I was recently pulled over for "bald" tires (MT drag radials which were not bald at all)
He cited me for that, and he cited me for out of state license and out of state registration. The License and Registration are from Florida and I am in California.
Since I am a contractor for the Marine Corps and I can end up somewhere else at the drop of a hat I maintain my Florida residence at my home of record. When the officer pulled me over he asked me where I lived and I stupidly said the town I was in other than my home in Florida. He then asked me how long I lived in that town and I told him two months. I had my insurance card mailed to me at that address and it had that address listed on my insurance card. I did not tell him whether or not I spent the majority of my time in CA or in FL.
I was cited under violation (an Infraction) 4000(a-1) which he listed as calif. registration required. However all the websites that I have looked at list this violation as:
" 4000. (a) (1) No person shall drive, move, or leave standing upon a
highway, or in an offstreet public parking facility, any motor
vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, pole or pipe dolly, or logging dolly,
unless it is registered and the appropriate fees have been paid under
this code or registered under the permanent trailer identification
program, except that an off-highway motor vehicle which displays an
identification plate or device issued by the department pursuant to
Section 38010 may be driven, moved, or left standing in an offstreet
public parking facility without being registered or paying
registration fees."
The shorter version I have found on many ca state government websites is "No current registration"
Since I had current registration does this invalidate the ticket even though the registration is out of state?
The other thing he cited me for he listed as an infraction "12951(a) California driver license required"
the CA traffic code lists 12951(a) as:"12951. (a) The licensee shall have the valid driver's license
issued to him or her in his or her immediate possession at all times
when driving a motor vehicle upon a highway.
Any charge under this subdivision shall be dismissed when the
person charged produces in court a driver's license duly issued to
that person and valid at the time of his or her arrest, except that
upon a third or subsequent charge the court in its discretion may
dismiss the charge. When a temporary, interim, or duplicate driver's
license is produced in court, the charge shall not be dismissed
unless the court has been furnished proof by the Department of Motor
Vehicles that the temporary, interim, or duplicate license was issued
prior to the arrest, that the driving privilege and license had not
been suspended or revoked, and that the person was eligible for the
temporary, interim, or duplicate license.
(b) The driver of a motor vehicle shall present his or her license
for examination upon demand of a peace officer enforcing the
provisions of this code."
Since that also says nothing about where the driver's license needs to be from, does this also invalidate the ticket? It even goes on to say that if I were to produce a valid license then the charge is dismissed. Can I get out of this using this angle?
Finally,
Worst case scenario, lets say I go to court and I tell them I am not a resident of CA. They say that I am because my ins. card had a CA address. I say I spend the majority of time in Florida and just had the ins card mailed here while I was here. Can the judge arbitrarily just decide that I live in CA and somehow have my FL license or registration negatively impacted?
Also, since I don't legally have to have a driver's license at all, can I just say I have stopped driving and shipped the car back to FL?
What kind of fine or legal repercussion am I looking at worst case scenario for these traffic infractions?
He cited me for that, and he cited me for out of state license and out of state registration. The License and Registration are from Florida and I am in California.
Since I am a contractor for the Marine Corps and I can end up somewhere else at the drop of a hat I maintain my Florida residence at my home of record. When the officer pulled me over he asked me where I lived and I stupidly said the town I was in other than my home in Florida. He then asked me how long I lived in that town and I told him two months. I had my insurance card mailed to me at that address and it had that address listed on my insurance card. I did not tell him whether or not I spent the majority of my time in CA or in FL.
I was cited under violation (an Infraction) 4000(a-1) which he listed as calif. registration required. However all the websites that I have looked at list this violation as:
" 4000. (a) (1) No person shall drive, move, or leave standing upon a
highway, or in an offstreet public parking facility, any motor
vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, pole or pipe dolly, or logging dolly,
unless it is registered and the appropriate fees have been paid under
this code or registered under the permanent trailer identification
program, except that an off-highway motor vehicle which displays an
identification plate or device issued by the department pursuant to
Section 38010 may be driven, moved, or left standing in an offstreet
public parking facility without being registered or paying
registration fees."
The shorter version I have found on many ca state government websites is "No current registration"
Since I had current registration does this invalidate the ticket even though the registration is out of state?
The other thing he cited me for he listed as an infraction "12951(a) California driver license required"
the CA traffic code lists 12951(a) as:"12951. (a) The licensee shall have the valid driver's license
issued to him or her in his or her immediate possession at all times
when driving a motor vehicle upon a highway.
Any charge under this subdivision shall be dismissed when the
person charged produces in court a driver's license duly issued to
that person and valid at the time of his or her arrest, except that
upon a third or subsequent charge the court in its discretion may
dismiss the charge. When a temporary, interim, or duplicate driver's
license is produced in court, the charge shall not be dismissed
unless the court has been furnished proof by the Department of Motor
Vehicles that the temporary, interim, or duplicate license was issued
prior to the arrest, that the driving privilege and license had not
been suspended or revoked, and that the person was eligible for the
temporary, interim, or duplicate license.
(b) The driver of a motor vehicle shall present his or her license
for examination upon demand of a peace officer enforcing the
provisions of this code."
Since that also says nothing about where the driver's license needs to be from, does this also invalidate the ticket? It even goes on to say that if I were to produce a valid license then the charge is dismissed. Can I get out of this using this angle?
Finally,
Worst case scenario, lets say I go to court and I tell them I am not a resident of CA. They say that I am because my ins. card had a CA address. I say I spend the majority of time in Florida and just had the ins card mailed here while I was here. Can the judge arbitrarily just decide that I live in CA and somehow have my FL license or registration negatively impacted?
Also, since I don't legally have to have a driver's license at all, can I just say I have stopped driving and shipped the car back to FL?
What kind of fine or legal repercussion am I looking at worst case scenario for these traffic infractions?
