Passing vehicles on a highway with just one lane for each

I was doing 84 kms but then came to a truck who was driving faster, then slower, eg... 81, 79, 80, 82, 80 etc.. I tried to keep a safe distance but I had another truck behind me stopping to closely to me each time I braked... I figured he would run into me so I figured best for me to pass and once done resume my speed on cruise at 84kms... BUT once I started to pass the truck I quickly realized there was a car in front of him so I had to pass both... Couldn't safely go back as the truck had filled in the gab.... Once I passed both I thought okay now I can resume my cruise but before I had a chance a cop had the lights on and siren blaring.. Seems he was the car I passed.... He gave me a ticket for doing 110 kms in a posted 80 kms.. But if I'm passing of course I would have to speed up.. Plus I realized it was his fault we were starting to get a line up of cars due to his going fast, slowing down, faster, slower... It was like he purposely did this so someone would pass.... I got a $220 fine plus 4 points... I'm taking this to trial... Do you think I have a chance? After all I passed a cop!

I was driving in cruise at 83 kms on a posted 80kms highway.. Just two lanes, one going each way.. I caught up to the truck in front of me but he was driving erractically. First 80 kms, then 79, 83, 81, 79, etc.. I had to keep braking so I kept a safe distance between us.. But this truck came up behind me and tail gated me... When I braked I figured he was going to crash into me each and every time as he was that close. I thought for safely reasons I would pass the truck in front of me then continue on with my cruise control. But what I didn't know was when I passed the truck there was a couple of cars in front of it so I had already committed so I had to go for it... The truck had already filled in the gap I had left. I made it safely and thought okay, now I will put my cruise back on and be on my way.. BUT what I didn't realize was I passed a cop car! It took only seconds before his lights were twirling and his siren going.. I got a $220 ticket for speeding.. doing 110 in a posted 80 zone.. But I had to speed in order to pass! Plus if he had waited he quickly would have seen I was slowing down... I got 4 points for this one. I had no choice but to take it to trial.... Do you think I have a case? As I mentioned with this truck in front of me I had no way of knowing there were cars in front of it.. I'm thinking if I plead guilty and say this I'm going to have the book thrown at me! I've already sent in back saying I want a trial... I'm just so confused... Thanks for any help there may be out there...

Shocked wrote:

I was driving in cruise at 83 kms on a posted 80kms highway.. Just two lanes, one going each way.. I caught up to the truck in front of me but he was driving erractically. First 80 kms, then 79, 83, 81, 79, etc.. I had to keep braking so I kept a safe distance between us..

If you have to keep braking for a driver who is fluctuating in speed by 1km under the speed limit to 3km over, you are driving too close. Considering there was traffic in front of him, the variation in speed is hardly erratic, even for someone with even zero traffic in front of them. The speed limit was 80km. Are you really trying to make a case for passing because he hit 79? Speedometers aren't even accurate to an exact km, nor is braking required for such little variations in speed. Simply let off the gas. There's no reason to tap the brakes every couple seconds because the car in front of you changed his speed by 3km. There is nothing erratic about the driving in this situation other than maybe your own.

Shocked wrote:

But this truck came up behind me and tail gated me... When I braked I figured he was going to crash into me each and every time as he was that close. I thought for safely reasons I would pass the truck in front of me then continue on with my cruise control.

If you were truly concerned about your safety, you would have pulled over as much to the side as possible and let the driver behind you pass, not increase your speed by 30 over the limit and pass multiple vehicles on a single pass in the opposite direction of traffic blindly. Pulling over to the side and letting the other driver pass would have been the safest option.

Shocked wrote:

But I had to speed in order to pass!

Passing is not an excuse for speeding.

Shocked wrote:

Do you think I have a case?

No, but it wont stop you from possibly receiving a reduced charge in exchange for pleading guilty (eg. 29km and 3 points). It's a lot better than going to trial and repeating what you've said here.

Shocked wrote:

As I mentioned with this truck in front of me I had no way of knowing there were cars in front of it..

Don't make a blind pass?

Shocked wrote:

I'm thinking if I plead guilty and say this I'm going to have the book thrown at me!

Hardly. It's not going to get any worse than it is unless your charge has already been reduced at the scene. You will must likely be offered a reduction in your charge in return for your guilt on your trial date.

Thank you so much for your feedback. Now I just want to pay the fine and be done with it as I will look like a complete idiot had I gone to trial. But I've already sent in my form with the third option checked #3...

How do I go about stopping this from going through and just paying the fine...

