Made a bad decision, now i'm paying for it big time.

[mjh937]

I would never equate a DUI with speeding.  Driving while intoxicated is always dangerous and deserves stiff penalties and jail time. Speeding on deserted country road would only endanger the rider/driver.
 
I had a friend who was clocked at 71 in a 25. That probably should have been a reckless ticket but he was just written for speeding. I do not know anyone who has been given a reckless driving ticket for speeding here.

[mericc]

Sell your bike to a family member or just change of title owner, take care of your court business, havenfamily membergive bike back to you, ta da! Lol

[cherenkovblu3]

Tom McGrath is a MC specific law firm in Va. They might have some good legal advice for you.
 
Best of luck. Could have been most of us at one point if we weren't lucky.

Thanks Hobbs, I'll check that firm out. Man, lawyers are expensive.

[pattonme]

So, how did it work out @cherenkovblu3?

[cherenkovblu3]

So, how did it work out @cherenkovblu3[span]    [/span][span]    [/span]_[span]    [/span]?

Still waiting for my court date, I have not been able to sell the bike yet.  I go to court on the 21st, I'll let you guys know what happens. Wish me luck :/

[yamahappy74]

I still think that as a first time offender, you won't see jail time. That's an asinine rule, not different from mandatory minimums. Once this is over, I would make it a point to leave Virginia forever. What a joke.

[thomascrown]

First order of business should be to get the hell out of VA after this ordeal.

[hobbs]

Virginia, much like every state in the country has its flaws, but sometimes things are much, much easier said than done.

[sorkyah]

Move to phoenix, the DUI laws are strict as hell... but speeding is up to officer's discretion

[cherenkovblu3]

Well guys, just got home from court. Heres what they gave me:
 
6mo license suspension, 10 days in jail (90 days, 80 suspended time)
+ like $700 for fines and court costs
 
We immediately appealed it. So we go to court again Nov 10 .
 
The punishment is totally not proportional to the crime, there was a person in there before me for identity theft, walked out with 0 jail time.
 
Definitely learned my lesson, they were handing out jail time like Oprah in there for speeding tickets... VA traffic law is ridiculous
 

[potatochips]

Damn, that's way over the top. I hated being in VA, and the NE in general. Good luck with the appeal.

[hobbs]

Gese leuise, I hope your lawyer gets better terms. That is ludicrous!

[Papa L]

And this is why I cruise control in the car in VA. It's ridiculous. Hope your appeal yields better results. I'll be keeping myself in MD even more now.

[Beemer]

I don't agree with this:
"There's nothing wrong with VA - I stay the hell out of MD. ;-) There is never a good reason to exceed limit+10. If you need fast, Summit Point Raceway beckons. As does the 75 drag strip."
 
Never a good reason??? He wasn't doing it for the fun of it for Christ sake. Under normal circumstances I would agree with that statement but when you feel someone crossed the line and does something that may endanger you over something minor that angered them on the road you question their sanity at that moment and react to it. Who in their right mind would want to stay close to a person endangering their life or didn't you see it that way? A guy tried to side swipe me once because I was passing him on the soft shoulder and I shot out of there as fast as I could and stayed on the gas until he was out of sight so I sympathize with cherenkovblu3. I know how that feels and I'm sure a judge would agree if hauling ass to get away from crazy boy to protect his life was his only option he would see fit to drop the case and let him go. Any honest judge with any sense that is.
 

[pattonme]

I'm afraid the 'law' would say "just turn off, pull over" or take other action which would amount to achieving separation that didn't involve high rates of speed. I'm not advocating for staying in a dangerous situation but 'pinning it' is unlikely to get anybody's sympathy. That might not be fair but that's how the vast majority of the population thinks, I expect.

[Papa L]

I'm afraid the 'law' would say "just turn off, pull over" or take other action which would amount to achieving separation that didn't involve high rates of speed. I'm not advocating for staying in a dangerous situation but 'pinning it' is unlikely to get anybody's sympathy. That might not be fair but that's how the vast majority of the population thinks, I expect.

 
This right here is the correct legal answer. Better to have one angry moron on the road then an angry moron and someone else excessively speeding.

[Beemer]

"I'm afraid the 'law' would say "just turn off, pull over" or take other action which would amount to achieving separation that didn't involve high rates of speed."
 
