Thinking of disputing a stop sign ticket?

I received a ticket for not stopping for a stop sign here in North Bay (Wallace and Seymour). I was in my company's work vehicle at the time and my boss, who has just recently received a letter of warning from the MTO concerning his CVOR--For I guess various infractions with the work vehicles have been piling up. I, of course had jinxed myself last week when it was being discussed in the front offices, saying that I had nothing on my record! So needless to say the boss would like to see this charge go away. He recommended a place in Sudbury, "Case Dismissed" which deals with traffic tickets and violations. I have checked out a bit of www.ticketcombat.com and am wondering if I should tackle this on my own or not.

My situation:

Was driving up Wallace Road, which is at an incline as you approach the stop sign where it intersects with the end of Seymour Street. A private road extends on from Seymour and would be on my left as I come to the stop sign. This private road seems to be the reason for having the stop signs there, for the rare occasion that a vehicle comes out from this long private road. Anyhow, I come up the hill and and going slow and as I approach the stop sign I am allowing the van to coast to a stop while looking for anything coming from this road....nothing of course, if the van did not come to a complete stop it must have been darn close, for I could feel that shift in the weight of the vehicle as it is stopping. Stopping on its own, for coming up this hill and just removing my foot from the gas and allowing the van to coast, is enough to bring the van to a stop without my applying the brakes.

Seeing nothing coming, I turned right onto Seymour Street and began accelerating. At which point I hear the siren, at first I look all around thinking to locate the emergency vehicle to be able to get out of the way...only to then notice in the rear view the cruiser. The officer comes up and says I didn't stop back there at the stop sign, didn't even try...which threw me for a loop for felt the van come to a stop. Only later did I realize he probably thought that because I didn't use my brakes. Now whether he was following me or was parked off to the side somewhere, I don't know, for my view out the back is rather limited and of course they probably know how to slink around in peoples blind spots...lol.

So I am thinking of disputing this ticket on those grounds...that I did come to a stop, just not using my brakes and okay didn't sit for three seconds, but this intersection is a joke really, it should really just have yield signs and it would be fine. I was aware and looking for any traffic that might come through before proceeding. And, I wasn't rushing in any way....

Any thoughts appreciated,

Chris

I'd suggest talking with your boss about how he wants the ticket handled since it sounds like he has more to lose then you. While paralegals can be expensive, if he has CVOR issues, maybe it would be in his best interest to help pay for your defence. If it was just a regular ticket you'd received operating your own vehicle, then I'd say try and fight it yourself if there's no serious consequence to losing.

As for the actual charge, there is nothing in law that says you have to stop for a full three seconds, just that your vehicle has to stop. The strength of the Crown's case will obviously be dependent on what the officer witnessed and what his notes state. You'll certainly want to get disclosure and review the evidence against you. Judging by your post, the only real issue is that you don't sound completely certain you did make a full stop. If that's the case, I wouldn't recommend taking the stand yourself. A good prosecutor would show the Court your uncertainty. The fact that you didn't use your brake (and I understand you may not need to) would probably also weaken your case. Last point, while the stop sign may be in a dumb location, it's irrelevant in Court. If the sign is lawful and visible, you're required to comply with it. It would be nice if common sense prevailed in stop sign placement, but that's not the case.