Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

[RONDAL]

Lets leave the Police suck, etc. comments out for now. I agree Traffic Cops are tax collectors but I'd like some feedback on this.


Situation:
Friend driving last night, enter an intersection, as we enter light goes yellow, we proceed through, light turns red after we exit. Drive like 8 blocks and then cop pulls her over.

First he gives us a story that we ran the red light. Both of us say no, it was green then yellow. He then comes back with a ticket saying we broke the law regarding a yellow light.

Ticket states violation of Section 53(1) of the Traffic Safety Act, failure to obey yellow light.



Now I've looked up Section 53(1) in the TSA, it deals with proper license plates. It has nothing to do with intersections or yellow lights.
I reviewed the drivers handbook and it states nothing to do with the law around yellow lights.
In my experiance and belief, a yellow light is a warning that a red is coming. So long as you are through the intersection by the time the light changes red you have not broken any law. Entering on a yellow is not illegal.

I can't find any statute about yellow lights in the TSA.


Can anyone comment on this.

I've told her she should fight it as its a BS ticket. He said she ran a red, which was incorrect, and then when she said she was in on a yellow he wrote her for that instead.


Any comments as to the law around this?

[longsock]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

You CAN get a ticket for forcing a yellow light, if he wrote it wrong it won't get thrown out like it used to, now they just change it and the ticket is still in place. She can fight it though, to get it reduced.
I'd say she has a good chance, judging by the road conditions etc. Just tell her to say it turned yellow when she was already way into the intersection and couldn't stop due to the icy roads. What she supposed to do? Stop at a yellow light in the middle of the intersection? Pfff dumb cop trying to reach his quota since it's end of month.

[luunta]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

yeah, don't pay it. take it to court. i'm not familiar enough with alberta's TSA but sounds like what he did was ********, i would've rejected the ticket on the spot. once in court i bet the judge says "why is your license plate an issue during a yellow light?"

[stefan]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

The road was icy and you entered when it was yellow... I don't think the ticket will hold up. The heavy snowfall warning less than a day before is proof enough that the roads were shyte and locking up the brakes for a yellow is retarded.

[P Arkus]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

Just ask yourself...does it make sense???

[BaggedGLI]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

He gave her the ticket cause it is assumed women dont know about cars/traffic laws, notice its the end of the month, its an easy ticket that he assumed would never get fought.

[RONDAL]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

while i appreciate the rhetoric...

i take it no one has any actual TSA information related to yellow lights and the law surrounding them?

[RONDAL]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

You CAN get a ticket for forcing a yellow light, if he wrote it wrong it won't get thrown out like it used to, now they just change it and the ticket is still in place. She can fight it though, to get it reduced.
I'd say she has a good chance, judging by the road conditions etc. Just tell her to say it turned yellow when she was already way into the intersection and couldn't stop due to the icy roads. What she supposed to do? Stop at a yellow light in the middle of the intersection? Pfff dumb cop trying to reach his quota since it's end of month.

Can you explain using statute wording what forcing a yellow light is?

In my past experiance, if an officer writes you a ticket for something, and makes an error in what exactly you are being charged with, that is grounds for dismissal.
That's like being charged for murder, when it really should have been jaywalking.
It's procedural error that shouldn't be allowed to stand. While I agree any little error wont get a ticket thrown out, getting things like the date, charge, who is involved wrong...they are fundamental to the ticket and without them being correct the ticket can't stand

[P Arkus]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

While I have no factual TSA info for you I can say this. I've heard of this instance happening before and the both times the victims fought it. One was successful, one wasnt. I cant understand why the cop would code it to section 53 (1) so you might have a good case there, but in the end I believe it boils down to their word (cops) against yours, and the mood the judge is in. Either way, I think its bogus and would definitely fight it. I think you have more than reasonable sources indicating you did not break the law.

