What If I Am Given A Traffic Ticket And An Unfavorable Police Report?

You may be tempted to assume that having received a traffic ticket in a motor vehicle accident that resulted in your injury necessarily precludes your filing a claim against another party. Such is not the case. Traffic citations, along with police reports, are common documents in personal injury cases. These documents are often much less decisive than you might think.

It may surprise you to know that traffic tickets and police reports are of not much evidentiary value to your personal injury claim. A traffic citation may give some guidance to adjusters as to how the accident occurred, but in a court of law it really is just a hearsay document. The fact of the matter is that tickets and police reports really don’t prove anything. They are, essentially, someone’s (a police officer’s) guess as to who did what at an accident scene. In our system of justice, one is innocent until proven guilty. Facts alleged in a traffic ticket or a police report must be proven. Given the often-chaotic circumstances of an accident scene, and the distraction of simultaneous duties for the officers at the scene, police reports and citations can not be assumed to be without inaccuracies and important omissions.

Even in cases where it can be shown that you contributed to the cause of the accident you may still be entitled to recover a significant amount of compensation. If it can be shown that your contribution is less than that of the defendant you will be awarded compensation, just less than what you would have received had your actions had not contributed in any way.

The experienced, knowledgeable, and compassionate attorneys at Titus Law Firm will advise you on the best path forward in your case, even where traffic citations and police reports are seemingly not in your favor.