The DC Speeding Ticket Scam
Why should anyone bother to go into the District these days? Their lovely administration has decided now that the Constitution is optional, and they can make tons of money, hand over fist, without even involving the police?
A few days ago, the hubby got a letter addressed to him, saying that our truck was speeding down a road in DC, complete with pictures of the truck, demanding 200.00. TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS! And their evidence for this? Tick marks on the road that say that they measured the time it took the truck to pass... not 100 feet... not 200 feet... but 20 feet.
So why do I say this is unconstitutional? First, your accuser is not a person, but a device. This device is not being run by a person who then can be cross examined as to his or her training in interpreting this information, etc. As this is the ONLY evidence provided, without an officer to say "I observed the driver doing this or that" how can you tell who is driving?
The "who is driving" issue is likely the most interesting part of this. One of the check boxes you can use in responding to the ticket is the "I wasn't driving the car" box. In this case, they want you to sign a notarized statement that you were not the driver, and turning in the person who WAS driving. You must swear this under penalty of purgery. So, if you aren't in the car, or observing the car being driven, how can you swear who was driving the car at that place at that time?
In this age of alien abductions, perhaps it's the aliens who are speeding to bring media attention to their plight as unpaid comedy objects?