[Wildfire]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

Fight it, a police officer is not a judge and jury. Its a bogus ticket. The weather conditions would be a strong argument for going through a yellow and what would the officer say on oath...? I'd love to hear that. Under statutory law what law exactly has been broken...? None. Fight it.

[RONDAL]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

Did some digging around.
TSA refers to another document called the Rules and Regs.
In it is the sec53.1


Yellow traffic lights
53(1) When, at an intersection, a yellow light is shown by a traffic
control signal at the same time as or following the showing of a
green light, a person driving a vehicle that is approaching the
intersection and facing the yellow light shall stop the vehicle before
entering
(a) the marked crosswalk on the near side of the intersection,
or
(b) if there is not any marked crosswalk, the intersection,
unless the stopping of that vehicle cannot be made in safety.



The bold part basically seals the deal here.
Gonna tell the cop to piss off.

[RONDAL]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

Fight it, a police officer is not a judge and jury. Its a bogus ticket. The weather conditions would be a strong argument for going through a yellow and what would the officer say on oath...? I'd love to hear that. Under statutory law what law exactly has been broken...? None. Fight it.

It is a bogus ticket. The issue I have with BS tickets liek this is the onus is placed on the accused to prove their innocence. Its a perverse reversal of how things are.
You have to take time out of your day, unpaid and uncompensated to fight these BS tickets. The cop is paid for his time being there. So he doesn't care if he gets it right or wrong.
In my opinion to stop cops from writing BS tickets, defendants should be compensated for their time if the tickets are thrown out.
Otherwise whats stopping the cop from doing this again?

You have enough tickets getting thrown out the AG is going to be pissed cause his funding is disappearing and the message will come down from high above to get your **** straight before writing ******** tickets

[longsock]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

Can you explain using statute wording what forcing a yellow light is?

In my past experiance, if an officer writes you a ticket for something, and makes an error in what exactly you are being charged with, that is grounds for dismissal.
That's like being charged for murder, when it really should have been jaywalking.
It's procedural error that shouldn't be allowed to stand. While I agree any little error wont get a ticket thrown out, getting things like the date, charge, who is involved wrong...they are fundamental to the ticket and without them being correct the ticket can't stand

If you increased your speed to make the yellow light, then you had enough time to stop before the light turned red. Entering the intersection on a yellow light is illegal.
This is called "forcing a yellow light".
If the cop was behind and didn't see you apply the brakes then he asumes you tried to make the light, either you sped through it or didn't yield.

As for the mistakes made on a ticket, this has just recently changed. How i know this is because they mispelled my name and when I asked if it's getting thrown out they said no and make the changes in their system. Ticket was still valid. I know..stupid.

[BaggedGLI]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

In my opinion to stop cops from writing BS tickets, defendants should be compensated for their time if the tickets are thrown out.
Otherwise whats stopping the cop from doing this again?

You have enough tickets getting thrown out the AG is going to be pissed cause his funding is disappearing and the message will come down from high above to get your **** straight before writing ******** tickets

I fully agree with this but it is horribly unpractical, i think some sort of punishment to officers, like a day with no pay for every two tickets they hand out that are bogus. Or give them shitty jobs around calgary, like garbage cleanup.

[RONDAL]

Re: Traffic Ticket - Yellow Light Infraction....doesn't make sense

ANY method of tracking this would be an improvement over what there currently is.
I agree my method prolly wouldn't work, but i thought of it on the spot.


There was no accelerating to make the light, we had already entered the intersection. Cop was perpendicular to our vehicle when he saw us go through the light.


This is some good literature.
For those that ask "can they give me a ticket for ______________________" all of your questions can be answered here.
This is the LAW as it is supposed to be applied. If you are low and are concerned you're too low but aren't, print off the section in case you get a ticket. You can show the cop the law. While they are expected to know and understand the law they are applying, lets face it, the CPS hires meatheads for the most part. So you can beat them with their own law.

http://www.qp.alberta.ca/574.cfm?pag...=9780779746125