I was cited for Careless driving, and would like to know the best way to fight it.
What happened:
I was driving South bound down Mccaran Blvd, which has a speed limit of 50 Mph. I was driving in the left lane passing some slower people in the right lane. I was doing not more than 55 on this stretch of road. It was clear, dry with really nobody in front of me in my lane. I noticed the car behind me pull over into the right lane, I thought they may have been getting ready to exit and turn off a possible side road that may have been coming up. I looked back again to see a white BMW SUV right on my bumper, maybe a couple feet behind, so I tried to accelerate to but a little distance between him and me, I glance back again and he is still there. There are cars to the right of me so I can't move over. So I tapped the brake, just enough to light my brake lights as a warning that they are following to close to me. He swerves around me forcing the person I had just passed to swerve off the road onto the shoulder. And then this BMW swerved backed into my lane and hits the brakes, sticks is finger out the sunroof, rolls a few feet and hits the brakes again, I return the finger (Mistake on my part), and he hits the brakes 2 more times then stops. In the left lane of a blvd where the speed limit is 50 mph in the middle of the day, and also a winding road no less/ I was thinking he was getting out of his car, and then I feel my car jerk as I get hit from Behind which launches me into his vehicle. He jumps out of his car and starts yelling at mw saying that slower trafic needs to move over to the right, I tell hime I was doing 55 and passing those cars on the right, and he tells me I wasn't even doing 50. We get the cars off the road and to the shoulder. My car is totalled and has the quarter panel pressed into the rear tire. Officer shows up, talks to everybody, takes his statements and has us drive to the next parking lot to get off the street. The officer gives me a ticket for careless driving, I asked him why, and he told me it was because I tapped the brake. I never thought tapping the brake was being careless, I used it as a warning just as I would use the turn signal to signal I am turning. Am I wrong, Isn't tappng the brake also a means of showing that you plan on slowing down, I couldn't just slow down to move over, I gave warning first and because he is so close to me he thought I was stopping and swerved around me. I am fighting this ticket, I just haven't got the money for an attorney. and a puplic defender is my only option, which I am running out of time for since I haven't been able to get back up to the court to pick up the paper work needed. I haven't had anything but a speeding ticket in the last 10 years, my only ticket was for doing 30 in a 25 which I couldn't fight because it was cheaper just to pay the ticket.

