Take it up with the legislature/city council not the cop. It's been explained to me the same way juniorbean described it. Is it stupid? In most circumstances, yeah. But this isn't a situation where a cop decided to go off on a power trip.

Honestly, all the non-sense about cops being assholes every time someone gets a traffic ticket or a citation for something else stupid really weakens the entire argument against corrupt cops. There's clearly bad cops out there who have mental issues created by the badge they wear... labeling all cops as assholes because they write a ticket... pretty lame.

 

My argument has nothing to do with crooked cops/cops being assholes/powertrips/etc

It just seems like a retarded ticket. How would you feel if you wrecked your car and hit a guard rail (that is there for you to crash into) and you got fined for it. I'd expect a failure to control vehicle ticket...but the guard rail ticket would seem frivolous

 

My fault, that was the original argument...

I've heard of people having a tire blow-out on the highway, hitting the guard rail, and then a few months later getting a repair bill for replacing/repairing the guard rail.

 

I went into a ditch and hit a tree when I was 18 during a late April snowstorm. No other cars involved, not driving recklessly, etc. I damaged the back of my truck and the tree. I was able to pull my truck out and drive home. On the way home, there was a dude rolled over in ditch...I stopped to help him out. As I was leaving an officer arrived and asked if I was in the ditch up the road. I told him yes, and issued me a ticket for leaving the scene of an accident and damaging public property (the tree).

When I went to court, the judge threw it out.

 

I thought that was pretty funny...

 

A few things:

1) The fact that the roof of the cobalt remained in tact means a lot. It saved the drivers life, or at least saved him from being a midget for what would be left of his life. Gives me a little more respect for GM. Still hate the asshats sucking million dollar bonuses and using corporate jets, but you get the idea.

2) The cop was doing his job. Granted, the ticket could have been written differently (failure to adapt to road conditions, whatever), but the guardrail did not jump out at him. I had a similar thing happen in HS. My brother lost control of my Dad's car, and we hit a light pole on an interstate. We got a ticket, and a bill from the city.

3) And with the way the front tire is, I could see this result. It seems it's just like described.

 

I am sure there is more too it than just being lazy. You don't know what fluids have leaked out of the car. If there is gas that has leaked and you roll it over and create a spark. There is possibility of fire.

It is probably just safer to leave it flipped over. If that makes sense?

I am not saying that it will happen, just that it could happen.

I dislike cops as much as the next guy. But he could have issued any ticket. Failure to control vehicle, destruction of city property... etc...etc... I think he got off pretty easy. Yeah, its an accident. But if it was you at fault. Chances are, you getting a ticket.

You paid for the guardrails to begin with via state tax, it only makes sense that if you crash into them and screw them up, you pay for the repair. They are not going to be fixed for free. The driver, single handedly screwed them up. Not the state as a whole.

Honda's are very much the same way. I rolled my 98 Accord, 3 times. It landed on its roof. The car held together very well. My wife, my 1 year old daughter and myself walked away. My wife had a couple stitches from glass, but other than that. We were fine. The picture says everything.

They did roll my car over to load it on the flatbed. Just FYI...

 

damn. i hit someone head on many years ago in a pontiac 6000. all i had to do was replace the bumper, fender and straighten out the frame in front of the wheels.

good to see the guy's ok

 

I shit you not, it's considered damaging city property. Happened to my brother one wet and slippery night coming home from the Jersey Shore a while back. He got a ticket for damaging NJ property, and the city sued our insurance company and collected for repairs too, if i'm not mistaken. And this is what we were left with...