Please Help!! What do I do? CAR ACCIDENT ****ADVICE/HELP****

[Picklestix7866]

I was in an accident a few months ago, and because I'm under 18 I had to go to court. I pulled out on a busy road trying to do a left turn and someone t-boned me. No one was hurt but I got a ticket two months later for failure to yield at a stop sign. I went to court and it wasn't horrible. Me and my mom had no idea what we were doing. lol. We survived and I got a small fine and I have to go to a drivers improvement course. So, whatever happens, you're not alone and you will survive too. Good luck! Oh, and my dad made me pay for my next truck too.

 

[WingingIt]

I'm going to throw this out there as a possible explanation as to the 'careless driving' part. Please understand that I am NOT questioning your story.

Lots of times when people lose control of their vehicle for dumb reasons - trying to reach something in the opposite floorboard, changing CDs, chatting on the phone, texting, eating, etc. - they claim that they swerved to miss a deer or dog. Animals do cause a lot of accidents, but they also get blamed for a lot that they didn't cause. I was behind a friend going home when I was in High School and he was hauling butt, way over the limit and lost control on a straight away going downhill. Flipped the car several times, was extremely lucky he was only minorly hurt. As soon as the sheriff arrived he started crying about the deer that had run out in front of him. There was no deer. I saw the whole thing. He was trying anything he could to keep himself out of hot water with his Dad and that was his first attempt.

I'm sure the police have heard that same story (or a variation) tons of times. It's not right, but I'd be willing to bet that because you are young and you were not following the guidelines of your license (only to school and back) and you had a passenger (possible distraction) they might have assumed that you made up the deer but really just lost control of the truck. Hence, careless driving.

Good luck in court.

 

[silkiecrazy1212]

I kind of thought at the beginning that she didnt believe that there was a deer. She says that everyone says that, but that is one thing that really made me mad.
I am not dumb. I know not to lie to a cop, and have no reason too.
I was a little offended when my story wasnt taken seriously by the sheriff along with my parents. I havent lied to either of them and have given them no reason not to believe me. I DO NOT lie about serious things like that.

That was my original thought as well, was that I was getting it because "There was no deer."

That is the reason why I think I could argue it.
I am getting charged for violation of school permit, which covers that I had a passenger and wasnt where I was supposed to be. The definition of double jeopardy is "trying the same person twice for the same crime." Careless driving because I wasnt where I was supposed to be, and Violation of school permit because I wasnt where I was supposed to be, are the same thing.

 

[WingingIt]

I understand that you're irritated because you feel like you are being charged twice for the same thing. However, don't go to court with that attitude. Go in there with the attitude of: Yes, Judge, I was where I wasn't supposed to be with a passenger and I know I broke the rules of my permit and will accept whatever punishment you give me on top of what my parents are already doing (and be ready to explain what that is). Then state that you don't understand the other charge at all because you were not speeding, texting or anything like that and you DO have a witness that there was a deer that ran out in front of you. There is a possibility that you may get the fine even with a witness because lots of times they give similar tickets for 'failing to control your vehicle,' regardless of the cause. Usually they say something like you should have been able to safely bring the vehicle to a stop or some language like that and it relates to the fact that you did lose control and if there had been other vehicles present, would have been a danger to them.

I really think the timeline of waiting for your court case can be in your benefit, though. It will give you time to work off some of the hours your parents have assigned and you can hopefully save up to pay the deductible and have a plan to pay the increase in insurance (if your parents decide on that). Report ALL of that to the Judge. It will let them know that you have already been punished at home, you accepted the punishment and are being finacially responsible for the damages already.

Hopefully they'll take that into consideration and let you off easy on the ticket/fine.

 

[dickiebird]

Why haven't you contacted a lawyer and have him plead this down to a non moving violation. I've done this a few times and never went to court. The only time I did go to court, I pleaded not guilty, all that did was get me a new court date for a jury trial. I then went and talked to a lawyer who got it pleaded down to some sort of a non moving violation. I still had to pay the same amount in fines but that was it, no points, nothing. That way my ins. co. can't raise my premium because of my record.
THANX RICH

People say I'm getting crankier as I get older. That's not it. I just find I enjoy annoying people a lot more now. Especially younger people!!!

 

[Calebs Acre]

You need to read the definition of double jeopardy more closely. You are NOT being tried twice for the same offense. You are being CHARGED with two different counts on the same incident.

You can be charged with multiple counts that overlap each other on the same incident. It's perfectly legal. I totally agree that you SHOULD be discussing this with an attorney. I kind of figured that your parents might want you to experience this on your own.

The violation of school permit covers you doing the things you were NOT supposed to do under the regulations of your permit. The careless driving was for not maintaining control of your vehicle. One could easily argue that a person driving on gravel should be going at a speed that would preclude them from being able to tip over their vehicle even if the wheel was sharply turned AND an experienced driver, with a regular permit, would not have turned the wheel sharply enough to cause a vehicle to tip over.

The very fact that you were in a place you shouldn't be could be deemed careless driving IN ADDITION to the fact that you broke a condition of your permit. Some acts justify multiple charges. In the charging officer's opinion, this could be one of them.

Perhaps she issued multiple charges in order to make it more difficult for you to get away with nothing....leaving some bargaining power. I don't know. But, I wish that you had someone with legal experience to explain to you that your attitude about not thinking you should have received both charges, deer or not, is not appropriate for the situation. Don't look for the justice system to always be what you consider "fair."

If you want to fight it, hire a lawyer. Don't try to fight it on your own. You will regret it.

 

[silkiecrazy1212]

Quote:
I do not have an attitude on this.
I am trying to state my opinions now, so that I can hear if they make sense to others BEFORE I am in front of a judge.
So what I have gathered from all of the replies is that I should plead guilty on both counts... Am I correct?

 

[LoupGarou]

I have no advice for you that others haven't already offered. I do have a question, however? Is it possible for you to plead "nolo contendre" (no contest) in your state? If you can plead guilty to the one violation and then plead nolo to the careless driving charge it might make you feel a little bit better, since you're not admitting any guilt to that charge, but you're not making any claims of innocence or protesting something that might be reasonable to the court but unreasonable to you. It's just a thought.

 

[silkiecrazy1212]

What exactly does pleading no contest mean? I have heard it many times..

 

[LoupGarou]

It's my understanding that pleading no contest simply means that you are acknowledging the charges without admitting guilt. I'm sure that there are people out there with more knowledge about the plea who can advise you better than I can. Good luck in court!