You have to sell your soul to become a police officer.

MMMazing07 · 10-21-2008, 06:05 PM

why was a motorcycle riding in the rain

montreal red · 10-21-2008, 06:08 PM

darn if you were really going 85mph, how the hell did the cop managed to clock you going 109mph? i mean thats a huge difference. did you contest the speeding ticket too?

seriously, just because 2 cars were speeding, it doesnt mean they were racing. cops are true assholes. i speed at around 75 to 80mph regularly when everyone else is going at that speed too... i would be livid if a cop pulled someone else and myself over and told both of us that we were racing.

bmwturbopower · 10-21-2008, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MMMazing07

why was a motorcycle riding in the rain

Same thing I was wanting to know.

I the speeding ticket isn't going on my record. I just have to pay the fine. It was my word vs. the cops

g14classified · 10-21-2008, 07:34 PM

i will say this untill the day i die..i hate cops...and our justice system is wack

JIM E92 · 10-21-2008, 07:35 PM

I got a ticket for going the speed limit in Auburn. The cop wouldn't even show me his radar. He said, because it was raining I was going too fast for the conditions. I took it to court and lost. Point of the story is that in small towns like Auburn and the Hwy 280 corridor it's a major revenue generator. I can sympathize with your situation. I learned quickly to take it easy on the skinny pedal when in Auburn.

E92 maniac · 10-21-2008, 07:44 PM

damn that sucks... Cop can really be an ass sometimes as I am sure we all have been in those situations before. Lucky for me as I just fought off my red light ticket yesterday.

bmwturbopower · 10-21-2008, 07:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JIM E92

I got a ticket for going the speed limit in Auburn. The cop wouldn't even show me his radar. He said, because it was raining I was going too fast for the conditions. I took it to court and lost. Point of the story is that in small towns like Auburn and the Hwy 280 corridor it's a major revenue generator. I can sympathize with your situation. I learned quickly to take it easy on the skinny pedal when in Auburn.

oh yeah. Auburn Cops are one of the worst. that's why I ride the Tiger transit to school

lauer87 · 10-21-2008, 08:11 PM

The fact that your lawyer didn't want to meet face to face with you prior to a court date would send all kinds of red flags up to me.

Not only that, but the attorney you contracted with to defend you sends an associate in their place to represent you with no prior information about the case? I also can't believe that the only thing the replacement attorney would do is try to plea and not even present your side of the case. To top it all off the firm sends you a letter basically saying they fucked up, please don't sue us. I can't believe how incompetent some firms actually are.

In the end, it seems like the 2nd attorney you hired was the one that should have been hired originally, and was well worth the $2500.

EDIT
Did you ever sign any sort of engagement letter with the original attorney?

MMMazing07 · 10-21-2008, 09:32 PM

i used to think all cops are assholes too but the other month i met the nicest cop

i was speeding like crazy on a nice day and a cop lasered me and got me at 62 in a 25 lol. he came back and gave me a warning for the speed and a ticket for no front plate. nicest cop ive ever met. the cop that dealt with you probably would have had a field day with me. there are good cops out there. just not too many of them.

ScottyGams · 10-21-2008, 09:44 PM

i am a big fan of police officers in general, but when you meet a bad one on a power trip it can be awful!

I have fought a ticket before and won, but I did it myself. Lawyers sketch me out more than cops do!

flyinbrian · 10-21-2008, 10:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by g14classified

i will say this untill the day i die..i hate cops...and our justice system is wack

+1

DougLikesBMW · 10-21-2008, 10:30 PM

Wow, that is completely retarded. You're out like 5k pretty much 'cause you drove a 'normal' speed on a highway. I would be so livid. I would've just given them like $200 for the speeding ticket and said fuck you to everyone else. I feel for ya man. Karma is a bitch, so hopefully that cop will die next time they are trying to chase someone in the rain on a fucking motorcycle, what a tool.

tharptroy · 10-21-2008, 10:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MMMazing07

i used to think all cops are assholes too but the other month i met the nicest cop

i was speeding like crazy on a nice day and a cop lasered me and got me at 62 in a 25 lol. he came back and gave me a warning for the speed and a ticket for no front plate. nicest cop ive ever met. the cop that dealt with you probably would have had a field day with me. there are good cops out there. just not too many of them.

