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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
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    2

    Default City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    I was coming from work and noticed a Pittsburg City Cop ahead of me getting on the freeway from the city of Martinez on ramp, he stayed on the right lanes because his exit would be coming next in order to exit freeway 680 into Hiway 4 to go back to the City of Pittsburg Ca. which it is located approx 5 to 10 miles away. He was obviously returning from Martinez California where the Contra Costa County jail and County court resides.

    Since I was merging into the left side of the freeway I punched the gas and my car got up pretty fast to 85mph. I passed him while his lanes were slowing down due to exiting traffic, I looked back in the mirror and noticed that he had pulled out of the right lanes and decided to follow me and turn on his lights. Gave me a ticket after I exited the freeway. The ticket indicates that I have to appear in the city of Pittsburg courthouse. Is he within his rights to issue a ticket that far away from his city, and why is the city of Pittsburg collecting on an infraction that happened in a state freeway.

    Thanks.

  2. #2

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    If the officer measured your allegedly excessive speed in Pittsburg, and the officer is affiliated with the Pittsburg Police Dept., then the officer has authority to stop you essentially anywhere in the area (it doesn't have to be within his/her city limits).

    From your explanation, it appears that the Pittsburg officer recorded your speed in the city of Martinez. Typically, it is my understanding that the Pittsburg officer does not have jurisdiction to record speed outside of his home city. Unless Martinez and Pittsburg have some sort of inter-jurisdictional program or allowance, the officer cannot measure your speed 5-10 miles away from the city boundary of Pittsburg, and then use that as evidence for conviction.

    However, any city/municipal officer can cite you on the freeway/interstate, so long as it is within the officer's city or jurisdictional limits. The officer's court will collect.

    Keep in mind that I am nowhere near the location you describe, nor do I have any firsthand knowledge of the locale. I am somewhat knowledgable in traffic matters/regulations of Michigan, not California. If I were you, I would contact both the Martinez and Pittsburg police agencies and inquire if they have some sort of sharing of jurisdiction. Five to ten miles, in my opinion, seems quite distant for these sort of provisions to apply. If they claim that they do not have jurisdiction sharing, try to receive some sort of written document to show the court. Finally, be sure that it was a city officer, and not a state officer or county sheriff, that cited you. These, and some other units, can cite you in the manner you describe.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    California
    Posts
    20,594

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    Both locations are within Contra Costa County. The Pittsburgh officer CAN stop you and he CAN issue you a citation into the county seat or to the local traffic court as appropriate. Contra Costa County has (or, they used) an interagency agreement that would permit them to stop offenders anywhere in the county and cite into their home court.

    In CA peace officer status extends statewide. The only question is one of disposition. As a point of clarification, to my knowledge there is no county in CA where such an agreement is NOT in place among the law enforcement agencies within the county granting primary jurisdiction to each agency. If an officer from another county were to observe the violation, he could detain and even arrest the offender in his presence, but he would have to turn the person over to local officers for citation or processing.

    - Carl

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
    Location
    Seattle
    Posts
    3,577

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    You might want to check the local court rules in your area. I don't know about CA, but in WA every officer is sworn to uphold the laws of the State of Washington. Thus, an officer from Bellevue can, indeed, issue a ticket in Olympia (over 50 miles away), for a violation of State law.

    The problem is that the ticket must be filed with the proper court. Our court rules state:
    Quote Quoting IRLJ 2.3
    [A]n infraction case shall be brought in the district court district or the municipality where the infraction occurred. If a notice of infraction is filed in a court which is not the proper venue, the notice shall be dismissed without prejudice on motion of either party.
    If CA has a similar local rule, the officer would have had to file your ticket with the Martinez Municipal Court, rather than the Pittsburg Municipal Court -- unless, as Carl stated, it was properly filed with the Contra Costa County Court, assuming Pittsburg is, indeed, the county seat. IMHO it's worth checking out.

    Good luck,
    Barry

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    California
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    20,594

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    Quote Quoting blewis
    If CA has a similar local rule, the officer would have had to file your ticket with the Martinez Municipal Court, rather than the Pittsburg Municipal Court -- unless, as Carl stated, it was properly filed with the Contra Costa County Court, assuming Pittsburg is, indeed, the county seat. IMHO it's worth checking out.
    It used to be that they had an agreement permitting officers to cite into their local court from anywhere within the county. I suspect that the agreement is still in effect ... these exist in every CA county I am aware of where there are multiple courts that hear traffic offenses.

    - Carl

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Posts
    2

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    Thanks for the responses, it makes sense otherwise he would be waisting his time. It was a Pittsburg city police officer, not a Sheriff etc. And in fact he was 5 miles away from his city. I guess I will have to appear in court and hope he doesn't show up. I will plead not guilty and waste their time as well as mine.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    California
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    20,594

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    Quote Quoting deportes
    Thanks for the responses, it makes sense otherwise he would be waisting his time. It was a Pittsburg city police officer, not a Sheriff etc. And in fact he was 5 miles away from his city. I guess I will have to appear in court and hope he doesn't show up. I will plead not guilty and waste their time as well as mine.
    You're not going to waste his time - he gets paid to be there. And you admit you were speeding.

    I once cited a guy for driving 100+ ... he blew right past me while I was in a marked unit in full uniform! I was about 45 miles away from my home city, but still within San Diego County. When he finally yielded (he kept trying to wave me past him as we were both doing 90+ on I-50 when it was still 55 MPH), the first words out of his mouth were, "You don't have jurisdiction here - you're not the Highway Patrol." I told him if that were true he would win in court, "Press hard, three copies."

    He also got torqued because he lived in the east side of the county and he was going to have to go the north end of the county for court. I told him he could ask the court to change the location of the trial to his local court, and said that since I worked Graves, I'd get time and a half from my front door to court and back. I never did get a subpoena for that one. I checked later and he plead, paying full bore .. no traffic school as he was ineligible, I believe.

    - Carl

  8. #8

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    This reminds me of Coburg, Oregon, who recieved national attention do it's monumental revenue resulting from speeding tickets. The small town annexed a portion of farmland next to the freeway for the sole purpose of making a small strip of I-5 become part of it's jurisdiction. Speeders are pulled over by the town's motorcycle cop and issued a citation. I believe the town generates over $700,000 per year in speeding tickets alone.

    Point is, sometimes the city cops do have jurisdiction on the interstate.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    California
    Posts
    20,594

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    I wish it worked that way for us! We have a major freeway passing through town and we could run radar on it all day! Unfortunately, we don't get the same amount per citation that it appears they do in OR. Oh well.

    - Carl

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Posts
    19

    Default Re: City Cop Issuing Freeway Ticket

    As pointed out to me once in a casual conversation at 7/11 with a small town cop here in Virginia. He pointed to the state seal on the door of his town issued cruiser and said anywhere anytime, we are a... commonwealth.

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