Three Steps To Fighting A Traffic Ticket Due To Hidden Stop Signs
Stop signs are serious business. Failing to stop at a stop sign could cause a crash with another vehicle, which could lead to serious injuries or total a vehicle. One of the reasons why you may have failed to stop at a stop sign is because the stop sign is covered. If the stop sign is obstructed from view, this is a problem that the city is responsible for, rather than drivers. If you have received a traffic violation for not stopping due to an obstructed stop sign, here are some ways to deal with the traffic violation.
Hire a traffic violation lawyer to do a search
Getting a ticket for failure to stop can cost you a few hundred dollars and cost points on your license that lead to higher insurance. If you want to fight the ticket, the first thing that you should do is hire a traffic violation lawyer, such as from The Law Offices of Schiro and Zarzynski. Your lawyer will be able to perform a court search to find out if the cross street of the location on your ticket has had problems often. If there are a number of incidents of ticketing due to not stopping, this can satisfy the court as proof that the stop sign is too hidden and is an issue due to the negligence of land care taking.
Take pictures of the stop sign area
After you get a ticket and hire an attorney, the next thing that you should do is go and take pictures of the stop sign. This can be used as evidence in court to show that the stop sign is not viewable from where drivers sit. Take some photographs from the road and from the driver's seat of your car in order to show the exact degree of visibility for the stop sign from anywhere on the street.
Report to court
Fighting the traffic ticket is the only way to get out of it. Be sure to appear in court with your attorney instead of fighting the traffic ticket. Your attorney will be able to present evidence noting that the stop sign is covered and cannot be reasonably seen by drivers. It is the responsibility of the city to make sure that all traffic signs are appropriately placed and can be viewed reasonably by any drivers. If the problem is the fault of the city, the case and ticket can get dismissed and proper care can be taken to remove the stop sign.