| Doom4life |
Ok.... last September 16th... I got into my first motor vehicle accident. It was my fault, and I got two tickets.... One for Failure to Yield on a Left Turn... and the other.. Failure to Display a "Novice" sign.
Now, the cop that came to the scene, seemed nice at first.. he was very polite... and all.. and I had a lot of respect for him.
He called me over to his squad car, and as he was walking back, he said... where is your "N"? I right away looked at the spot where I last put it (Outside the car, to the right of the left taillight)... which it was not there... I told him that it must have fallen off somewhere on the trip (45 minute drive and it was pretty windy and rainy)
He than precisely said, well I will have to write you up for that one. Not wanting to act like a jackass... I just walked over to the car quietly.. and Itold him, that I always had it there... He than turned to me.. sitting in his seat.. and pointed behind him at a metal plate sepearting the back and front seats of the car.... There was a stack of "N" signs, I'd say about four.... So he told me.. "See these?" I said "Yes"... "These have been like that for the past three months and they havent gone anywhere".... I wasnt about to start an argument (I knew right away I was going to fight that one), and I asked him politely.. "Would it be possible if you could give me a sign, since I will probably be driving home"... He told me no.
So.. he basically gave me a ticket for not having an N sign.... and yet stil didnt want to give me one.. so I Could drive home without breaking any restreictions (However, it could very well be, that at the time he assumed I Wouldnt be driving home)
So.... is it rare that police officers dont show up to traffic court? I disputed the ticket Sept 30th.. and still havent gotten a court date notice in the male...
I also am disputing the other ticket.. I don't know why I did... I didnt have any money at the time, so I guess I was just going to ask for an extension or a lower fine or something.. But I have money now, so that isnt an issue. |
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| mrprecidia |
| what is this novice BS? I have never heard of it before. |
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| Doom4life |
Its the Graduated Licensing Program (GLP) that BC introduced a number of years ago.
Basically.... when you turn 16, you go to a DMV.. and take your Learners test.
Upon passing, you get your Learners license. You have this for a minimum of six months (Or three, if you take an ICBC approved GLP course)... Basically, the restrictions are as follows:
- Must have a qualified supervisor with you at all times.
- Two other people in the car max (Supervisor and one other)
- Drive only between 5am and midnight
- Have to display a red "L" sign visible from the rear of the car.
- Zero blood alcohol content
You could aslo have your license suspended for a minimum of one month if you accumulate four points or more.
After six months (or three) you can take your Class 7 road test. Upon passing that, you get your Novice license. You have this for a minimum of eighteen months, and it has the following restrictions:
- Must display a green "N" sign.
- Zero blood alcohol content.
And again, four points, and your license could be suspended.....
So you see, I am also worried that my license could be suspended (Though I really should book my road test, since I Could have taken it last summer) since I got two points for failing to yield, and three points for no "N" sign....
So this accident as the potential to screw me over.
Edit: http://www.icbc.com/Licensing/images/glp_summary.jpg has what the signs look like. |
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| GirlRacer P1 |
| Thanks for reminding me, I still have to change my liscense over from Alberta to BC. The N is pretty pointless I think, but I guess ICBC has a good reason for it. |
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| albertarc |
quote: Originally posted by Doom4life@Jan 6 2003, 12:18 AM
So.... is it rare that police officers dont show up to traffic court? I disputed the ticket Sept 30th.. and still havent gotten a court date notice in the male...
I've never heard of a police officer not showing up for Court unless there's a really good explanation. For first appearances however, the officers hardly ever show up as they are not required to testify until the trial. What was your first Court date for the two tickets (September 30th)? Here in Alberta when you plead "Not Guilty" to a traffic ticket you are assigned a Court date for trial then & there. Does BC give a mail in "NG" option on their tickets? Alberta does & my understanding is if you plead "NG" by mail they mail out a notice w/ the trial date very shortly after. I would suggest that you contact the Court which had jurisdiction of the charge & inquire as to the outcome of your "NG" plea.
Some people believe if they forget about outstanding tickets / fines etc, eventually they go away all by themselves ... error!! They usually turn up at the most inopportune time.
Jimbo ;) |
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| Doom4life |
In BC..... You have several options... I did the easiest thing for me...
I went to a DMV with my ticket, said I wanted to dispute the ticket... The person said I'll put you down as disputing both of them (I was like, whatever)
So I said what is the procedure...
She said you can go now, and you will get a letter int he mail with your court date....
That was in late September....
Now a coworker said that when he disputed his ticket a few months ago... she told him that they are so backlogged right now, that he might not get a notice until a year. |
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| Kato |
I heard that Alberta might be adopting the graduated licensing system which in my opinion is a good thing.
Kato |
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