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I looked forward to my day in court. On my way over to the courthouse (my appointment was on the 7th floor), I thought about how I might confront and cross-examine the government's witness against me (i.e. the parking control officer). Would I say "Describe the vehicle you ticketed. Any distinguishing feature at all?", knowing that the officer had ticketed a silver Honda? Would the officer have altered the ticket to reflect a Ford Taurus?
Such thoughts evanesced as I entered the courtroom. Though it was done on a budget, they really tried to make the room imposing. Wood veneer on the pews, marble facing behind the bench. While waiting for the 10:30 session to begin, I overheard the traffic cop (a motorcycle cop, given his boots and jodphurs) explain to a woman the criminal justice system likely to be imposed on a first time DWI offender. Session began after a brief roll call, where most of us actually present in the room answered back "Here!" to the clerk as she read off our names.
The first people to get justice were those for whom warrants had been issued and had been picked up doing things like running red lights and stop signs and had some criminal history and were not OR'd. Most of them plead no contest on the basis of stupidity. Some were going to spend a week or two in jail because they could not afford to pay a fine. Three defendants required the services of a translator.
The cops who came to testify were uniformly OK with whatever the recommendation the judge had, and in some cases had already worked out arrangements with the defendant, e.g. the defendant had already provided proof that the issue (usually an expired license or registration) had been addressed.
Eventually, a whole group of five us were called to the stand. The judge explained that the issuing officer was a no show and that the charges against all of us were being dismissed. So an hour was spent in court, and another to show up to try and get the case dismissed administratively. Were it not for the fear of retribution, I would write a letter to the parking enforcement officer's boss explaining how much time and productivity was lost—both mine and the court's. The value of my time lost was certainly greater than the amount on the original ticket.
Posted by Underblog at September 6, 2006 6:48 AM
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you're just upset that you didn't get to tell a matlock-esque story for the judge.
Posted by: gb at September 7, 2006 9:46 PM