RCMP ticket in Alberta
 

As I was driving back from the Stampede in Calgary I got a speeding ticket. 153 in a 90 zone allegedly. I live and work in Vancouver. I know I was speeding (I didn't know it was a 90 zone, but I am sure I was not going 153)

I have a few questions about how they worked out my speed and what I can do about it.

There were no cops that pulled me over on the highway as I was driving by. Instead I think they got me on the cameras on the check marks and did the math for my speed. However, I was not doing 150+ consistently in between check points. So how did they come up with this speed?

What happened is I was driving and then I noticed a car speeding behind me really quickly. So I immediately dropped speed to about 100 and he tailgated me and pulled me over anyways. He served me a ticket saying I was going 153 so I am not sure how he got this number.

Also, does anyone know if the RCMP has jurisdiction in BC? If I miss the court date in Alberta in October, and then I go through a roadblock in Richmond in November, can they arrest me for missing court in Alberta? Do I get a fine?

I know I was speeding so I would love to get a reduction. I am still paying off student loans and all that but do not want to spend a weekend driving to Alberta to drop $1,000 on a speeding ticket which I think has been exaggerated.

But if the RCMP has no jurisdiction here then I may consider just not driving in Alberta anymore. If changing my trial date could also get a no show from the cop I hear it's a default? I don't have any expertise in this area.

Thanks a lot for all your help guys.

yea... don't bother with it and see what happens

go back to socials 8 and see what the C in RCMP stands for

lol. just pay the damn ticket boy

allegedly - good luck proving that buds, 153 sounds pretty specific

Goes to court in Ab.

Judge, " Okay. $20 reduction."

1) Record time/take photo at check mark 1.
2) Record time/take photo at check mark 2.
3) Divide distance between checkmarks by time between photos.
4) Voila average speed between those two points.

If they followed this methodology and came up with an average speed of 153km/h, then mathematically you must have driven 153km/h at minimum. If you slowed down to below 153km/h during the distance they were measuring because you saw the cop, then mathematically that means you must have been going faster than 153km/h before slowing down.

Just math - no arguing this if that's how they got your speed.

Mark

If the fellow decides to pay (and admit guilt), does that carry over back into BC as an excessive speeding charge, and going through the suspension etc? (63 over speed limit)

Time over distance is the way you calculate that type of speed. You are observed over 2 of those marks that are placed 500m apart and your time taken will give you the speed. You may also have been nabbed by the car using the Radar in Parallel mode where they can target you from behind if you are pulling away from them...or as they catch up to you.

You got a Province of Alberta ticket. The RCMP in BC will not arrest you for an Alberta traffic ticket but that info may be passed along to ICBC. If there is a shared jurisdiction agreement between the 2 provinces then you may have the ticket added to your BC driving record. I believe Alberta has an excessive speed law similar to BC's...count yourself lucky that your bike was not impounded.

Put it this way it would have cost you more in BC had you been caught at that speed. Even if it was exaggerated and you were doing 131, your ticket and impound fees would be more than $1000, consider yourself lucky.

You were speeding excessively, it's your fault, pay the piper.

If you can't afford tickets, don't speed.

I live in Alberta. As far as I know, there aren't any "speed check mark" cameras. Just plain camera boxes are certain city limit locations catching speed infractions. These tickets, with a really high resolution of your license plate, are then mailed to the registered Alberta address.

When you hit the 153 km/h speed mark, whoever pulled you over was probably going the other direction, had a really good hiding spot where you couldn't see, or was called by a spotter on an overpass or a bridge. I've seen them all. Alberta is really cracking down on speeders.

If you don't show up for the court date, otherwise specified, you are pleating guilty to the charge, and you must pay the fine.

$1000 seems really high... but don't do the crime if you can't do the time.

As Cdizzle said, any ticket of this nature in BC would have easily costed 2500-3000 dollars, and loss of your car for 7 days.

So really I'd consider this a break for the OP and just be thankful you weren't here in BC.

Also, yes, RCMP is canada wide, so ignoring a ticket in AB because you live in BC is like ignoring the CRA because you are a freeman of the land. AKA both will end really badly for you.

I'm not too sure I can agree with you on that. If I have an outstanding speeding ticket from Richmond RCMP I don't expect the RCMP to chase me down to pay my ticket, but ICBC or collections will. RCMP or whatever PD gives you the ticket only applies the law of that land.

