My question involves a traffic ticket from the state of: Tennessee
Hi, first let me say thank you for any advice. I was recently in an accident and written a $57 ticket. The ticket price means nothing, and i will spend much more than that to prove I am innocent.
Quick version, I was pulling a tandem axle trailer with my pickup truck in traffic and began to change lanes. Driver behind me catches up and tries to pass me using half my lane, half fast lane at appox 20 mph. We both stop when traffic stops, she creeps up next to my trailer. Traffic starts moving, as I start moving forward, she continues to try to force her way by me. I have to stop truck to prevent collision. With a break in traffic in the fast lane, she tries to drive around me, and clips the left front fender of my trailer with the back 8" of her rear door. There's zero damage to the front or side of my fender, and paint scrapings inside the rearward facing portion of the fender well. Damage on her car, starts in the front and clearly travels backwards, ( as if she ran into a pole). To me it clearly shows she was traveling forward and I was stationary. There's no damage to the front part of her rear door, front door, front fender or front bumper, just the scratch's appox 10" ahead of the rear tire. She flags down a HWY patrol officer and is screaming about it, I hear the officer ask is she is Memphis PD, and she says no her family is. Memphis PD arrives and ignores me and listens to her. He finally comes up to me and just asks for my DL and insurance. 2nd PD arrives about 15 mins later, ( he ignores me as well and goes straight to her) Then finally asks me what happens, and proceeds to tell me what im saying makes no sense. The officers go back to their cars and I ask to take a few more pictures of her car. He says ok, I walk up to her car and she starts screaming at me, without saying a word I turn around and walk back toward the police car, with her in trail screaming "He done got enough pictures of me car! He don't need no more pictures." The officer asks if I had taken pictures, I tell him " Yes sir, I took a couple close up pictures of the damage, and a picture from the right rear. I need to get a few pictures of the front of her car, as well as the right front door and fender." He asks me why? I tell him because shes claiming I cut her off and hit her vehicle. If I did what shes saying there would be damage to the front of her car, or the side." He tells me NO, you only need to take pictures of the damaged area. In the end, the officers give me a ticket for improper lane change. When I then ask why, ( not discussed but considering the vehicles were moved about 1/2 mile down the road, and now parked on the side of the freeway, her saying that I hit her, me saying she hit me, and the damage appears to show she hit me, why am i being given a ticket?is what im thinking.) They tell me that my story makes no sense, and hes been doing this along time. I politely say I understand that, and ask "Since this is going to court now, can I ask that you make a notation either in the police report, or on the ticket that I had requested to take photographs of the front and side of the car and was denied?" He told me, you don't get to make requests here on the side of the road. I told him, I just wanted it documented for insurance reasons, and was informed " Its all documented on the dash cam." I said thank you and pulled away with my citation. Still kind of confused about why I would get rail roaded by the police, and now having to PROVE that she struck me, I went to run the license plate trying to find the make and model of the car. Luckily I had photographed her license plate originally in the event she ran. When I zoomed in, the center of the plate has a LARGE Memphis police assoication sticker covering it, ( against TN law.) Looking back I found the video of the trooper asking her about her family, and now I believe that the 2nd officer arriving either was a relative, or acquaintance of the woman. I fully plan to appear in court to hopefully prove my innocence, followed by getting everything documented for the insurance company. First I am curious what I need to do in order to get a copy of dash cameras of both officers? I truly felt wronged by them, and as a very strong supported of law enforcement this was discouraging. 2nd, Any advice on what I might need to do to prove I am not at fault? I still haven't been able to get a copy of the police report, but considering I received a citation and she didn't, im going to assume it says I cut her off and hit her. ( physically impossible from the damage.) 3rd, I believe I can justify through pictures, that I could not do what she said. I will attach a few pictures below. Any thoughts?
Basic Drawing of accident.
damage to car
direction of marks ( front of car right side of picture)
Paint peeled up inside front of trailer fender well. ( between fender and front of tire from being struck from behind.)
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