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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    1

    Default Misuse of Fare / Fare Evasion Trolley Citation

    My question involves criminal law for the state of: California. San Diego.

    I received a citation for Misuse of Fare/Fare Evasion. I was using a Youth pass instead of an adult pass. The inspector asked me how old I was, I got scared and I told him 18 instead of 21. I am a college student and I have no money to pay for my pass, so my parents are the one who get my transportation passes. I called the store who sells them and asked what type of pass a student should get, and they said to buy a Youth pass. After this situation happened, we went to the store who sells the passes, and they said that the employee who told us to get a youth pass was supposed to ask how old I was, since the term "student" can be applied to adults in college.

    Also, I do not know if this would be relevant, but the transportation cop asked me a question that I feel was irrelevant to the situation and made me feel uncomfortable. He switched to Spanish and asked me if I was single or married. I am sure that this information is not needed for a ticket. Then he asked me again the same question. He made me feel very uncomfortable.


    - Would it even be worth it to go to court and try to get the ticket fee lowered, given that we were misinformed and the pass had money on it? Or is there no chance, and I should just pay the fine?
    - Would the information about the cop asking me that question be relevant to present to the judge? He did make me feel very uncomfortable, and I feel they should not be asking such questions while on the job.
    - Also, does anyone know what to expect at the court date? Should I plead guilty or not guilty. This is my first ticket ever and I'm very anxious about all of this.

    Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


    Also I found this on the website of the company who runs the trolley: http://www.sdmts.com/MTS/documents/OrdinanceNo.2.pdf
    It says:
    Section 2.6: Penalties
    Any violation of Section 2.3 of this Ordinance shall be an infraction punishable by a fine not
    exceeding seventy-five dollars ($75), except that such a violation by a person, after the second
    conviction under the Ordinance, shall be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding five
    hundred dollars ($500) or by imprisonment not exceeding six months, or by both such fine and
    imprisonment. For purposes of this section, a bail forfeiture shall be deemed to be a conviction of the
    offense charged.
    Does this mean the ticket will be less than $75?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    Behind a Desk
    Posts
    98,846

    Default Re: Misuse of Fare / Fare Evasion Trolley Citation

    The odds that you'll be believed that you thought you could use the youth pass were made very small by virtue of the fact that you lied about your age. A person making a mistake would see no need to lie.

    You can, of course, attempt to plea bargain the charge and see if you can get any sort of reduction. If you want a deal, work out the deal before you enter a guilty plea.

    The officer's question has absolutely nothing to do with whether or not you committed the offense charged.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Tacoma, WA
    Posts
    1,534

    Default Re: Misuse of Fare / Fare Evasion Trolley Citation

    Almost assuredly, the officer's questions about your marital status were not for personal reasons. Regardless of how "uncomfortable" it made you, that was a legitimate investigatory question under the circumstances. You presented a student pass (obviously intended for juvenile students - as is clearly written right on the pass!) and lied about your age, claiming to be 18. It is readily apparent that the officer believed that you were over the age to legitimately use the pass. Very few people get married while still eligible for a youth pass. So, your marital status is probative to allaying or confirming his suspicions regarding your age.

    Regardless of your claim of what some unidentifiable employee told you over the phone, the restrictions regarding who can legitimately use a youth pass is clearly printed right on the pass. So, your claim of misunderstanding is going to get you nowhere.

    Years ago, during the Julius Cesar administration, I worked for several years as a "trolley cop" in SD. Believe me, your claim is not original nor even uncommon. Both the trolley cops and the court judges have heard the same lame story uncountable times.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    OH10
    Posts
    17,019

    Default Re: Misuse of Fare / Fare Evasion Trolley Citation

    Sorry, this is one time you are not going to game the system.

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