Wait what.

Are you serious right now?

Speeding tickets are not administered by individual jurisdictions, if you get a speeding ticket by RCMP in richmond and don't pay it, I guarantee when you get pulled over by VPD you are going to have a bad time.

Also if you fail to show up to a dispute (counts as being guilty), or fail to pay a ticket, a judge can issue a warrant for your arrest.

Ugh no, not really. Tickets are payable to the government. The governments hire the RCMP to police their areas or have their own police department like VPD. In all, police force work for the government.

Thanks a lot guys. I do feel lucky that I was not impounded at all or anything like that. It was mostly a form of negligence I was a little sleep deprived and with no one on the road beside you, sometimes you lose track of how fast you are going.

No I wasn't driving a bike. I was surprised that the # is so high because I never tried or intentionally going over 140. The ticket charged said it was a laser that caught me so I really don't know what that means.

How the cop found me is he came from behind driving really fast and as soon as I saw him a mile back I realized my speed and slowed down and he still pulled me over.

I don't know exactly what the fine will be. I googled the prices because the Alberta speed limits have gone up but once it hit 50km over the limit it capped at $350.

My likely course of action is go and plead guilty and pray for some sort of reduction.

Thanks for all your help guys.

You're not going to get a reduction without requesting it from a judge, in person. You really want to waste more time and money on the possibility that he might reduce the fine by an unknown amount?

Might not be worth it to travel back to Alberta to plead guilty. You have to factor in the cost of the flight or gas money. Plus, you will need to take a day off of work.

Because they have me at more than 50km over the speed limit, it's a MANDATORY court date unfortunately.

This is why I was asking all the questions. I am a little frustrated because traveling takes on at least a day and $200 expense not including the ticket.

If the ticket was like $400 I would have already bit the bullet and paid it.

If I no show I am not sure what the additional penalties would be because I would plan on pleading guilty.

l
Laser is target specific and used from a stationary position...it is accurate to within 1kmh...you're dead meat on this one....it also gives distance you were targeted to within one tenth of a metre.

Yeah I am just going to grovel and pray basically. It was negligence on my part for sure. Lesson learned.

My friend whose a cop mentioned that:

"You could ask for the officers notes, his laser documentation, whether he tested the instrument that day. The fact that he's running radar means he's likely a traffic unit and that shit is locked down, but you could always try. You could always plead guilty and ask for a fine reduction. However, 63 over the limit is quite high. 40+ over in bc and they tow your car for 7 days immediately"

Basically, I am screwed. My fate is with the gods now.

Thanks all for your help. I'll update this in 3 months if I remember with what happened.

Why don't you call the officer's detachment and ask what your options are, in terms of pleading guilty and paying the fine, to avoid having to attend court?

Why not have a chat with a local lawyer here...initial consultation is usually free...and see if he can arange a guilty plea waved to Alberta court. That would save the trip.

Really? I know nothing of legal issues and never really dealt with any of this.

I feel I am pretty screwed with the laser and the mandatory court date. I don't see how I could swing it.

I will look into finding a lawyer to look at it.

At this point I'd assume your goal is just to avoid having to travel all the way back to AB to go to the stupid hearing.

They must have something in place to help you get around that. I mean come one what if someone from texas comes to AB and gets a ticket, do they really expect him to travel all the way back to AB in 3 months to attend a court date for a speeding infraction. It's stupid, I'm sure they have thought about that and have some sort of system in place to get rid of the mandatory court for out of towners.

I did a couple searches and didn't see anything about it, I'd definitely say call an RCMP detachment in AB and ask or call a lawyer here and find out what they can do.

Oh Lord more bad news. I have contacted a few paralegals in the Alberta area who could represent me with the free consultations and they have sent back this.

"Allegedly, you were caught speeding 63km/hr. over the posted speed limit. If convicted, this is a 6 demerit violation against your license, or a possible license suspension up to 90 days, and a fine of up to $2300."

I have googled a lot and it seems that the province has no jurisdiction on my BC drivers license UNLESS it's a DUI. Most people have speeding and traffic tickets but unless it's a large amount all they can do is send it to the CRA and take it out of my income tax.

I talked to a couple people at ICBC today and they said it cannot affect my BC license unless it's a DUI. Not 100% sure what I will do, I was expecting to pay $500 (which I have) but there's no way I could pay $2300. I'll contact some lawyers here as well.