I was doing 80 in a 60 one time, and a state trooper just pulled up next to me, pointed at me to slow down, then exited off of the freeway....only time I have been that lucky.

spectrumphoto · 10-21-2008, 11:37 PM

Forget reporting to the BBB... Contact that 1st Lawyer's managing partner at the firm and speak to that person. Notify him and the Attorney that you are contacting and filing a complaint with the State Bar Association asking them to look into the matter and that you were going to push for disciplinary action. That alone should get their attention and probably you a refund to forget the matter.

I only know this because of my Fiance who is an Attorney. Any issues involving the State Bar Association and disciplinary actions will strike fear in a firm/attorney as this is a perminant mark on their license.

10-21-2008, 03:50 PM	#1
bmwturbopower Captain 300 Rep 657 Posts Drives: 08' E92 335i Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Atlanta, GA iTrader: (8)	Cop, court system (don't speed) Summary of what happened: (before court) This was over a year ago when I owned a previous car (350z). There was 3 of us in 3 different cars heading to go get dinner at around 9pm. It was raining and visibility sucked very foggy. I was new to the area and didn't know my way around so I was following one of the 2 people with me. one of the guys got stuck at a red light before entering I85 We were on I85 in Montgomery and I was going around 85mph. (keeping up with the lead car) I know I was speeding. We past a median divider and my radar detector beeped once and was on the lowest tone. I thought nothing of it really because I was keeping up with traffic. Our exit was coming up and we had to slow down to around 70mph for our friend to catch up to us because he had gotten stuck at a light before coming onto the interstate. Not even a minute later we were all together and were exiting I85 when a Motorcycle cop (remember it's raining) came flying up to all of us and pointed all of us over. At this point i'm like well he is just going to give me a speeding ticket for going 85mph. So I got my insurance card and dl ready and cracked my window. All the sudden the Cop starts screaming to turn off our cars and hold the keys out the window. At this point i'm (WTF OMG) and did exactly what he said. He came up to my window cussing saying "I saw you racing". my response "No, I wasn't and you are lying." he grabs my keys and said "Bullshit" At this point I'm very upset. I've never been into this kind of trouble and didn't even do anything but doing 85mph in a 70mph. (1 hour wait on him writing tickets without talking to us) He comes back to each of our cars. He said he clocked all of us (3) cars at the same time doing 109mph (109mph) Are you fucking kidding me? And the cop is trying to be as nice as he can be. Then he said we were racing and that he was giving up Racing and Speeding. At this point I was in shock. He said have a good night Cliff notes on mph- Eric (350z)- didn't go above 80mph the whole time (cruise control) My self (350z) going 85mph Dan (lexus) going 85 mph Fast forward 6 months....... (at City court) I hired a lawyer for cheap $(750) this lawyer was out of Birmingham, AL and we talked multiple times over they said everything was going to be fine that we had a good case. Court date comes. I show up my lawyer is late for our meeting (we were supposed to meet a hour before my case). Turns out it's not the lawyer I hired but one of his co-workers from his firm. She has no effing clue what is going on and doesn't even know my name. She didn't represent me at all and never told my side of the story. She was just trying to talk to the DA to get me a lessor sentence. He denied and she told me if I didn't plea that I was going to go to jail. (i'm fighting with her at this point telling her to tell my side of the story.) I told her that I was going to talk and she said no that won't be good the judge will just get pissed off. After fighting with her and her scaring me into jail time I plead guilty. Judge gave me 90 days suspension of my license for each ticket. and fined me max fines $600 each ticket.... I immediately called a lawyer out of Montgomery County that was one of the top defense attorney's. I explained my story and he came right over and we appealed my case. and I had to wait another 6 months. (paid him $2500) and then I had to pay 2,000 to appeal both racing and speeding charges. I met with Mr. Bush (lawyer) for 5 or 6 meetings and felt really good about the case. 6 months later..... (Yesterday) Walk into court i'm the only non felon in the court room and feel very awkward. All of the cases were murder/drug cases. We presented our case and the DA reached a agreement. Racing would be thrown out for lack of evidence and I would have to plea on the speeding pay the fine and it wouldn't go on my record. So now I feel 10x's better and now know not to ever hire a lawyer from this Birmingham firm again. I also turned them into the (BBB) and am still awaiting my money back that I paid them. total money spent: $750 $2000 $2000 $600 ---------- total=5350 Moral. Don't speed. hopefully this will help someone reading. __________________ /// E92 \| JB4 \| UR DP \| BMS DCI \| H&R \| LC Z2S \|
