Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to court I go (maybe)

[Del Lardo]

I got a parking ticket on my Elise a few weeks back when it was parked outside the front of my house from a rather overzelous (total cock) CSO.

The history goes back almost 2 years but what it comes down to is that a village councilor didn't like the fact that a young man (my friend and landlord) had a sports car (his Elise) and instructed the CSO to start ticketing cars that parked outside the front of the houses as they were on a footpath despite the fact that people had been parking there for 15+ years with no issue. This is where it gets more complicated as the council think it is a footpath and the highways agency recognise it as a road :D He gave my landlord a total of 5 tickets for illegal parking all of which he appealed and they never took to court. My landlord lodged a formal complaint to the Police for harrasment and the CSO was given a bollocking.

This time he has gone for a different tactic and charged me with obstructing a footpath, I am pretty sure that I have got him on the grounds that I can prove I was not blocking a footpath (you could have easily driven a car through the gap) and I am very sure that I have got him as on the ticket he has me parked on High Street when infact the car was parked on The Causeway.

Now I have a 6 month wait to find out if I get my day in court. Has anyone been to court to fight a parking ticket?

[Will]

Wow! Sounds tedious, irritating and like a huge waste of time and money. I have to admit that I do write and get snotty with any TFL or PCNs I get if I feel they have been handed to me unfairly. If it's a fair cop I will yield and take it on the chin - this has only happened a handful of times, the full out barrage of letters they have received from me has been rather more substantial. It's never gone to court, we have always come to an agreement (I'm sure I'm in the wrong line of work!!). I don't think their case holds any water at all - I hope you claim some compensation and screw those cocks over. Sorry for the militant attitude, sometimes I just hate the anal draconian systems we have in place and the imps that run it. I feel sorry for the people who take the brunt of it (such as the people on the phones, or the actual traffic wardens) though then again they chose that career.

Give 'em hell Paul, don't yield. Fight the power!!! ;D

[Jonny69]

Sounds like fun. Not.

[Del Lardo]

I had the summons through last week and this is where it gets good! As I said before I was ticketed for parking on High St, the court summons says The Causeway and includes a statement from the CSO saying he incorrectly wrote down High St. I have checked and there is something called Slip Law which allows this. The original ticket also said I was being done for obstructing a footpath but the summons says a highway so that has changed as well, this could be in my favour as I can easily prove that I was not obstructing the highway.

Basically what it boils down to is that on the ticket I was asked if I wanted to appeal the charge of obstructing on a footpath on the High St and I am now going to court to defend obstructing the highway on The Causeway. Don't you just love the UK court system!

I'm going to talk to a solicitor tomorrow as the case against me is so full of holes I want to make sure every single one of them is exploited. What's pissing me off now is that the court date is in the middle of my planned CCNA training so I am going to have to put that off for another 3 months :angry:



p.s. please could a passing mod move this to GD

[Feek]

You can ask for an adjournment, it's justified. When I was up for speeding many years ago the date I was given was during a holiday so I requested one and got it without any problem.

[Von Smallhausen]

As long as you don't confuse cops and CSOs.

I could rant for hours but I won't.

If you think you have a case then fight it. Best of luck.:)

[Del Lardo]

As long as you don't confuse cops and CSOs.

I could rant for hours but I won't.

If you think you have a case then fight it. Best of luck.:)


Trust me I wouldn't dare. Both myself and my landlord have spoken to the proper Police about this CSO and their opinion is the same as ours.

The thing is I know there must be some good ones out there. My cousin wants to join the proper Police so she volenteers as a CSO most Friday and Saturday nights and helps the proper Police deal with the random acts that occur when people drink too much.