Category: Practice Areas

Stopped for a Traffic Ticket? Time to Pass the Attitude Test.

You had to pass a driving test to get your license. If you have really bad luck, you may have to pass a sobriety test. But every time you get stopped by the police, it’s time for the attitude test.

What is the Attitude Test for Traffic Tickets?

The attitude test is given by the officer and is completely subjective. It’s all about how the two of you interact. If you come across as a jerk, you fail. If you come across as friendly, you pass. Neutral – you probably pass. You just don’t want to stand out in the officer’s mind as a jerk.

What does failure look like? Being smug; disrespectful (mentioning “pigs” or “bacon” usually equals a fail); yelling; swearing; reminding the officer that you “pay their salary;” pulling over a spot that is obviously unsafe for someone to be on the shoulder (like in a gore point).

What does passing look like? None of the above, obviously. Being polite; not arguing the ticket. Does that sound like rolling over or knuckling under? Could be – but you’re better off not taking the chance that your objection be taken the wrong way or that you say something that will be used against you later. Then we can fight the allegations in court.

Passing the Attitude Test Can Determine Your Fate.

If you fail the attitude test, you could get tons of tickets dropped on your head from that one traffic stop. Why? Because most us can violate a few traffic laws all at the same time – speeding, not signaling 100 feet before a lane change and then making a u-turn. Oops. Passing the test will usually get you one ticket plus some warnings – or if you’re very lucky, warnings all around.

The attitude test also comes back into play in court. How? The officer will have taken notes about your traffic stop. My stomach always drops when I see the officer has written that my client was “a jerk” or “yelled throughout,” etc.

Passing the Attitude Test Can Be Tough.

It can be hard to pass the attitude test. Many officers are friendly out on the street. Some aren’t so friendly. However, a lot of those “unfriendly” officers are acting, in my opinion, out of a desire to control the situation. They don’t know if you’re an average joe or someone that might want to hurt them – consequently, they take control through a brusque attitude. It doesn’t work well as customer service for average joe but probably makes the other guys think twice. A lot these officers, by the way, are some of the nicest folks you’ll meet when they’re not pulling you over.

What Can You Do if The Officer Treats You Poorly?

You have some options if you feel an officer that stopped you on the road treated you poorly. First, write down everything that happened. Second, after your case is done, file a complaint. (Filing a complaint while your case is pending is a bad idea for obvious reasons.) At worst, you may feel better. At best, if the officer really is mistreating people on the road (and this wasn’t just one bad interaction), he or she may get enough feedback to take a second look at how their work methods are affecting the people they pull over.

Finally, turn in your survey. According to a report by OPB, Portland Police are participating in a national survey that is “focus[ing] … on the quality of the encounters people have with police and on peoples’ perceptions of the police department.” Bad results should catch the eye of PPB brass and maybe bring about a kinder, gentler traffic stop.

But What About My Ticket if I Fail the Attitude Test?

Best thing to do: Get an attorney. A traffic ticket attorney can defuse any leftover ill will by acting as a go-between for you and the officer. A traffic ticket attorney can also appear on your behalf so there’s smaller chance that the officer will recognize your face and have that bad interaction come back to them. I’ve been able to smooth many a ruffled feather by explaining my client’s situation that led to the failure of the attitude.

If you’ve got a traffic ticket – especially one where you’re worried you failed the attitude test – give me a call.

One of the stranger Oregon traffic laws is the Illegal U-Turn Ticket. In other places, you can do U-turns willy-nilly. Take Washington, for example: “The driver of any vehicle shall not turn such vehicle so as to proceed in the opposite direction unless such movement can be made in safety and without interfering with other traffic.” U-turns allowed unless they’re unsafe or interfere with other traffic.

Not so under Oregon’s U-turn law. Many intersections have No U-turn signs… and others don’t. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean you can turn at all of those unsigned intersections.

You Can Do U-Turns in Oregon – But Do It Right to Avoid an Illegal U-Turn Ticket.

You’ll get an illegal u-turn ticket if you do a u-turn at any intersection that has a traffic light – unless a sign says you can.

You’ll get an illegal u-turn ticket if you do a u-turn between intersections in a city.

