<p>My seventeen year old daughter was drivining on Interstate 90 E in NY. She was in the passing lane going the the correct speed limit. It was a windy day and her car crossed over yellow line. A police officer stopped her but she got nervous (first time being pulled over) and pulled over on the left. He gave her a ticket for Driving Across Hazard Marking, section sub section 1128D. This occured four hours from our house. If she pleads gulity will there be points added to her license and how many. Also I’m not sure if this is correct or not but after doing some research I came across an ammendment to the traffic law sub section 1128D stating that crossing the line marking the beginning of the shoulder was not a violation. Bill number A9823A People Vs Shulman?? What should we do? Any info would be appreciated.</p>
<p>I’ll send you a PM.</p>
<p>Though I don’t know the laws in NY, if it’s similar to Calif, I would fight it. If the officer doesn’t show up on the court date, the case is automatically dismissed. Half the time or more, the officer doesn’t show up to testify. On that alone, it’s worth fighting. My son did that, for a speeding ticket that he would have of course been found guilty, but the officer did not show up. Lucky indeed. Is she eligible for traffic school? If so, that’s even better. You have to pay the ticket, plus pay for traffic school, but the point goes away. Check if this is true in NY.</p>
<p>^^^ Thanks to you both, appreciate the info. I’m definetly checking out a few things and hopefully it’ll work out.</p>
<p>I recommend taking pictures of where the infraction occurred if possible. Pictures make you seem more prepared and it’s not uncommon for an officer to incorrectly state the facts. If a picture can prove him wrong, you’ve already won most the battle.</p>
<p>Taking photos on 90 isn’t likely to be possible.</p>
<p>You are going to drive 4 hours to fight a minor ticket? It won’t add many if any points. Save yourself the trouble and pay it. Life’s too short. And tell her not to ride at the speed limit in tha fast lane. It annoys peeple to death and I doubt she is savvy enough to pull to the right when somebody comes up and flashes the lights at her to pass…</p>
<p>I wouldn’t drive 4 hours to fight a ticket. If it happened to one of my kids, I would just pay the ticket and forget about it.</p>
<p>Welcome to “The Guilty Factory” because that what our courts really are. Suggestion: I see a lot of people fight these things in a reasonable, calm and cool headed matter but only to be found guilty. The difference is they get fined BUT no insurance points are imposed, (judges discretion). Might be worth the time depending on the bump in insurance costs. Get there early, talk to the prosecuting attorney.</p>
<p>4 hours is a long time, but you could easily win this case. You have to decide if it’s worth the trouble. Also, the court where it is heard may be closer (or further).</p>
<p>Have her talk frankly about how nervous she was as a new driver, about the wind conditions, and how she didn’t see the police officer indicate that she should move over to the right. I would be surprised if the points at least weren’t dismissed and your D will learn something about speaking up for herself, even when she makes a mistake.</p>
<p>Considering that she is a teenaged driver, your insurance may go up significantly if she is convicted. Not only would I show up to court, I would have an attorney represent her. Most likely, the charges will be dismissed. Going through the process will be an eye opener for her. Let her start off at eighteen with a clean driving record.</p>
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<p>I agree completely with the rest of this post, but need to disagree with the bit above. By turning on the lights, the police officer is indicating that she should pull to the right. Yielding to the right for emergency vehicles is a standard you should know to even have a drivers license, and to claim ignorance like this would likely backfire. But definitely fight it - completely agree that she should just come right out and say “hey, I’m a new driver still learning how my car reacts to wind, and I got flustered when pulled over so I went to the wrong side of the road - my bad”.</p>
<p>A lawyer who specialized in traffic violations would also probably be a good idea (and probably pretty cheap - definitely cheaper than any insurance increases).</p>
<p>You won’t get a big insurance bump from such a minor ticket. This not doing 20 over or having a crash when you are at fault. Everyone is making way too much of this. If she did not know how to drive in wind she should not be driving in wind. It’s not the cops fault she did not adjust to conditions. It’s a good lesson for a young driver–know your limitations.</p>