Law; "He said, she said"

[Froudeybrand]

Hey guys just a curious question / statement.

Last night I came home from work shortly after midnight, went home without any dramas until at 1AM I get a visit from a couple of police officers claiming that I was tailgating and serving across the road etc and driving aggressive.

The only thing that I could pin point coming home last night was a P-plater didn't check their blind spot and started to merge into the lane I was halfway merged into, so I backed off and went around the P-plater into the lane I wanted to get into then went home.

Now my question / statement is, it's really all my "word" against theirs' and it is really futile for police to proceed this so called "erratic" driving.

- Geoff

 

[XS]

I do not know how different your police officers and laws are from here. However, typically when police officers here show up way after the fact like that, they usually have proof, ie a video from a dash cam. If they do not, at most they'll ask for a breathalyzer and suggest to be more careful next time. But yes, it's your word against theirs, and unless they are real dicks they shouldn't cite you without proof.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Now my question / statement is, it's really all my "word" against theirs' and it is really futile for police to proceed this so called "erratic" driving.

Futile, maybe. But it's probably something that they had to check out. I'm guessing that whatever happened was enough to spook the P-plater and someone contacted the police to complain.

It happened to me, once. I was driving home when a P-plater caught up with me and started swerving erratically behind me. I didn't think much of it, but when we got to the roundabout at the end of the street, he disappeared from view behind me, accelerated and went around my car, tearing off down the road ahead of me. It was enough to make me do an emergency brake, and I ended up skewed across the road at a forty-five degree angle. The driver was probably trying to impress the two girls in the car with him; he was so close to me that I could see all three of them. We ended up calling the police, mostly because he clipped the back corner of my car as he passed me and caused a bit of damage. They told us that there wasn't much that they could do about it, but that they would pay him a visit later that night just to make sure (mostly because earlier that week a P-plater was killed in a single-car accident on the same stretch of road). We never heard anything more about it, so I doubt you have much to worry about.

 

[JJSCHMITTY2000]

The eighth ammendment states "No cruel and unusual punishment", and citing you without proof would be cruel.

 

[1241Penguin]

The eighth ammendment states "No cruel and unusual punishment", and citing you without proof would be cruel.

Amendments, in Australia?

 

[JJSCHMITTY2000]

Amendments, in Australia?

Whoops. Thought he was in the US.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Whoops. Thought he was in the US.

Yeah, with the Australian flag avatar and the Australian flag in his location, I don't blame you for mistaking him as an American.

 

[wfooshee]

Hey, leave him alone! He's American, so everybody else has to be!

(What's a P-Plater, anyway?)

EDIT: Nvrmnd. I discovered this website called Google, where you can ask about stuff and find things out.

 

[BobK]

The eighth ammendment states "No cruel and unusual punishment", and citing you without proof would be cruel.

Hypothetically assuming we're talking about an incident in the United States instead of Australia: receiving a citation isn't punishment, though. It may result in punishment, but proof (or at least evidence beyond a reasonable doubt) will be necessary before that point.

Hey, leave him alone! He's American, so everybody else has to be!

(What's a P-Plater, anyway?)

EDIT: Nvrmnd. I discovered this website called Google, where you can ask about stuff and find things out.

Heh, I had the same question, and got the answer the same way. For the curious, it's a large placard with a red "P" on it, indicating that the driver has a provisional license. I'll leave it up to an Australian or someone otherwise more knowledgeable to describe the implications of it.

In any case I don't think you have much to worry about here.

 

[hogger129]

Hey guys just a curious question / statement.

Last night I came home from work shortly after midnight, went home without any dramas until at 1AM I get a visit from a couple of police officers claiming that I was tailgating and serving across the road etc and driving aggressive.

The only thing that I could pin point coming home last night was a P-plater didn't check their blind spot and started to merge into the lane I was halfway merged into, so I backed off and went around the P-plater into the lane I wanted to get into then went home.

Now my question / statement is, it's really all my "word" against theirs' and it is really futile for police to proceed this so called "erratic" driving.

- Geoff

I would just tell them what you told us and stick to that. Don't change your story. That is usually why it's a good idea not to talk unless you have a lawyer present.

 

[Hayden]

Heh, I had the same question, and got the answer the same way. For the curious, it's a large placard with a red "P" on it, indicating that the driver has a provisional license. I'll leave it up to an Australian or someone otherwise more knowledgeable to describe the implications of it.

In any case I don't think you have much to worry about here.

You've pretty much got it stitched up, mate. Provisional licenses (for the curious) are given to people over 17 who have qualified through other systems to that point and to older people who want to regain their license after losing it for a traffic violation or other illegal activity. It basically means you don't have as many points and have to drive 10 kph slower on a highway.

Oh, and it means that every other driver on the road gives you dirty looks and that the police hate you .

OT: I wouldn't panic, OP- It's your word against there's and if you don't remember doing anything seriously wrong than you probably didn't. Wrong place- wrong time.

 

[Grayfox]

Police here took the word of a P-Plater over a full license driver?

How Odd