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10-21-2008, 03:56 PM	#2
Year's_End Lieutenant General 1138 Rep 12,444 Posts Drives: 2020 Shelby GT350 Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: FL iTrader: (0)	What the FUCK is wrong with the first attorney!? He ditched you AND charged you? Wow, I just got done with going through two speeding tickets this morning. God, that doesn't even compare to what you went through. __________________ Past: '08 E92 335i\|ZPP\|ZSP\|6AT Past: '15 Mustang GT\|401A\|PP\|6MT Current: '20 Shelby GT350\|6MT
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10-21-2008, 03:56 PM	#3
Blake Banned 755 Rep 4,649 Posts Drives: Chevy Aveo Join Date: May 2008 Location: Parent's Basement iTrader: (7)	moral: cops are assholes.
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10-21-2008, 03:57 PM	#4
Scorpion Major 162 Rep 1,210 Posts Drives: Nothing Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Nowhere iTrader: (0)	Man, cops have been doing this stuff quite often it seems. Atleast you got it some what worked out. Hope you get your $$$ back man.
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10-21-2008, 04:35 PM	#6
Tondtar 12 yr old Juvie 1076 Rep 881 Posts Drives: His Mom Crazy Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: El Lay iTrader: (2) Garage List 2008 (RIP in 2011) ... [0.00]	Damn ...That must have really sucked. Nothing like having a cheap attorney messing up what's already a F'd up situation. Expensive lesson (They all are one way or another, unfortunately)
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10-21-2008, 05:33 PM	#7
ideliver Major 240 Rep 1,247 Posts Drives: E60 M5, E71 X6M, E46 M3 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: At the gas station iTrader: (0) Garage List 2006 BMW E46 M3 'vert [0.00] 2008 BMW M5 [0.00] 2011 BMW E92 [0.00] 2012 BMW X6M [0.00] 2003 E46 M3 [0.00]	The first thief (AKA lawyer) is covering his ass because he doesn't want you to sue him for malpractice...which I am not encouraging because your damages are limited...just get your refund...THEN report him to the state disciplinary board (if you are so inclined) __________________ Current: 2006 E46 M3 'vert 6-sp 2008 E60 M5, 2011 E92 328 6-sp, 2011 E70 N55, 2012 E71 X6M
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10-21-2008, 06:03 PM	#8
im spencer Back in the f80 55 Rep 815 Posts Drives: 2016 F80 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Pasadena, CA iTrader: (1) Garage List 2007 328i [0.00]	You have to sell your soul to become a police officer. __________________ 2003 SS S2000 2016 MW F80 2018 BMW X3 X-Drive
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10-21-2008, 06:05 PM	#9
MMMazing07 More than you can afford pal....ferrari 180 Rep 1,471 Posts Drives: Z4M Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: MD iTrader: (0)	why was a motorcycle riding in the rain
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10-21-2008, 06:08 PM	#10
montreal red chris 278 Rep 12,144 Posts Drives: White Boat Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Toronto iTrader: (31)	darn if you were really going 85mph, how the hell did the cop managed to clock you going 109mph? i mean thats a huge difference. did you contest the speeding ticket too? seriously, just because 2 cars were speeding, it doesnt mean they were racing. cops are true assholes. i speed at around 75 to 80mph regularly when everyone else is going at that speed too... i would be livid if a cop pulled someone else and myself over and told both of us that we were racing. __________________ Current: 2013 F10 M5 & 2016 Mini JCW 2013 GLK350 (gone), 997.1 GT3RS (gone), 2009 WRX STI (gone), e92 M3 (gone)
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10-21-2008, 07:34 PM	#12
g14classified My other ride has 2 wheels... 4 Rep 140 Posts Drives: '08 AW 335i Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: SoCal iTrader: (1)	i will say this untill the day i die..i hate cops...and our justice system is wack
