Quote Quoting mission27now
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My question involves a traffic ticket from the state of: New York

... The road I was driving on was decently lit, but it was night time and my sweater was the same color as my seat belt (grey). I promise that I absolutely, 100% was wearing my seat belt correctly, which is why I am so upset about this...

I am going to plead not guilty because I am not going to willingly pay for a violation that I did not commit, but I was hoping for some advice on arguments that I can use at the hearing. I tried taking pictures of the intersection and also of myself wearing a seat belt with my grey sweater on at night, but it is hard to see anything because it is so dark outside. I will also point out that the car that I was driving has an alarm that does not stop unless the passengers in the front seats put on their seat belts.
Well you convinced me that there is reasonable doubt. I think you will do fine at trial if you stick to the facts.

Quote Quoting mission27now
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Another question I have is if I should file a complaint against this police officer now or after the hearing. If I file a complaint now, there might be an investigation or inquiry into his conduct prior to my hearing, but I am also worried that it could incentivize him to show up at the hearing and say that he definitely saw me without a seat belt on (and/or otherwise lie on the stand).

I do not know if the officer was genuinely mistaken or if he was trying to fill a quota (this happened at around 10 PM on the last day of the month) but either way, I do feel that this law is unfair if police officers are allowed to ticket people even when they are using their seat belts correctly.
Your complaint, should you choose to file one, would have no bearing on the case, so you should not even mention it at trial. You said yourself that the officer could have been genuinely mistaken. Sure it could incentivize him to attend, if he is confident he observed what he thinks he did. You do not know everything that transpired from the officer's perspective; maybe he observed more than you are aware of, or maybe he made an honest mistake. I would not file a complaint until after court, but that is just me. I would want to think about things and take advantage of seeing him again in court. Don't go to the quota thing, please. Cops are not out there trying to get people convicted people of not wearing a seatbelt when they were. That's ridiculous. Think about it.

You mentioned you are upset. Don't be. It's just a seatbelt ticket, and you were wearing one, so no need to lose any sleep. You'll be fine.

Regards,
Jim