"This right here is the correct legal answer. Better to have one angry moron on the road then an angry moron and someone else excessively speeding."
 
Those quotes right there are why we have educated lawyers that are aware of all the circumstances in a trial so that they can intelligently defend someone that has broken a law for 'seemingly', uncalled for reasons. God I hate Nancy Grace.
 
 
 

[pattonme]

You forget @beemer, in court it only matters what you can prove. Hearsay from the guilty party no less, unfortunately doesn't hold much sway even if it's the god's honest truth. Here's some more Nancy (well, actually no idea of source)
 
"If you have the facts on your side, pound the facts. If you have the law on your side, pound the law. If you have neither on your side, pound the table."
 

[hobbs]

What bothers me the most about this, is that in Virginia, on my way to work I will encounter hundreds of people driving 80+. All while being recklessly aggressive and I see a lot of bikes being pulled.

[pattonme]

I agree, if they're going to be draconian, let's have equal opportunity draconian. Or have the highway men stand at convenient choke points, stop every 7th car, draw their weapons and hold out their hat for a donation of at least $50 to the benevolent fund or threaten to shoot the tires out. It would be more honest. MC are easy pickings and present a choice revenue enhancement opportunity.
 

[cherenkovblu3]

Thanks for the sympathy guys. When I got pulled over I had no idea what I was in for. Like you guys said, the solution they were looking for was to pull over and stop. That being said, I ride (rode) my bike to work every day and definitely noticed a bias for motorcycles in northern VA as well, In fact i've seen fellow FZ-07s pulled over on 28 in Herndon for what appeared to be no reason, they were pacing traffic right along with everyone else. It really gets under my skin. My lawyer asked why I couldnt have brought him a DUI, he said the odds were with that there wouldnt have been any jail time at all. Craziness

[Beemer]

You forget @beemer, in court it only matters what you can prove. Hearsay from the guilty party no less, unfortunately doesn't hold much sway even if it's the god's honest truth. Here's some more Nancy (well, actually no idea of source) 
"If you have the facts on your side, pound the facts. If you have the law on your side, pound the law. If you have neither on your side, pound the table."

Nah, I didn't forget that. I was just pointing out that quite often people are too quick to say someone is guilty of something when they don't have all the facts or evidence in front of them. Just like how a judge can easily say they should've just got off the road and pulled over when maybe there was no road to pull off onto on that stretch of highway. That kind of evidence is usually presented by a lawyer in court. Our friend didn't say whether he had a witness to it either so I didn't assume he didn't.  If I'd thought he didn't have one I would've been whistling Nancy. What if you have overwhelming circumstantial evidence on your side?

[jake]

So I know a guy that has out run cops in cars several times ( not me ) and he got busted once going 130 on the highway and got a reckless ( built Camaro SS 11 sec car). So now he tries to keep it under 20 over so that still 89 mph because over that is reckless but most of the time less than 10 over. But now he has a bike Fz something ( not me) and on the odd chance he is going over the 19 over and get zapped by a cop he is most likely not going to stop and there is no way they would catch him. ( not me ). By the way that guy has never been in a car accident involving any one. And on a bike the rider is the one who looses 99% of the time not the cager.
But that guy is crazy ( not me ) so I stay the speed limit and follow the sheep.
 
On a side note I hope it all works out, and the long arm of the law doesn't get shoved up your Azz too far.

[Papa L]

What bothers me the most about this, is that in Virginia, on my way to work I will encounter hundreds of people driving 80+. All while being recklessly aggressive and I see a lot of bikes being pulled.

 
Ever been fishing? Ever catch all the fish? It's just one of those things. Using the "mommy mommy, everyone else was doing it" defense rarely, if ever, works. Bikes just stand out more in that scenario; more so when they drive aggressively.

[hobbs]

What bothers me the most about this, is that in Virginia, on my way to work I will encounter hundreds of people driving 80+. All while being recklessly aggressive and I see a lot of bikes being pulled.

Ever been fishing? Ever catch all the fish? It's just one of those things. Using the "mommy mommy, everyone else was doing it" defense rarely, if ever, works. Bikes just stand out more in that scenario; more so when they drive aggressively.

 
 
I don't see what angling, fish, or feminine paternal figures have to do with the concept of profiling. Nobody said everyone else was doing anything, either.