I really do appreciate your feedback. When I read it I totally realized how wrong I was.... Thanks again Bend...

If I were in your position I would call the prosecutor's office in the jurisdiction where you got the ticket and ask for a first attendance meeting. At that meeting they will almost certainly offer you a plea deal where they will reduce your charge in exchange for you pleading guilty. Since you want to get this over with you can just take whatever deal they offer pay your money and call it a day.

Thanks Daggx for your reply.. I'll look online for the address and hopefully get to talk to someone directly and mention what you posted.... I'm so pleased I found this forum... Thanks to you both for the feedback... much appreciated...

regardless of whether what you did was "Right" or "Wrong", it is still in your best interest to go through the entire process

choose 'Trial' rather than 'Early Resolution'; with trial you atleast have a chance that the officer may not show

request disclosure: ask for the officer's notes and the operating manual for his speed measuring device; at this point you don't even know how the officer got his reading of 110kph

if you're a fully graduated licensed driver, 3 or 4 pts mean nothing to your license; your insurance may increase as a result of a plea-deal conviction

Thanks iFLY55 for posting your information re: my ticket...

I am a fully graduated licensed driver.. Haven't had a ticket in over 25 yrs... I don't know what you mean when you say 3 or 4 points means nothing to my license... ? Does this mean it won't effect my insurance? Much appreciated if you reply once again... Thanks so much... I know nothing of these tickets.. I'm a senior citizen and this has me really upset... Now I'm scared to go even 3 kms over the limit... always looking at my speedometer now... Whew... what a mess... I know I was speeding when I caught up to them.. the three vehicles I passed.. including the cop but of course I didn't know he was a cop... Until I passed him.. He did say something to me that made no sense though but I didn't question him as he hadn't written out the ticket yet and didn't want to agitate him... He said... You caught up to me three times and I let that go but when you passed me I couldn't let that go.. ?? What? Three times.. NO? I caught up to him once.. then overtook him and the truck behind him. I don't know whether he was the first vehicle or in the middle but I did pass three... The truck that was behind me filled in the gap so I had no choice to to execute my passing... I know I should have been aware of how many vehicles I would have been passed before I ventured out.. I thought there was only a truck in front of me so was taken by surprise when I saw the other two vehicles... Passing three vehicles who are doing the speed limit of 80kms.... I don't think I have a case here.. I was in the wrong... Do you still think I should fight this? Thanks again iFly55...

Shocked wrote:

I am a fully graduated licensed driver.. Haven't had a ticket in over 25 yrs... I don't know what you mean when you say 3 or 4 points means nothing to my license... ?

Points only stay on your record for 2 years from the date you received your ticket on the side of the road. When he says they mean nothing, it's because you'd have to accumulate a ton of charges in short a period for it to reach the point where it would actually mean anything. There's two people that have to worry about points (1) newly licensed drivers still going through the graduated license process and (2) People who deserve to be suspended. You'd need 15+ points in less than 2 years to get an automatic suspension. It's not something you should be terribly worried about as requesting a trial will further cut into that 2 year period. You wont see those points till the day you are convicted, but the clock is already counting down on them.

Shocked wrote:

Does this mean it won't effect my insurance?

Any conviction can have an impact on your insurance, demerit points or no demerit points. Insurance companies don't calculate your points. They are used by the MTO only. Insurance companies only care that you were convicted.

Shocked wrote:

Do you still think I should fight this? Thanks again iFly55...

What he is saying is a trial keeps all of your options open. There is a small possibility your charges can be dropped on your trial date for whatever the reason may be. Maybe they can't provide you with the requested disclosure or maybe the officer doesn't show up. You will also be offered a reduced charge on your trial date either way (same as picking option 2). So really, you don't need to change your not guilty plea at all. You can still accomplish everything at your trial date and have every option on the back of your ticket still available to you. So if you feel you're going nowhere fast, you can walk away with a reduced charge if there is enough wiggle room on your charge to do so (sounds like there will be).

What he is NOT saying is that you should go forward with a trial under the assumption that your story will somehow set you free. Speeding is what they call an "absolute liability" offense. It means you were either speeding or you weren't. You don't have a case that proves you weren't speeding. You do have a lot of excuses for speeding, but they don't prove you were at no point going over 80km per hour. If it were a hockey game, you'd be scoring in your own net in overtime. There's no chance of a reduced charge once the prosecution has exhausted its options and is forced to go to trial. If you reject their offer, there's no turning back once the trial starts.