By 
Last year a traffic cop pulled me over while driving home and handed me a speeding ticket. Although nervous and somewhat startled since it was my first time getting caught, I ended up walking out of traffic court a few months later without having to pay a fine or adding a single point to my record. Surprisingly, it was all thanks to my Android-powered smart phone and a little creativity.
My First Speeding Ticket
As a brand new Motorola Droid owner, I was in the rush of trying just about every app that appeared in the Android Marketplace. One that particularly stood out and had me excited was My Tracks by Google. This free app records and visualizes your GPS data on a map, which is something I always wanted to try. I began using app while jogging, biking to class, and even when driving.
I fortunately happened to have Google Tracks running when an officer cited me for speeding while I was heading back home from a friend’s place. The speed limit in the area was a mere 25 miles per hour and the cop’s radar gun shockingly clocked me driving over 40 miles per hour. In a panicked mental state, I simply handed over my driver’s license, insurance, and registration information without asking any questions. I was confident that I was within the posted speed limit in the back of my mind, but I just apologized and went my way instead of speaking up.
Once I parked my car in the apartment lot, I immediately realized that I had Google Tracks running as a background process as I reached to grab my phone from the dashboard mount. As I walked in, I pulled up my history for the previous session which displays information such as distance, average speed, average moving speed, and max speed. It even stores maximum and minimum elevation levels for those that need it. More importantly, I found that my phone only recorded a top speed of just 26 miles per hour, significantly lower than the cited speed. I now knew I was not speeding.
Traffic Court or Traffic School
After heading to the Yolo County (California) Traffic Court website and doing some research I found that I had two options: traffic court or a fine with traffic school. Most friends and family suggested paying the fines and avoiding traffic court since it is usually impossible to win. I unfortunately did not have the cash to spare or time for traffic school with a busy college schedule. I soon decided to take my chances in traffic court, which would take place over six months down the road.
I decided to write down an account of the entire situation just a few days later and even exported the data from my phone to Google Docs so I would not lose or forget any important details. I even came across an ongoing Sonoma County Superior Court case regarding the accuracy of GPS devices and radar guns. I saved a few articles to back my claim that my account of the situation was debatable with the evidence from my smart phone.
Time For Traffic Court
Once I made my way into the court room after going through metal detectors, I had to sign a document to indicate whether I plea guilty or not guilty. I choose the latter and got seated. The judge called a few people to the stand before it was my turn. Most of them were wearing rugged clothing, screamed out loud a several times, uttered inappropriate language, and were extremely enraged. Each case resulted in a guilty verdict, which had me even more terrified.
I eventually took the stand nervously. The plaintiff presented information from city plans noting that my speed limit was inappropriate for the area. When it was my turn to make a statement, I remained calm and spoke respectfully. I was also glad that I wore business casual clothing, which always plays an important role in situations such as this one.
My Geeky Evidence
Taking hints from a lawyer that spoke on behalf of a defendant shortly before me, I decided to ask the officer a few questions about the day he cited me. It turned out that the officer did not recall the last time he attended radar gun training, when the device was last calibrated, or the unit’s model number. I then presented my time stamped GPS data with details about my average moving speed and maximum speed during my short drive home. Both numbers were well within the posted speed limits.
I also made it clear to the judge that I had no other prior driving records or violations. After a lengthy pause, the judge asked how I obtained the GPS tracking information. I provided a detailed explanation about my new awesome smart phone, the application in use, and how I exported the data. After questioning whether the data was reliable, I mentioned the in progress Sonoma County Superior Court trial regarding the same matter about the credibility of both technologies.
The Big Verdict
The judge took a moment and declared that I was not guilty, but he had an unusual statement that followed. To avoid any misinterpretations about his ruling, he chose to clarify his decision by citing the lack of evidence on the officer’s part. He mentioned that he was not familiar enough with GPS technology to make a decision based on my evidence, but I can’t help but imagine that it was an important factor.
What You Should Know
Before anyone goes out to try their luck with my story, I should make a few things clear. I have no legal experience what so ever. I also would like to also note that the purpose of this article is to focus on smart phone technology and issues with radar guns. The officer in question was doing his job and did not do anything wrong. I find that internet culture often likes to demonize misbehaving cops, which I hate hearing about. It is important to respect the men and women who put their lives on the line to keep our streets safe every day. With that being said, I hope that this article will be helpful to anyone who was wrongly accused due to inaccurate information from radar guns, which are rather complicated to operate compared to consumer friendly smart phones.
