what happens if a cop writes up a ticket with the wrong date?

Can you prove you were somewhere else on that date? If you can, you are laughing.

Fight this tooth and nail. The traffic courts HATE it when citizens try to fight their revenue generating.

go to court it will be thrown out immediately

You have to meet with the DA to do any haggling, so you want to declare yourself not guilty at your court hearing.

Today is January 2nd. If you JUST got a speeding ticket than the date is correct.

Correction. My bad (probably the cop's same goof). It's 2010 now, DUH me.

Ohh man, I would soooooo happy with that mistake!
It's a winner!

really? damn, i'm living in the future and don't know it. can you buy some lotto tickets for me?

Go to court and have your attorney request proof of your traffic violation on the exact date specified. The case with get thrown out on that technicality.

[link to www.speedingticketcentral.com]
"Will errors on the ticket result in the charges being dropped?

Courts will often excuse minor errors on a ticket. A misspelled name, incorrect address or difference in opinion on whether your car is aqua or green in color will not result in a dismissed ticket. Conversely, a major error such as citing the wrong statute, radically misidentifying your vehicle or listing the wrong highway as the site of the violation should provide justification to dismiss the ticket. However, it may be advantageous to say nothing about the errors until your trial. Let the officer use the ticket to describe the violation, location, and identification of your vehicle (they all do). After he or she has sufficiently buried him or herself with perjured testimony, you can document the errors and any legitimate court will dismiss the charges. Here is the law in Michigan. You need to remember that traffic court judges are not required to follow the law. (Taken from the Michigan Judicial Institute © 2003 Page 5) A material defect is an error pertaining to a fact that is necessary to prove an element of the offense, or that attacks the essence of the complaint.* Courts vary in their opinion as to what constitutes a material defect and magistrates should check with their chief judges regarding this issue. The case may be dismissed without prejudice by the judge or magistrate (if the magistrate is authorized to do so), and the citing officer may reissue the citation, or move to have it reinstated.

Material defects may include: *See MCL 257.742(1), 257.727c(3), and MCR 4.101(E)(1).

• No signature on the citation by the citing officer.* The absence of a signature is a material defect that makes the entire citation invalid. • Incorrect identification of the defendant. • Incomplete identification of the offense. • Failure to specify the location of the offense. • Failure to specify the date of the offense, or entry of an incorrect date. "

+1

I went to traffic court in St. Augustine, Florida some time back as moral support for a friend. I witnessed a seriously bizarre dog-n-pony show from the court.

When a person went to contest their ticket, the court would call the officer that wrote the ticket. The officer would announce his presence, then the judge would listen to the story of the individual that got the ticket. Not a single person that challenged the ticket won their case.

There was also a table in the courtroom with a few attorneys present. These lawyers were there to defend their clients from tickets. When the judge called for one of the "offenders" represented by lawyer, the lawyer would stand up and announce to the judge that were representing the person with the ticket. The judge would then call for the officer that wrote the ticket. In 100% of the cases where a lawyer was present, the officer that wrote the ticket was a "no show". The judge dismissed those cases.

My point is -- do a little investigation and find out if your traffic court is running their own little "game". It might be worth your time to pay a lawyer that specializes in "traffic tickets".

There are other records from dispatch as to when it all took place. Your only hope is if the cop fails to show up at the court hearing.

just fight it. the cop wont even show up to mess with something so trivial

or they can go through the motions and try to prove it was you.

what would most likely occur is:

you try to fight it, the cop finds out why you are fighting it, the cop most likely did not record the stop (they tell you if you are being recorded or not), and he just says fuck this not worth my time.

be very careful they dont cite you for failure to appear to the courts in 2009

This depends on the price of your lawyer.

by the way there have been stories of people getting out of jail early for murder due to a typo found through paper work.

I do not feel like looking it up but i do know one convict was killing time for attempted murder or some crap, spent his time just reading through his case report, found a small typo and got released early

Very useful information

exactly....

Here is the most useful information I could find for you:

[link to www.worldlawdirect.com]

They make a good point in insisting on the officer providing his testimony per his own recollection (I don't see many being able to do that). Also, like 50% of the time the officer won't even show up in court and it will get thrown out because you have the right to face your accuser.

The link I provided also states that it doesn't hurt to fight it because the most you end up paying is the fine you would have had to pay anyway...

I suggest doing a little research. It may be worth fighting for fucks sake if anything else.

Does it not seem odd to anyone that the court system thrives and actually maintains by the presence of criminals?

Stand in front of the judge and with all honestly say - no i was not speeding on that date. The cop is a liar.

thanks for the replies.

thanks for the information and advice everyone.

I am going to fight it, plead not guilty, and point out the date the officer alleged I was speeding.

I was speeding. 54 in a 40.

I am not going to lie to the judge and say I wasn't. But I am not going to say I was either.

Not wise.

They are gonna be licking their lips when they think about your fine going into the general fund - after all, they have to pay for the Christmas party!

Get a traffic lawyer now!!