everyone who offered advice and support.....

JustC

when I asked about legal issue surrounding my truck vs building incident, THANK YOU. The judge almost laughed it out of court. He said that I complied with all parts of the law by driving home and notifying the owner once I found his home number, (as the building was unoccupied).I appreciate it.

Matt45

Congrats!I'm glad to see you didn't take this in the shorts! Nice to see the good guy win somewheres other than in the movies!

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Reserving my Right to Arm Bears!!!!

JustC

matt45, my lawyer said the same thing. It's nice to represent the good guys once in a while, although for some reason he didn't refund my $2000. LOL I had to pay to hear the judge say, "WHY ARE WE HERE, THIS IS NO CASE".

simonbs

What country is it that has the "Loser pays" system. You go to court, the loser of the decision pays all court costs, both sets of attorneys fees, etc.I like that system. It would make people think twice about frivolous lawsuits. 'Course, now that I think about it, with all the whacky judgments out there, the good guy would just get shafted all the more.Congrats on the victory.[This message has been edited by simonbs (edited 01-29-2002).]

JustC

every now and then something happens that renews SOME of my faith in the system. I would like to see the state pay my fees though. Of all 6, yes, 6 charges, the judge dismissed them all within 40 seconds. Maybe the young, ambitious officer learned that some things are what they seem and that some people do tell the truth or do the right thing. If I have in some way saved someone else this stress and pain in the a*s, then I will accept that as my contribution to the next person in that position who should make out better with the young lady in uniform.

JustC

ok, here goes.Wife and I are on the way home from The Grand National Waterfowl Hunt dinner, which we help with the auction and clean up afterwards. So, it is 2:15 AM when we are nearing the homestead. A deer runs out in front of our Suburban (which incidently had 1963 miles on it), and I swerve to try and make it onto an adjoining road to avoid the whole situation. The road had recently been tar and chipped, which, if you know about that, provides multitudes of loose gravel. I lost steering and brakes when we got into the gravel and head on into a storage room attached to a business. I asked the wife if she was ok, and no reply, just hysterical sounds. ( I have been with her since age 20 and thought I new all the "sounds") I didn't know this type!!! I asked several more times with the same non-response. I noticed that the airbags did not deploy and figured she must have hit the windshield,(although we later found out that since the building caved in, there was no need for the bags to deploy, and we always wear seat belts) So, at this point I am starting to slightly panic as to her condition. Noone was there to offer a phone etc, so, Looking out of the passenger window, I see MY HOUSE. I proceed the 1/8 mile to my house and get her inside to evaluate the situation. She informs me now, after she has her senses back, she is ok. I then proceed to call my friend who we had seen only 25minutes earlier and ask him what the protocol is for this situation as I am still slightly in shock and not thinking as clearly as I could be. My buddy says to me, " don't worry, that's my uncle Bob and his wife's business. We will go by his house in the morning and give him your insurance info" So, I go to bed, if that's what you could call tossing and turning until the AM. We go to his home and exchange information. He says to me that I did the right thing and that is what insurance is for. He had seen the damage on his way to church and obviously, with no vehicle there, he had to report it to the State Police. I had arrived MINUTES after their departure from his home. He called the officer and told her that we had taken care of it. She returns and wants to follow me to see my truck. I take her to the house, show her the truck, and honestly answer her questions. Then she gets my wife in the car and shuts the door on her and interrogates her without me being present, obviously trying to scare her into saying something different. When she exits the cruiser, she informs me that we are lying and would I please sign thes citations.1. Leaving the scene2. failure to leavi info on unnatended prop. damage3. failure to drive right of center4. failure to reduce speed to avoid collision5. reckless driving6. alluding or someother crap like that.So, I get the lawyer, and after $2000 and 2 months in which I managed to lose 12 lbs of worry weight, I have my day in court. She immediatley tries to get the judge to not allow me to face all charges on one day. She played games with the system and put them in several weeks apart so I had 3 court dates. Judge shoots her down. She then testifies that I tried to pull the vehicle all the way up to the garage to hide the damage. I DON'T HAVE A GARAGE. Then she says I tried to park my wifes car behind it so I could hide it. MY WIFES CAR IS A MIATA. Anyway, I testify and the property owner "uncle Bob" testifies and the judge says "there is no mens rhea (sp) here, I find you not guilty of all charges. D.A. argues, judge says, He called his friend to find out what to do, it just happens to be "Uncle Bob", he goes to "Uncle Bob's" house and gives him the insurance info, drivers license, etc. He made no attempt to hide the fact that it was him and his fault, He complied with the law even if he didn't leave written I.D. on the property. Why are we here?So as you can see, even following the law can still cost you $$$ when an aggressive state trooper, who hasn't even gotten seatbelt scratches on her beretta model 92 yet, gets out her ticket book looking for a stripe. That's no dig, at all,to LEO's I shoot with some great guys who are. It's personality of one individual, who I don't think likes men very much.

HAIRY

Seems the $2000 was reasonable, given the potential findings of guilty. Seems the attorney you hired earned his keep! Does your auto insurance cover any of this $2000? I suggest you check with your insurance agent. Good luck.

competentone

I pity the poor fool who has to suffer the wrath of this policewoman next--odds are she hasn't "corrected her behavior" from this ordeal--it probably just made her more angry...[This message has been edited by competentone (edited 01-29-2002).]

JustC

She stormed out of the courtroom before the trial was officialy over. When the judge started dropping charges, she was gone. Unfortunately, my wife drives that truck every day to work. Actualy, the cost is;$5000 body shop$17,000 building.At least the body shop said that all damage was cosmetic (bumper, grill, hood,radiator, core supprt), and no structural damage occured. The frame was perfect and they used all O.E.M. GM parts. That makes me feel better knowing I have 4 3/4 yrs more payments.I would have left my info, but as the truck was new at the time, the only thing in it was the owner's manual and registration.