Quebec fine

[Surestick]

Hi,
Yeah I'm pissed, I was riding in Saint-Donat, Qc. I had attached my mirror to my hand guard with heavy duty velcro and then siliconed it into place. Worked great and provided good rear visibility. The cop said it had to be "bolted" to the sled. I have a perfect record, was driving the speed limit, all papers in order, but he just said "infraction" and I received a 261$ ticket in the mail.

The officer can write any ticket he/she wants. If you pay it you are pleading guilty and admitting you committed the offence. If you feel you aren't guilty contest the ticket.

Your first step is to read the section of the act that you are charged with breaking, it should be available online.
See what the actual wording of the section is, if you are meeting the requirements of that rule as written then you stand a good chance of beating the ticket.
A few things worth remembering:
1) Don't ever admit you did anything wrong. Be careful how you word what you say. I saw a guy loose a speeding ticket trial in about 2 seconds. He stood up, the judge said: "Mr. _____ you are charged with going 125 in a 100 zone, were you going 125?" The guy said: "Yeah, but..." and was interrupted by the judge banging her gavel and saying in a loud voice: "Guilty!". If he'd started with whatever his excuse was and it was a good one ("well your honour I was trying to get to my wife who was in labour at the hospital and I wasn't paying attention to how fast I was going" or whatever) then he might have been found not guilty or at least been able to discuss a lower fine or less points off his license (He'd also have looked dumb using that excuse if he couldn't provide baby pics, etc. to prove his story should the judge have asked).
2) Remember it's the Crown's job to prove you're guilty. You don't need to prove you aren't guilty, you just need to prove that the Crown's case doesn't prove you are, the burden of proof is with the prosecution. If the police officer didn't take any photos of your mirror or doesn't have good notes describing how it was affixed and how that means it doesn't meet the regs then you aren't proved guilty unless the officer has a really good memory and can remember the stop clearly enough to describe your mirror on the stand.
3) You have right to disclosure from Crown before trial. This is their case against you in writing including any pictures or videos they made when you were pulled over and the officer's notes (which might just be written on the back of their copy of the ticket). You have the right to sufficient time to review the disclosure before trial though you might have to ask for the time.
4) You can bring your own evidence (photos of your mirror for example) but you don't have to use them unless you want to. If your evidence brings into question the officer's (your pictures show the officer's notes about your mirror aren't accurate) then you've brought the Crown's case against you into question and you should win.
5) Some places you might have the chance to talk to the crown prosecutor before court starts, sometimes they are willing to throw out the ticket or make a deal (reduced points or reduced fine) to save them the time of taking the ticket to trial even if their case is solid.
6) Remember, the prosecutor, the judge, and the officer are all human. Being well dressed, polite, and respectful can get you a reduced fine even if you are guilty, it never hurts to ask. If you are found guilty but can show you made an effort to meet the regs but failed and have learned from the experience let the court know this and ask for a reduced fine. Real criminal have their lawyers lie about them all the time (he just made a mistake, he's planning on finding work and going back to school, blah blah blah) you should have the opportunity to talk yourself up a bit too. Note however that if the trial is in a big city courthouse you might just end up being treated like a number, loosing a day of work, being found guilty, and adding the court fees to your ticket.
7) Court in Quebec will, of course, be in French and you'd better be able to speak it or have someone there that can talk in French for you.
8) $261 is probably not worth hiring a lawyer for unless you stand to loose your license from demerits or have a point to prove. It also might not be worth losing a day of work over.

 

[Mr.xtx175]

Thank you for all that detailed information. I looked into the left side mirror rule, in Quebec, you Must have a rear view mirror PERMANENTLY installed on the left hand side of the machine. Mine was installed with Velcro and a bead of silicone. Is that considered permanent? I don't believe I have a strong case. Thoughts?

 

[HighSpeedLowDrag]

A bead of silicone or similar adhesive is how every mirror on a new vehicle is attached. There is nothing permanent about how any components are attached to a vehicle.

 

[Mr.xtx175]

You are correct!! It says "firmly attached ". I'm thinking I may have a point, that heavy duty Velcro holds 60lbs, mirror weighs a few ounces. Think I should contest this?

 

[Broue]

Contest it!

 

[Surestick]

Even if it was bolted on it would take a few seconds to remove it with common tools that would likely be in the toolkit that came with your sled.

Personally I'd contest the ticket. Take pics of how it's attached, and the view it gives the rider (to show it's functional).

It sounds to me (having heard only your side of the story, not seen your mirror, and not read the section of the act you are accused of contravening) that you've done everything you could to comply with the regulations and the officer misinterpreted the regulation.

An alternative might be to contact the police force that issued the ticket (SQ?), ask to speak to a supervisor, explain you looked up the regulation you are accused of contravening, still don't understand what you did wrong and ask if they could clarify what has to be done to make your mirror compliant. If the officer was way off base in writing the ticket they might be able to pull it.