I love to hear Pro Se’ers winning cases. I beat a photo enforced red light ticket. When the officer identified me as the driver of the vehicle, I objected stating ‘Calls for Speculation’ and a ‘Lack of Foundation’. There was no signature for the ticket, and they officer had to prove it was me. I was also prepared with DOT data for the required yellow light time which was too short for the speed of the intersection.
Next time you can tell the judge you never drove that time and was attending a wedding showing your Google Calendar event ;)
I’m very glad to hear this. I’ve been videoing my journies for a while now for much the same reason. I recently found an app that tracks your journey in the background, recording both video and GPS data (embedded in the video).
Since I dock my phone on the dashboard with a view out the window, it’s got a pretty good view. Also, if I’m involved in or a witness to an accident that wasn’t my fault, the video might go some way to helping work out what really happened.
AutoGuard is the app. I use it all the time now.
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.hovans.autoguard
I have had a PrePaid Legal Insurance Plan for 12 years… for $13 a month… every single time I got a speeding ticket (several), i paid PrePaid $25 co-pay … a lawyer showed up in court and had it reduced every time to a parking ticket. The only way to beat a ticket in court is to hire a lawyer, and with PrePaid Legal, i’d be up the creek, but not so… my record is perfectly clean. i will activate MyTracks on my phone when I suspect I am in a possible ticketing road.
*No documented classes for training in use of a radar device to determine speed.
*No documentation on the radar device’s last calibraroin
*No proof that the radar unit was reliable
*No recollection by the officer in regards to the traffic stop.
Always remember, the BURDEN OF PROOF is on the prosecution. If the prosecution can’t corroborate or otherwise provide proof that beyond a reasonable doubt, you are guilty….then you have the right and the court MUST dismiss the case brought against you on the grounds of insufficient evidence.
My friend had a speeding ticket for 80MPH in a 50MPH zone and asked for proof of Calibration for the radar device and the officer’s certification to use said device…..The case, and 185 other cases before and after him, were dismissed on the grounds that the radar device was not deemed reliable due to not being calibrated.
Nice article and you narrated the sequence brilliantly.
But you were speeding, by your own admission. 26 in a 25 is speeding. You can’t just “break the law a little”.
The ticket was for 40 mph, not 26.
GPS is not perfect. It has some +/- inaccuracy levels. And the same goes radar guns as well. I was at 25 mph and minor fluctuations are hard to decipher on an analog speed meter. The reason I believe this played a role was because it showed that I was driving at approximately the right speed and that it backed my claim over the radar gun.
So you told the judge a story about GPS he didn’t understand, and got off the hook because you made the cop look dumb. Great.
I have an Android GPS story of my own. I was riding down Market Street in San Francisco on my motorcycle when a drunk ran a red light and knocked me through the intersection, breaking my hand and collarbone and knocking me out for about an hour. After a year of getting put back together, I faced a defense from the person at fault in the accident, who happened to be a Google employee who was trying to maintain that his Android GPS milestone app could prove that his light wasn’t really red when he hit me, even though:
– GPS milestone apps aren’t remotely that accurate
– he had admitted at the scene to the cop to arrived (while I was laying on the ground knocked out) that he had run the light
– he had testified that knew my light was green (but was trying to say it was maybe yellow, so I had some blame too – it wasn’t)
– I knew my light was green, and even it it were going to turn yellow, that his would be red (something I don’t need an app for)
– and he accepted and paid his red light ticket.
Fortunately, even his own insurance company realized what a crock of sheet his story was, and paid out the limits of his liability insurance. I’ll get a tiny bit of that after SFGH charges me nearly $50,000 in medical bills, plus my attorney fees.
So I have to say, while bragging that Android might let you flaunt the law can give you some attention on the web, it would be better just to be honest in the first place.
That’s just horrifying. I hope you are recovering well. I am sorry that happened to you, but I don’t think it was a smart phone or the GPS that was at fault. It was the person lying to defend himself after driving under the influence. It is sad that people misuse technology, but these innovations also can play an important role in defending the wrongly accused.
I completely agree that people should be honest, but I wrote this to focus on smart phone GPS and radar gun technology.
I hate this type of sensationalist article.
The Droid had NOTHING whatsoever to do with getting out of the ticket, all of the above notwithstanding . . .
No judge in his right mind would accept non-watermarked data from an uncalibrated device as ‘evidence’ against sworn testimony unless he was seeking re-election.
The reality is that the author got out because he asked the right questions and the officer had no answers.
If this type of crap gets out there, the next thing we’ll find is that police will be seizing phones and navigators as ‘evidence’, to prevent tampering with the data.
How true is this. Just give them an excuse.
