hey all....

first, let me thank you all for any help. i'd like to explain my situation before asking my questions.

i was traveling down one of the "main streets" in my neighborhood 3/28 at around 7:30pm. i saw a vehicle approaching a stop sign on one of the side roads. the driver proceeded to coast through the stop sign and cut me off, to the point that i had to apply my brakes rather hard. i was doing about 30-35 mph (it is a 25 mph zone). i came up on his tail but maintained a car length or so distance between us. we were doing about 15. the driver then began tapping his brakes, which did not make me back off since i was already far enough away from him to avoid any collision. after being behind him for a maximum of 10 seconds he pulled over to the side of the road and rolled his window down...holding up a badge. some words were exchanged (no expletives or yelling) and he assured me that he would be going to the court house to issue a complaint. i gave him my name and got his name and badge number, as well as the town he is an officer for (it was NOT the same town as my neighborhood).

a week later i got a ticket for tailgating with this gentleman as the complaining witness. it was dated 4/2 (five days after the incident).

so, my questions are as follows:

1. do i still have the option to put in complaints against him? i believe that his actions would fall under several ticketable offenses. if i do put in these complaints, will they yield tickets for him as they did in my case?

2. i went to court today and am bringing this case to trial, rather than accepting a plea bargain because in my eyes, i did not tailgate the other vehicle. i maintained a safe following distance throughout the ordeal and merely responded to the actions of the other driver. is there a significant reason that i should pay for a lawyer? my hopes were to avoid paying a huge sum out because this entire situation is absolutely ludicrous. however, if getting a lawyer will enable me to get this case dismissed more easily than my own persistence will...i'll put the money out.

again, i thank you for any help.


-andrew

What should the officer be cited for?

As for getting a lawyer, I think the best way to figure that one out is to go down to the court on a trial day and watch how business is done. Once you watch them conduct trials and hearings, you should be in a better place to gauge whether or not you'll be able to represent yourself.

It's possible to win as a pro se defendant, but it can be very hard. Most pro se defendants don't understand the rules, and they don't know how to cross-examine, testify, or introduce evidence. For them, a trial is just a slow way to plead guilty.

i would be filing complaints for NJ 39: 4-97 (careless driving) for when he cut me off and was hitting his brakes and also NJ 39: 4-144 (failure to observe a stop sign) for rolling through the stop sign. i could go further and file for failure to use a turn signal and moving at a slow speed as to block traffic.

regardless, the first two are my main concern. i was actually told by an attorney that filing the complaints were in my best interest...which i find hard to believe. i suppose he feels like i have enough money to fight off any retaliatory actions that may come.

According to my calculations, you were too close.

You need to be at least two seconds back from the car ahead (3 seconds at 45 mph or higher) to be a safe distance behind. The kinesiology lab I used to work at (before government cut their budget to nothing) confirmed these values.

At 15 mph, you need to be at least 44 feet behind the vehicle ahead to be two seconds behind. That is almost three car lengths (or two parking spaces), using the sizes of current cars.

And note that this is still insufficient stopping distance if the car ahead is suddenly in a head-on collision. It assumes that the car makes an emergency stop by using the brakes.

Tailgating is a violation of New Jersey statute NJSA 39:4-89. If convicted, there will be 5 points assessed. The short answer is yes, if you have been charged with tailgating in New Jersey, you should seriously consider hiring a NJ traffic violation lawyer who appears regularly in the court where your case will be heard. In many instances, it may be a "your word against mine" situation. A good lawyer can illicit inconsistencies during cross examination, and reasonable doubt may creep in. Even if they got you, and you have no defense, a moving violation lawyer will typically be be able to negotiate a no point moving violation. Tailgating is a fairly serious offense, 5 points. You should be careful with this one, especially if you have a CDL.

Solicitations are not permitted on these forums. Your link has been removed.

& please do not reply to old threads.