For my Libertarian friends

The T wrote: akamaisondufromage wrote: ^  Ok I understand that bit!  Although we only have his word for it.    Is it against the law in the USA to overtake a school bus? If it's stopped and with the STOP signs on, yes... Here buses have two STOP signs on both sides... When they stop to let a child out, both signs open like wings till they face drivers.... Cars driving in the same direction as the bus have to stop behind the bus till it closes the signs again. Drivers driving the opposite direction can keep on going if there's an aisle dividing both ways or have to slow down or even stop if there's no physical aisle. I might be wrong in a  detail or two but this is hw it works

Depends on the State, but this is pretty much right.

If the Bus has it's red lights on and arm extended, you must stop at least 25 feet behind or in front of the vehicle.  The only exception is when you are separated from the bus's lane of traffic by a physical divider. Then you may proceed, but you may not exceed 10 MPH.

When the lights stop flashing, you are not free to move. You must wait until all students who have exited bus are safely on the sidewalk and are showing no intention of crossing the street.

I just researched the statute. It also comes with 5 points on your license and a mandatory 60 day suspension so this is kind of a big deal.

My friend is a lawyer. He said that the only possibility is that the bus driver reported me. This basically could have occurred in one of two ways:

1) The driver took down my plates, went to a police station, filed a complain, and identified me via my license picture.

2) The school bus is equipped with a camera with records the plates of passing cars and the driver used this video to report the situation.

He tells me it's quite difficult to fight if the driver shows up. Given the high publicity of these cases recently, he's positive that the union is giving full support for people to show up in court.

Basically all the onus lies on me. If the wrong date and time are listed on the ticket, the court will allow the driver to amend the citation. The driver does not need to prove that their lights and signs were up, it is left to me to prove that they were not. Basically, he told me that it's designed so that the alleged victim has no case. My only hope is that the bus driver does not show up.

This could wind up costing me over $10,000 dollars in lost revenue if my license is suspended.


Edited by Equality 7-2521 - October 25 2010 at 16:05

Damn so you actually did it Pat? I really thought you were literally sleeping. 

The T wrote: Damn so you actually did it Pat? I really thought you were literally sleeping.  Hope the driver doesn't show up.

I was sleeping. I didn't do it.

The point is irregardless of that fact, since I've been charged I really don't have a case to defend myself.

EDIT: FYI after many angry phone calls and emails my parking violation was dropped. If they weren't separate districts I would swear that these things were related.


Edited by Equality 7-2521 - October 25 2010 at 16:35

The T wrote: Equality 7-2521 wrote: The T wrote: Damn so you actually did it Pat? I really thought you were literally sleeping.  Hope the driver doesn't show up.  I was sleeping. I didn't do it. The point is irregardless of that fact, since I've been charged I really don't have a case to defend myself. Oh, ok. So how the hell did they get your plates? There has to be a way of proving you were sleeping that day.

As I said, they can just change the date and time. They're allowed to amend that information.

I drive the route all the time where this supposedly occurred. I suspect two things. I either pissed off some bus driver with my bumper stickers or some other BS superficial reason, or there was some sort of trap set up where a bus was parked with no lights displayed and any bypassers were hit with tickets. I don't know though. Perhaps a cop I pissed off wrote the ticket to get at me, and just used the guise of a driver reporting the info to explain why I wasn't pulled over. Who knows?

If I did it I would just pay the ticket and take my poison. Actually, the principle is what gets me more than anything.

The description of my car is correct, apart from the color. However, a government employee not knowing the difference between tan and gold does not surprise me.

A few:

f**k the Government.
Don't steal the government hates competition.
Your President is a war criminal.

I agree. The guilt is obvious. The officer or bus driver should be thrown in jail for fraud and attempted larceny or entrapment and attempted larceny depending on which of the scenario's I described occurred.

Of course though I'm a mere citizen, so allegations can be made against me free from impunity.

I think that, to solve all his issues at once, Pat should get a job as a USPS delivery driver...

The T wrote: I think that, to solve all his issues at once, Pat should get a job as a USPS delivery driver...

One job for the government is enough for me

Equality 7-2521 wrote: The T wrote: I think that, to solve all his issues at once, Pat should get a job as a USPS delivery driver... One job for the government is enough for me

What!? Don't tell me you have a government job??

That's what I had to ask.
But yeah if Pat had a government job I'd vote for Ron Paul

 but nah