The title of your article is misleading – as pointed out many times already, your android phone did not get you out of a speeding ticket. -You- got yourself out of paying the fine by proper presentation of the available evidence. You thought quickly on your feet and were observant to note what did and did not work for others. It’s all you, not your phone… so fix the title already. Congratulations on defeating the random radar gun of taxation and welcome from another Attorney Pro Se.
Haha, true. but what exactly would you thing she should name it? “I went to court used my GPS phone and also cop was not prepared so I won the trial” lol that’s just boring.
Speed limit was 25 you were going 26. Technically you still were speeding.
I disagree; I personally know several and I find that most have an immature bully type attitude and love to push people around. Just telling it like I see it.
That is a good story and no doubt true, but one should be aware that it is not uncommon in traffic court for the judge, once in a while to render a not guilty verdict if there any doubt about the validity of the ticket (As they should since the burden of proof is beyond a reasonable doubt!). The person relating this is correct on several items: dress appropriately, treat the court and the officer with respect, and simply suggest that in this case, the officer must have been wrong because—here the GPS evidence is sufficient. Do not suggest that the officer is lying or has some ulterior motive. In a similar case involving an alleged running of a stop sign, I have used Google Earth pictures with vehicles placed to show that the officer couldn’t see my vehicle stop behind the pedestrian limit line before I started forward through an intersection. As I indicated the Court wants to render a few not guilties, and you have to have a reasonable basis for them to do so.
GPS is a terribly inaccurate measure of speed, much less position. Certainly considerably less than even a miscalibrated radar gun. In short, you got lucky. No one should ever think this would work most of the time.
Actually Mark, it would be more correct to allege that the GPS receivers built into cellphones might be terribly inaccurate but there is no technical reason for this to be so other than the speed of the microprocessor used and the ability of the programmers. GPS, even the Course Acquisition Mode used by non-military receivers, is quite capable of tracking a moving object at rates of speed your typical Ferrari cannot attain. GPS Fine Acquisition Mode and a Tomahawk cruise missle armed with a dummy warhead could end your speeding career permanently whilst causing very little “collateral damage”. As an example of what civilian GPS receivers can do, they can give you the time of day to within 30 nanoseconds (30 billionths of a second) of UTC anywhere in the world. With that data they could track your velocity considerably more accurately than any other method you could come up with that doesn’t use GPS data. You just couldn’t carry it around in your shirt pocket.
You pull that kind of stunt in my courtroom, and you’re going to find yourself with a one way ticket to prison, where you’ll meet all kinds of nice people who will love to hear your geeky story.
Maybe you ought to go crawl back under your rock rather than try to pass yourself off as something you are not.
I was a little worried after reading his two comments. He actually used a “.gov” email address, so he could possibly be a judge.
I live in Ontario, Canada and we don’t have such laws to protect us. I have found that being polite and honest is the best policy as even if convicted it will usually be a lighter sentence. Koodo’s to you for being well behaved and keeping together.
Take that you crooked cop! It just shows how bad the police can be.
Was the officers equipment malfunctioning or what? To show 40 mph when you are going 26 mph is quite a difference.
About fifteen years ago, I was stopped for doing 70 mph in a 45 mph speed zone. The odd thing about that was I had just come off an on-ramp to get onto the highway. Thankfully, my Dad was with me so he was a witness. We finally got home, and around midnight, we got a call from the County Sherrif Department. On the line was a very contrite deputy who proceeded to tell me that his radar gun had malfunctioned, and that he was required to make my ticket null and void. Apparently, when they do a traffic stop like that, they are supposed to ensure that the radar guns are in working order, and his wasn’t. Don’t you just LOVE technology?
had idea for onboard real time tell for EVERYTHING. no more bogus tickets. take acouple tech steps further an no traffic cops either. an no fun either
Nice..I too have the same kind of story .. But there Android helped me in saving a litre of petrol
Check this out
http://www.androidground.com/android-applications/how-google-android-saved-a-litre-of-petrol/
From an attorney who does a criminal defense practice- Great Work!
Always remember that a trial is a search for the truth, however it comes.
Where I live, the citing officer must attend these hearings; if s/he does not, the case is automatically dismissed. Thus, everyone has a 50/50 chance of prevailing; either the officer will show up or s/he will not. I’ve gotten the majority of tickets thrown out simply because the citing officer did not show up.
Just a note, the case that is refered to in Sonoma county was lost. The GPS only had time passed between two locations. The average speed was under the posted limit. But the maximum speed had to be greater than the limit because the car started from a standstill at a red light. GPS can be a double edged sword!
I believe it went back on trial after the judge initially sided in favor of the radar gun. I couldn’t find an article about the conclusion.
New smartphone and u can’t pay the fine, data plan and services could be avoid with this app too