You’ll get an illegal u-turn ticket if you do a u-turn any place where your vehicle can’t be seen for 500 feet in each direction in a city (that’s generally 2.5 city blocks in Portland or almost the length of 2 football fields) or 1000 feet (over 3 football fields) in each direction outside a city.

Where Can You Do a U-turn and Not Get an Illegal U-turn Ticket?

In a city:

• At an intersection with a traffic light and a u-turn allowed sign.
• At an intersection without a traffic light if there is 500 feet of visibility in front and behind your vehicle.

Outside of a city:

• At an intersection with a traffic light and a u-turn allowed sign.
• Anywhere else where there is 1000 feet of visibility in front and behind your vehicle.

What Should You do if You Get an Illegal U-turn Ticket?

Make a note of where you are, the type of signs the intersection has, where the officer was when he saw the alleged u-turn and how much visibility there was in each direction.

Your best bet for keeping it off your driving record is working with an experienced traffic ticket attorney, like me. Contact me for a confidential consultation.

I get a lot of phone calls about turn signal tickets. The complaint I hear from people is that the police stopped them and gave
them a turn signal ticket  – even though they used their turn signal!

Unfortunately, Oregon law is a bit tricky about those signals. You have to use them at the right time and in the right place.

When do You Have to Use Your Signal to Avoid a Turn Signal Ticket?

There are actually three statutes that control when you have to use your turn signal in a car or truck (there’s another one for turns on bikes and another for turns on motor assisted scooters. Turning is a big deal in Oregon.

Turning Left or Right: ORS 811.335 will earn you a turn signal ticket if you don’t use your signal on a highway before turning the vehicle left or right when the movement can’t be done with safety OR you signal for less than  100 feet traveled.

The 100 foot requirement is very strict.

In State v. Bea, 318 Or 220 (1993), the Oregon Supreme Court held that the 100 foot requirement applies even where the turn made is the only available option. In Bea, the car turned at an L-shaped intersection without signaling. Even though the car had to turn, it was a traffic violation to not signal 100 feet beforehand.

In State v. Arthur, 158 Or App 62 (1999), the Court of Appeals held that the 100-foot requirement applies even if there is an intervening stop – i.e. you can’t turn your signal on at the stop sign. It even applies, the court said, if you pull onto a highway and immediately make another turn where it is impossible to drive 100 feet. The court said you might have an impossibility defense but it would still technically be a violation of the statute.

Changing Lanes:  ORS 811.375 will earn you a turn signal ticket if you don’t use your signal before “changing lanes by moving right or left upon the highway” when the movement can’t be done with safety OR you signal for less than  100 feet traveled.

The 100 foot requirement can be tricky. At 60 mph, that’s 1.14 seconds of signal. At 30 mph, 2.28 seconds of signal. Crawling in traffic at 5 mph, that’s 13.68 seconds of signal before changing lane.

The same strictness about the 100-foot requirement probably applies here, too.

In a Roundabout: ORS 811.400 will you earn you a turn signal ticket if you don’t use a signal before changing lanes or to exit “from any position within a roundabout.” Oddly, this violation is a Class B traffic violation (the second-most serious type) whereas the other two  are Class D violations (the least serious).

What Can You do to Avoid a Turn Signal Ticket?

Signal, Signal, Signal. Signal before changing lanes, turning at corners, in a roundabout and entering the road.

Signal early, Signal often. 100 feet can be further than you think. Put your signal on well before you plan to make your move. If you spot a police car nearby, make a note of where you put the signal on. I’ve seen people win their cases by testifying that the saw the police car, made a special note of it and made a special note of where they turned on the signal.

Signal each move. It’s not part of the statute that you have to signal each lane change separately – just that you have to signal for 100 feet before moving left or right – but most police officers interpret it that way and some will give you a ticket for each lane change that wasn’t properly signaled. You might be able to beat it in court… but why run the risk of picking up the ticket?

Signal even if you’re not sure that you’re going to turn. You can’t be dinged for having your signal on and changing your mind.

What Should You do if You Get a Turn Signal Ticket?

Did you get a turn signal ticket? Your best bet for keeping it off your driving record is working with an experienced traffic ticket attorney, like me. Contact me for a confidential consultation.