Lenience in the courts for TS 101 graduates!

[karlos]

All - If any NCCC members should get a (deserved) ticket, there is hope for fine reduction by simply taking TS 101 (aka Bicycle Traffic Skills, Urban Bicycling, Road One), League of American Bicyclists course where CA laws are really learned and reinforced. The email thread below recounts an experienced cyclist saving $83 on his fine. 

[and, btw, should any of you NCCC folks get an UNdeserved ticket, most probably a violation of CVC 21202 (far to right), 21208 (bike lane), or 22400 (impeding traffic), and you feel you were riding lawfully "in the way"  - especially if sharrows are present, although sharrows are not required to control the full lane - don't forget to bring this to SDCBC's attention by notifying me asap after you get a ticket. We want court decisions establishing the laws as we believe they should be interpreted.]

Karl

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Karl Rudnick <rudnick.cooper@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, Apr 11, 2014 at 2:23 PM
Subject: [SDCBC-Board] Re: "Semi" Ticket Diversion result
To: sdcbc-board@googlegroups.com


One could even argue that the result is better than a canned ticket diversion program, because the cyclist had to do a lot on his own to get educated and correct the situation. With motor vehicle ticket diversion classes, too often the ticketed driver just sits through the class, goes through the motions, and really may not learn anything to prevent future mistakes. - Karl

On Friday, April 11, 2014 2:15:51 PM UTC-7, Karl Rudnick wrote:
All - I'm sharing an email thread, if you don't mind, showing that you can get credit for taking TS 101 after being ticketed. In this case, a VERY experienced rider (rides maybe 300+ miles per week and has no car) mistakenly thought it was OK to cruise through stop signs at T-intersections. When he mentioned fighting the ticket on the Pete Penseyres Wed ride out of Bonsall, it was explained that he really had broken the law. At any rate, before his court appearance he took positive action by completing TS 101 and the commissioner who heard the case reduced the fine because of that. As Pete explains "fair to all involved." It also shows that a ticket diversion program, whereby the cyclist pays, say $75, after showing a TS 101 diploma dated after the ticket may work. I think that the cyclist was actually happy to have learned the laws better.
Karl

From: Pete Penseyres

Donald's decision was the best and fairest Bill could have expected. 
It was fair to the policeman who wrote the ticket, fair to the public, fair to Bill.  The result of the ticket was that Bill learned it is illegal to run a stop sign or a traffic light through the top of a tee intersection, even if you stay in the bike lane or on the shoulder. He took the class because he really can't afford the full price of the ticket and needed to show that he had learned his lesson so he could get some kind of relief from the fine. 
He still paid enough that he probably won't "fall off the wagon" and the fine will likely cover some or all of the court costs. And maybe impressed one of the Traffic Commissioners enough that he will come to class and learn what we are teaching.
And what if the other commissioners listened to him after taking the class and actually rethought their motor centric decisions against cyclists who ride legally outside the door zone?
Ah, time to wake up and get back to reality...

Pete


From: Howard La Grange <howard@oceansidebikecommittee.org>
To: Pete Penseyres <cyclovet11@yahoo.com>
Cc: Karl Rudnick <Rudnick.cooper@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2014 1:26 PM
Subject: Re: Bill Rowan's Court Appearance for his ticket

Don is neighbor who I use to meet up when walking our dogs. I will try to contact him regarding the class.  He is by far the most fair commissioner

Respectfully,

Howard LaGrange
760-672-2670

On Apr 11, 2014, at 1:06 PM, Pete Penseyres <cyclovet11@yahoo.com> wrote:

Howard and Karl,
Bill got the right commissioner and got a significant "discount" on his ticket after he pleaded guilty, promised not to do it again, and said he had taken TS 101.  Note that the Commissioner wanted more details on the course.  Howard: do you know Donald?  Can you give him more info on TS 101 and invite him to class?
Pete

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: William Rowan <wrowan48911@yahoo.com>
To: "cyclovet11@yahoo.com" <cyclovet11@yahoo.com>
Sent: Wednesday, April 9, 2014 6:23 PM
Subject: Re: My Ticket

ARMENTO, DONALD F. - Commissioner

From: "cyclovet11@yahoo.com" <cyclovet11@yahoo.com>
To: William Rowan <wrowan48911@yahoo.com>
Sent: Wednesday, April 9, 2014 5:28 PM
Subject: Re: My Ticket

Good news Bill! Great news would have been no fine but even $83 means you got paid almost $10 an hour to take the class.
Who was your Traffic Commissioner?

Sent from my HTC Oneâ,,¢ X, an AT&T 4G LTE smartphone

----- Reply message -----
From: "William Rowan" <wrowan48911@yahoo.com>
To: "Pete Penseyres" <cyclovet11@yahoo.com>
Subject: My Ticket
Date: Wed, Apr 9, 2014 1:25 PM

Pete:

Thanks

The ticket price dropped from $198 to$115.  The Comiss liked that I was proactive and took the class.  He wanted to see the coarse pamphlet so that probably was why my fine was reduced.

Be seeing you on the road.

Bill

From: Pete Penseyres <cyclovet11@yahoo.com>
To: William Rowan <wrowan48911@yahoo.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 8, 2014 9:04 PM
Subject: Re: My Ticket

Hi Bill,
You might want to take your Completion Certificate with you and show it to them. It will demonstrate your committment if you mention that it is a 10 hour class with written and "driving" exams that must be passed to get the Certificate.  If the person reviewing this case takes an interest, you can answer any additional questions they might have.
Best wishes!

From: William Rowan <wrowan48911@yahoo.com>
To: Pete Penseyres <cyclovet11@yahoo.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 8, 2014 6:13 PM
Subject: My Ticket

Pete:

I'm tardy.  Below is what I was going to say in court about your class.  If you'd like to add, please do.  I know it's a little late, so if you don't have time, don't worry.  I'll be glad after tomorrow. 

Took a very valuable class "Traffic Skills 101"
-given by "The League of American Bicyclists" at the Oside lib
-valuable:  Among many other things, cyclists must follow all traffic laws; the same as a driver
-what I did was illegal
-I now come to full stops at stop signs

Thanks

Bill

[Robert Abraham]

That's a great story, and actually makes a bundle of sense. I'm sure most of us know that when you get a speeding ticket driving an automobile, one can take a class and get the fine reduced or the violation scratched from your driving record. What the commissioner did was very fair.

[karlos]

But, even better advice is to take TS 101 BEFORE you get a ticket. If the class works for you, you NEVER will get that ticket and you will be much more confident about establishing the safest and legal lane position in traffic!

[Margareth Demery]

Taking Karl's advice in advance... .  Took this for the second time with some of the new Cruisers and learned several new techniques and skills that had changed over the past years. Thanks to all the TS101 Bike Skills Instructors... ~Peg