Did you ever wonder what was it about your lane change that made it unsafe? What was it that the law enforcement (LE) officer saw that made them ticket you for an unsafe lane change? The thing about most tickets such as these is that they are subjective. It is the opinion of the LE officer that your lane change was unsafe and if you wish to fight the ticket you will have to convince the judge that you made a safe lane change or there were mitigating circumstances for your maneuver you believe you made to prevent harm, or that the opinion of the LE officer was somehow flawed.

Challenge the LE Officer’s Opinion

As soon as possible after receiving an unsafe lane change ticket, you should journalize everything that happened. The use of bullets is the most effective method to get your mind working to capture the events as they happened. This is not the time to write down everything perfectly, just write it down and let your mind explore the incidents as they happened.

Draw a Diagram to Illustrate the “Unsafe Lane Change”

After you have journalized as much as you can remember, start drawing some diagrams about how your car was positioned on the highway compared to where the car you were passing and where the LE officer’s car was. If you can show that you had a much better view of the situation than the LE officer, you may be able to convince the judge their vision of the incident was not as good as yours. Perhaps the LE officer was in a vehicle ahead of you on the highway and he would have had to look in the rearview mirror to get a look at your actions. You could argue that their view was hampered because they had to look back and concentrate on the road ahead simultaneously making their assessment of an unsafe lane change flawed.

Get Statements

Take statements from everyone that was in your car or witnessed the incident, even the little ones may have something to say that could help your defense. Perhaps the other car was crowding you or there was an animal in the road. This may help justify your unsafe lane change to save the life of an animal.

Take Pictures

Get pictures of the area right after the ticket, or go back to the scene where you were ticketed and get pictures that might help you justify your actions. If you drive this road to and from work every day and a new no passing sign was just installed, take a picture of the sign and explain to the judge it was just installed and you did not see it until after the ticket, and if it had been two days earlier the maneuver would have been legal. If that is relevant.

Traffic Court

Those trials you see on TV bear no resemblance to real traffic courts, if you think you are going to calmly explain to the judge what happened, chances are that is not going to happen. Everything in traffic court moves too fast. So, rehearse what you are going to say and limit it to a few minutes.

Contact Bigger & Harman, APC

Unsafe passing or justified reaction? If you thought you would be hit by a driver you thought was drunk, hastily passing that vehicle and speeding away could have been in your opinion the only proper way to diffuse the situation.

Not every ticket is worth fighting, but when it could lead to a suspension or will substantially increase your insurance rates, it might be necessary. The same is true for hiring a traffic ticket lawyer to represent you in traffic court. It’s not always necessary, but when it is, you want the best.

In California, one traffic ticket defender team, Bigger & Harman consistently receive consistently great reviews by their peers and customers. Check the Yelp reviews and see what your friends and neighbors are saying about Mark and Paul.

Such as this one: “Got a speeding ticket on a road trip, and found these guys online, read the reviews and called them. They were very clear and friendly in their communication and I felt good to take a chance on fighting the ticket. After the process was over, they got my ticket dismissed. “- Geoffrey M., Los Angeles.

When you need assistance with an unsafe lane change ticket in Bakersfield, LA, SLO, or another SoCal county, call an expert team of professionals. Call the law office of Bigger & Harman, 661-349-9300, or email: attorney@markbigger.com. The initial consultation is free and there is never an obligation to continue.