Nabbed for “Speeding?” Don’t Despair! How Cops Catch You Matters.

Everyone knows the anxious, sinking-stomach-feeling one gets when the rear view mirror shows an aggressively styled black and white car behind them… and how that feeling gets multiplied by a thousand when that car lights up like a carnival with red and blue flashing lights. Whether you’ve actually broken the law or not, in that moment, is immaterial—your blood pressure shoots through the roof. When it comes to speeding, however, it’s important to know that the situation might not be as “black and white” as the police car you’re so intimidated by. The experienced attorneys at My Tickets NYC can help you navigate the frustrating experience of fighting a speeding ticket. Their years of experience with traffic cases and courtrooms can drastically change the outcome of your case.

Did you know that there are several different ways police officers in New York can determine whether or not a driver was speeding? Understanding these methods and their limitations is one of the ways in which our attorneys are able to fight speeding tickets in New York so effectively.  Radar, LIDAR, aircraft, and pacing are the four most common methods.

Many people are familiar with the use of radar—they are also familiar with the sinking feeling one might have when you pass a police car and see the bulky radar gun aimed your way. These devices send out radio waves that bounce off of the vehicle. The device then measures their return frequency, which calculates the speed of the car. Radar guns don’t have to (necessarily) be precisely aimed at a single vehicle. Radar detectors can help warn drivers if radar is being used in the vicinity (but make sure they’re legal in your vehicle!).

LIDAR is a similar method, but instead of using radio waves, LIDAR devices send out a laser (beam of light). The speed at which the light is reflected back is used to determine the speed of the vehicle. In the case of LIDAR, the officer must aim at one particular vehicle.  Radar detectors do not detect LIDAR, and even specialized LIDAR detectors are inefficient and rarely warn drivers until it’s already too late to avoid being pulled over.

Aircraft are used by police officers to determine speeding in another way. The officer in the helicopter or plane will identify a vehicle and then measure the amount of time it takes to make it from one point to another.  He’ll then notify a ground unit in the area to intercept the speeder.

The simplest method, technologically speaking, that officers use to catch speeders is called pacing. Pacing occurs when an officer simply drives close to your vehicle at a constant speed to “pace” it—i.e. to determine your speed by matching it himself.

Attorneys have specialized knowledge of these procedures, including the training officers must undergo to use them effectively, policies on how they must be used, and laws and regulations regarding their use. Your attorney in a traffic ticket case can use this knowledge to negotiate lower fines or penalties, or even to defend you in court and have the ticket dropped altogether. They’ll know what questions to pose, and what limitations and vulnerabilities each of these methods have when it comes to accurately measuring speed—and that can be a huge help when it comes to fighting a ticket.

If you’re facing down a speeding ticket, contact My Tickets NYC. With over two decades of legal experience and countless successful cases to draw from, you’re assured the best potential outcome for your case. There’s no risk! Contact us today with any questions or to receive a completely free case evaluation.