Is it Too Late to Request Traffic School at Trial De Novo

[jyeh74]

My question involves traffic court in the State of: CA (OC)

I am trying to do written declaration for 21655.8 (a)
If I lose written declaration and then request trial de novo, is this completely new? Will the judge or officer know that I did a written declaration or does it seem like an entirely new trial?

[That Guy]

My question involves traffic court in the State of: CA (OC)

I am trying to do written declaration for 21655.8 (a)
If I lose written declaration and then request trial de novo, is this completely new? Will the judge or officer know that I did a written declaration or does it seem like an entirely new trial?

It is a new trial, and only the evidence and/or testimony presented during the TDN can be evaluated by the judge.

Your trial by declaration statement is filed in the same folder that is with the judge at the time your case is being heard, so yes, s/he can read it if s/he chooses to. As for the officer knowing what you wrote, I am not so sure s/he cares... But if you're presenting the same set of arguments, along with the same information/testimony/evidence, then I'm am not sure why you'd care who reads it!

To answer your other question about traffic school, no, it is not too late to request traffic school at a Trial De Novo, but... the judge is not under any obligation to grant your request. Your only guaranteed shot at traffic school is if you ask for it at the arraignment (your first appearance in front of the judge during which you enter your plea.

[HonkingAntelope]

Depends on the court and judge. Some judges deny traffic school by default, while others offer it to virtually all defendants who haven't attended traffic school in the last 18 months. FWIW, with one of my tickets I lost both TBD and TDN, and the commissioner still let me attend traffic school (even shaved off the $65 fee). Obviously, you mileage may vary and the best way to know your chances is to watch a court session or two at the court your case is assigned to in advance of your trial.

[quirkyquark]

Will the judge or officer know that I did a written declaration or does it seem like an entirely new trial?

The OFFICER will surely know since he responded to your TBD in the first place! The judge will also almost surely have something in front of him indicating this is a "Trial de Novo" (i.e. a TBD has already been done). Both you and the officer can get copies of each others declarations from the court clerk. If you actually have a valid defense to the HOV violation that you're hoping to use in a trial de novo, and are afraid the officer would look at your declaration and know your strategy, you can simply say in the TBD something to the effect of: "I respectfully plead not guilty to the violation." Of course, that would only work if the officer doesn't submit his response.