Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Pennsylvania

Can the court or judge be held responsible for their ignorance?

A few months ago I was cited for speeding in a school zone.My wife was driving right behind me in another vehicle.The police officer pulled in between us (causing her to hit the gaurd rail)and issued me a ticket.Neither of us saw a school light flashing and there were no signs posted.

We went back and checked and sure enough the light was broken in the direction we were traveling only. We videotaped this and took the tape to court.The judge found me guilty because she did not have a vcr.Naturally we appealed after giving the courts a non-refundable $42.50.Apparently just for the pleasure of taking another day off of work, fighting traffic to Pittsburgh and paying for parking.The officer came to court and immediately informed us we would win.Then to make matters worse at about 11am, after sitting there since 8:30am he no longer FELT LIKE sitting there any longer and left while we were allowed the pleasure of paying for parking until 3:30pm only to have the judge find in our favor because he was no longer there.My question is this

Is there anything I can do about this or do I have just accept this is the judicial system in the great U.S.A.?


Asked on 11/28/01, 11:14 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Brandon Barnett Brandon J. Barnett Attorney At Law

Re: Can the court or judge be held responsible for their ignorance?

My friend be happy that you won the case and that you will not have the points on your driving record. The costs and time are not recoverable.

Sincerely,

Brandon Barnett, Esq.

Read more
Answered on 12/05/01, 12:38 am


Related Questions & Answers

More General Civil Litigation questions and answers in Pennsylvania