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10-21-2008, 07:35 PM	#13
JIM E92 Lieutenant 15 Rep 410 Posts Drives: 2007 328 Coupe Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Sandy Eggo iTrader: (0)	I got a ticket for going the speed limit in Auburn. The cop wouldn't even show me his radar. He said, because it was raining I was going too fast for the conditions. I took it to court and lost. Point of the story is that in small towns like Auburn and the Hwy 280 corridor it's a major revenue generator. I can sympathize with your situation. I learned quickly to take it easy on the skinny pedal when in Auburn.
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10-21-2008, 07:44 PM	#14
E92 maniac LURKER 7 Rep 131 Posts Drives: CAUTIOUSLY Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Fog City iTrader: (0)	damn that sucks... Cop can really be an ass sometimes as I am sure we all have been in those situations before. Lucky for me as I just fought off my red light ticket yesterday. __________________
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10-21-2008, 08:11 PM	#16
lauer87 Lieutenant 8 Rep 586 Posts Drives: 335xi Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: USA iTrader: (0)	The fact that your lawyer didn't want to meet face to face with you prior to a court date would send all kinds of red flags up to me. Not only that, but the attorney you contracted with to defend you sends an associate in their place to represent you with no prior information about the case? I also can't believe that the only thing the replacement attorney would do is try to plea and not even present your side of the case. To top it all off the firm sends you a letter basically saying they fucked up, please don't sue us. I can't believe how incompetent some firms actually are. In the end, it seems like the 2nd attorney you hired was the one that should have been hired originally, and was well worth the $2500. EDIT Did you ever sign any sort of engagement letter with the original attorney?
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10-21-2008, 09:32 PM	#17
MMMazing07 More than you can afford pal....ferrari 180 Rep 1,471 Posts Drives: Z4M Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: MD iTrader: (0)	i used to think all cops are assholes too but the other month i met the nicest cop i was speeding like crazy on a nice day and a cop lasered me and got me at 62 in a 25 lol. he came back and gave me a warning for the speed and a ticket for no front plate. nicest cop ive ever met. the cop that dealt with you probably would have had a field day with me. there are good cops out there. just not too many of them.
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10-21-2008, 09:44 PM	#18
ScottyGams Uber-Lee7 Member 47 Rep 1,440 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: NYC iTrader: (2)	i am a big fan of police officers in general, but when you meet a bad one on a power trip it can be awful! I have fought a ticket before and won, but I did it myself. Lawyers sketch me out more than cops do! __________________ http://www.facebook.com/Scotty.Gammon
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10-21-2008, 10:30 PM	#20
DougLikesBMW Fapmin 402 Rep 2,660 Posts Drives: '03 E46 330Ci Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Plano, Texas iTrader: (0)	Wow, that is completely retarded. You're out like 5k pretty much 'cause you drove a 'normal' speed on a highway. I would be so livid. I would've just given them like $200 for the speeding ticket and said fuck you to everyone else. I feel for ya man. Karma is a bitch, so hopefully that cop will die next time they are trying to chase someone in the rain on a fucking motorcycle, what a tool.
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10-21-2008, 11:37 PM	#22
spectrumphoto Just another peanut in the Turd! 92 Rep 598 Posts Drives: g16M850;f30M550;f80M3-ED;e90M3 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Hollywierd, SoCal iTrader: (2)	Forget reporting to the BBB... Contact that 1st Lawyer's managing partner at the firm and speak to that person. Notify him and the Attorney that you are contacting and filing a complaint with the State Bar Association asking them to look into the matter and that you were going to push for disciplinary action. That alone should get their attention and probably you a refund to forget the matter. I only know this because of my Fiance who is an Attorney. Any issues involving the State Bar Association and disciplinary actions will strike fear in a firm/attorney as this is a perminant mark on their license.
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