I have court tomorrow for summary offense. Need advice

[ghengis86]

did you happen to see the cop on your way out of court? did he sheepishly walk away? I think the jackass in me would have said something to the cop like, 'maximum fine, eh?' and give him a wink. that'd surely piss him off.

 

[LT for the Truth]

Great Job Man!

 

[KCIndy]

WOOOO - HOOOO!!!!!

Congrats!

Way to Go!!

And most especially, kudos and salutes for standing up for your rights. I'm sure everyone here would like to see your list of questions and the Supreme Court case you cited.

Bravo!

 

[brandon]

Sorry about the delay. I went to Atlantic City to celebrate. I won $80 playing poker.

Anyway, here is how my defence went:

The legal definition for public drunkenness in PA is as follows..."The defendant appeared in a public place manifestly under the influence of alcohol to a degree that he endangered himself or others, or annoyed persons in the vicinity."

So lets dissect this. What the definition is saying is that in order to be found guilty the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt two things.

1. I was manifestly intoxicated in a public place
2. One of the following criteria are met
a) I endangered myself
b) I endangered others
c) I annoyed persons in the vicinity

I decided that the prosecution may be able to prove I was manifestly intoxicated, but they could not prove #2. So I built my defence around this.

This is how my cross examination of the officer went.

Were any complaints recieved about me on the morning of the 14th prior to my arrest?
Officer: no
So you would agree I did not annoy persons in the vicinity
Officer: (pauses for a moment) Yes
(Okay so there is one of the three criteria out of the way)
Was I a danger to myself on the morning of the 14th?
Officer: (stutters, slightly confused) Uhmm yes you could have stumbled in front of a car and got killed or something
Was I a danger to others on the morning of the 14th?
Officer: Uhh yea you could have caused an accident or something
Okay, im finished

At this point, it was clear that the entire case boiled down to just one issue. Was there a risk of me wandering into traffic, and could the officer prove this beyond a reasonable doubt.

I was then allowed to give my testimony. This is what I said.

"On the morning of the 14th at the time of my arrest I was not manifestly intoxicated. In addition, I was not a danger to myself or others, nor did I annoy persons in the vicinity. I was walking from the 711 to the 100 block of north towamencin ave, which is less than two blocks away. I was walking in an alleyway, and contrary to the officers claim, there were no cars in the area other than his patrol car."

Me and the judge then had a little back and forth about a couple things including the refusal to take the breathalyzer. I'll look up the Supreme court case and post it later today.

Luckily, it was a small town court and the judge was familiar with the specific route I was walking the night of the arrest. He knew there is not heavy traffic in the alleyway, and knew the cop was lieing. This is why he ultimately sided with me.

 

[Kraig]

Luckily, it was a small town court and the judge was familiar with the specific route I was walking the night of the arrest. He knew there is not heavy traffic in the alleyway, and knew the cop was lieing. This is why he ultimately sided with me.

Despite your victory I think it's still pretty sad that a judge can be convinced that a cop is lying in court and there are no repercussions for the cop, especially considering the cops word is usually considered more reliable in most situations.

Sounds like if the cop had been a better liar or if you didn't get a keen judge willing to question a cop you would have been fucked.

Even simply being in a more crowded part of town could have caused your defense to fall apart, even if you were still safely walking down the sidewalk.

 

[brandon]

Despite your victory I think it's still pretty sad that a judge can be convinced that a cop is lying in court and there are no repercussions for the cop, especially considering the cops word is usually considered more reliable in most situations.

Agreed. Especially considering that before the cop took the stand he put his hand on the bible and was sore in under oath.

And what about the 12 hours I had to spend in a holding cell after the arrest? Shouldn't the cop face charges for abduction/ false imprisonment?

Sounds like if the cop had been a better liar or if you didn't get a keen judge willing to question a cop you would have been fucked.

Even simply being in a more crowded part of town could have caused your defense to fall apart, even if you were still safely walking down the sidewalk.

Yea, if they could have proven there was heavy traffic in the area then perhaps they could have proven I endangered myself/other. If this were the case though I would have focused more on making the cop prove I was manifestly intoxicated, which would be hard for him to do without having a breathalyzer test as evidence.

I certainly did get lucky by having a fair judge though.

 

[JoshLowry]

Cops should have to video record their entire shifts via a hat cam.

 

[LibertyEagle]

Good job for the Judge too. It's good to know there are still some good ones out there.

 

[constituent]

Despite your victory I think it's still pretty sad that a judge can be convinced that a cop is lying in court and there are no repercussions for the cop, especially considering the cops word is usually considered more reliable in most situations.

well, we don't know that there won't be, but in the meanwhile it couldn't hurt to look into the process of filing a criminal complaint against the officer, or filing at the police station for officer misconduct... something to consider.

 

[constituent]

Good job for the Judge too. It's good to know there are still some good ones out there.

yea, they usually gotta answer to the voter.

 

[constituent]

And what about the 12 hours I had to spend in a holding cell after the arrest? Shouldn't the cop face charges for abduction/ false imprisonment?

i have some friends outside of dewitt county who were suing for "depravation of rights" for something not dissimilar. i haven't seen 'em in awhile, but the next time i go home i'll try and track them down for an update.

 

[JoshLowry]

Three cheers for Brandon and the judge!

 

[ItsTime]

Cops are fucking scum bags and will do anything to protect their own asses. They will lie on the stand, falsify police reports blame the victims, anything to make their job easier.

Im glad you got off because in my experience most judges will lie, cheat and screw you out of justice. Including ruling on cases where they worked as defense attorney in the past of the firm that is representing the dependent. Only 40 cases of that happening in ONE county in Vermont LAST year alone.

 

[satchelmcqueen]

way to go man

 

[Rael]

Congratulations! Did you get a look at the cops face when the judge found you not guilty?

 

[brandon]

As a general rule, the prosecution goes first in all things, you can do your opening statement after the prosecution does or wait until the prosecution has called their witnesses and announce that 'the prosecution rests'. Your closing statement will be last. This will almost certainly not be a jury trial, so keep the showboating down and don't worry about procedure too much. Mainly, follow the judge's lead, when he or she opens the bench's mouth close yours, say your honor every time you address the court, and never ever argue. If a witness pisses you off, get over it right now and start thinking of ways to trip that witness up. Lies beget holes in testimony.

The biggest trap you could fall into is to overstate your case. Judges don't have time for that. Make your case as simply, quickly and economically as you can and put into your closing statement exactly why conviction isn't an option, and sit down. Don't go overboard with citations and quoting amendments or other parts of the Constitution, but if you come up with an obscure citation ask the judge if he or she would like you to quote it.

Stay calm, have good luck. And when you're through, please let us know how it went, and also tell us...

I'm just rereading this old thread, and wanted to say this is really good advice. Anyone in a similar situation would do well to consider acptulsa's words.