Courts

[GreyGhost]

Where did you get that from? That doesn't sound correct.. no cop, no evidence. They can request an adjournment.. but the defence can and should argue it.

I thought they changed the laws so the cops written statement could be taken as gospel. I could be wrong and I haven't been in court in many years.

 

[bitzz]

I thought they changed the laws so the cops written statement could be taken as gospel.

Nope.
You can't cross examine a statement. The charging officer HAS to be there AND the officer that served the citation.
Traffic tickets are considered "absolute liability"... so the only "gospel" is the charge. It is a cornerstone of western "justice" that you get to go to court to face your accuser. (I put "justice" is quotes because we do not have a "justice" system in Canada, we have a LEGAL system. Totally different animals).

The cop NOT showing up in Metro is mostly a thing of the past, as they have changed the way an officer's court dates are scheduled, court days are now a scheduled "work day" and the officer can be charged with dereliction of duty for not showing up for court.