Salos Dafee
Well-known member
Once upon a time, I parked (a car) under a sign saying "No Parking During Snow Emergency". Streets were free of snow.
I returned to find a few inches of snow, far from "emergency" conditions in my opinion, and a ticket for "parking where
prohibited during Snow Emergency".
I elected to defend myself. Perhaps the cop won't show; he did. Perhaps the cop will leave out the date or time or some
other vital component necessary to convict; he didn't.
I asked, "How did you know that a snow emergency had been declared for (name of street) on that date?"
The cop replied, "My sergeant told me."
The magistrate butted in to ask the cop, "Is your sergeant present in the courtroom?" and the cop replied in the negative,
so the magistrate told the cop to leave the stand, which he did. This was my cue to stay quiet, which I did. The magistrate
explained that testimony quoting an absent person is "hearsay" and carries no weight in a courtroom, so in essence the
cop had no way to show that a Snow Emergency existed, so the case was dismissed for lack of evidence of a violation.
The magistrate tore a strip off me for disobeying the sign during a serious storm, but it didn't hurt a bit!
(This was a while ago; the magistrate was Dnieper, a notorious "Hangin' Judge" if ever there was one. I smiled at him.)
In case you get the same sort of ticket, consider defending it with the above in mind. Suppose the Sergeant had been present;
I would have asked the Sergeant the same question, because Sergeants do not officially declare a Snow Emergency. Unless
someone took the witness stand and said, "I am the Lord of Snow Emergencies, and I declared one for that date and place.",
I reckon the last witness questioned would necessarily resort to hearsay, and there is my dismissal.
To know Dnieper, read this: My curious adventures in Dnieperland
Now go do something more worthwhile than reading my nonsense!
Salos Dafee
I returned to find a few inches of snow, far from "emergency" conditions in my opinion, and a ticket for "parking where
prohibited during Snow Emergency".
I elected to defend myself. Perhaps the cop won't show; he did. Perhaps the cop will leave out the date or time or some
other vital component necessary to convict; he didn't.
I asked, "How did you know that a snow emergency had been declared for (name of street) on that date?"
The cop replied, "My sergeant told me."
The magistrate butted in to ask the cop, "Is your sergeant present in the courtroom?" and the cop replied in the negative,
so the magistrate told the cop to leave the stand, which he did. This was my cue to stay quiet, which I did. The magistrate
explained that testimony quoting an absent person is "hearsay" and carries no weight in a courtroom, so in essence the
cop had no way to show that a Snow Emergency existed, so the case was dismissed for lack of evidence of a violation.
The magistrate tore a strip off me for disobeying the sign during a serious storm, but it didn't hurt a bit!
(This was a while ago; the magistrate was Dnieper, a notorious "Hangin' Judge" if ever there was one. I smiled at him.)
In case you get the same sort of ticket, consider defending it with the above in mind. Suppose the Sergeant had been present;
I would have asked the Sergeant the same question, because Sergeants do not officially declare a Snow Emergency. Unless
someone took the witness stand and said, "I am the Lord of Snow Emergencies, and I declared one for that date and place.",
I reckon the last witness questioned would necessarily resort to hearsay, and there is my dismissal.
To know Dnieper, read this: My curious adventures in Dnieperland
Now go do something more worthwhile than reading my nonsense!
Salos Dafee