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Left stuck car in ditch, was going to return but police had it towed and mailed me leaving accident ticket. Can I fight this?
Anonymous4 views4 answers
Car was stuck in ditch with no damage to vehicle. I spoke with deputy and he said that the towing company ripped off bumper cover while towing and he made an accident report and was giving me a ticket for leaving the scene of an accident. Car got stuck about 3AM and deputy had it towed at 6AM. I returned at 3PM to get it pulled out but it was gone. Vehicle was not on roadway or disrupting traffic.
You can try to fight this ticket but by your own admission, you returned to get your vehicle 12 hours after you left it in a ditch. What would you present as a defense to leaving the scene?
If you're going to come back it needs to be pretty quick or as the legalese would say, within a "reasonable" period of time. 12 hours is not reasonable, you should've called to report the vehicle stuck in a ditch and that you would be returning to retrieve it and even then a deputy likely would have been dispatched to get it unstuck.
tephen Laurence HoffmanPersonal Injury LawyerChicago, IL ·
I don't think you have a winner here. Twelve hours is far too long without some emergent reason why you didn't report it or remove your car. The law is clear and failure to adhere to or be aware of the law is not a defense.
I would as most district justices require that you show some kind of laid back disregard; however, your state law may dictate that you have only a few hours to remove and /or you have to notify dispatch and/or leave a note that you have not abandoned but gone for a tow.
