Judge dismisses case against man accused of speeding Read more: http://www.ottawacit
10-12-2010, 08:54 PM
#1
Race Director
Thread Starter
Judge dismisses case against man accused of speeding Read more: http://www.ottawacit
Judge dismisses case against man accused of speeding
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Judge+d...614/story.html
OTTAWA—The legal saga for a Toronto man convicted, and later acquitted, of speeding based on a police officer’s “guesstimate” of how fast he was going appears to have come to a full stop Tuesday.
That’s because an Ottawa judge dismissed the city’s attempts to have him found guilty.
While Ontario Court Justice Robert Fournier said he may have ruled differently, he found no “fatal errors” in a justice of the peace’s decision to acquit Dennis Pacitti last June of speeding 149 km/h in a 100 km/h zone after hearing evidence that the police officer who gave him the ticket didn’t know the exact speed.
Instead, the officer based the charge entirely on his own observation when he stopped Pacitti on the Queensway near Woodroffe Avenue in November 2008.
Pacitti, 43, was originally found guilty in 2009 and fined $359 for the offence, but appealed the decision. The verdict was overturned and he received a second trial in June, where he was found not guilty.
City prosecutor Anne Colterman argued Tuesday the justice of the peace made a mistake dismissing the charge since there was evidence Pacitti was speeding at the time, even if no official record of it exists.
“Anyone could form the opinion that vehicle was speeding,” Colterman argued, describing how the officer’s actual estimate of Pacitti’s speed was closer to 175 km/h but he opted to lay the lower charge, avoiding stunt driving charges and a license suspension.
Colterman said the officer’s speedometer was at 115 km/h when he pulled in behind Pacitti.
“You don’t need a radar, you don’t need a laser, you don’t need to calibrate your speedometer. Anyone can make that estimation,” she said.
Pacitti’s lawyer, David Anber, argued that the city’s appeal should be dismissed if the justice of the peace’s decision was reasonable, and not whether the judge hearing the appeal agrees with the outcome.
Fournier agreed, finding he had no choice but to dismiss the appeal.
“The test is not whether I agree or disagree. The test is, is it a reasonable verdict or is it a totally unreasonable verdict. I can’t find it is a totally unreasonable verdict,” said Fournier.
“I think the justice of the peace could have concluded the guesstimate was accurate enough to warrant a conviction,” said Fournier. “Nevertheless, the justice of the peace thought there shouldn’t be a conviction. I can’t overturn that.”
Pacitti, whose insurance rates have skyrocketed on top of his lawyer fees, wasn’t in court to hear the outcome. But Anber said the court battle has been hard on him.
Anber, who accused the city of “making a mountain out of a molehill,” said the case raised fundamental legal issues about proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
“It’s one thing to read between the lines. It’s another to prove it in court,” said Anber. “And they couldn’t prove it.”
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Judge+d...614/story.html
OTTAWA—The legal saga for a Toronto man convicted, and later acquitted, of speeding based on a police officer’s “guesstimate” of how fast he was going appears to have come to a full stop Tuesday.
That’s because an Ottawa judge dismissed the city’s attempts to have him found guilty.
While Ontario Court Justice Robert Fournier said he may have ruled differently, he found no “fatal errors” in a justice of the peace’s decision to acquit Dennis Pacitti last June of speeding 149 km/h in a 100 km/h zone after hearing evidence that the police officer who gave him the ticket didn’t know the exact speed.
Instead, the officer based the charge entirely on his own observation when he stopped Pacitti on the Queensway near Woodroffe Avenue in November 2008.
Pacitti, 43, was originally found guilty in 2009 and fined $359 for the offence, but appealed the decision. The verdict was overturned and he received a second trial in June, where he was found not guilty.
City prosecutor Anne Colterman argued Tuesday the justice of the peace made a mistake dismissing the charge since there was evidence Pacitti was speeding at the time, even if no official record of it exists.
“Anyone could form the opinion that vehicle was speeding,” Colterman argued, describing how the officer’s actual estimate of Pacitti’s speed was closer to 175 km/h but he opted to lay the lower charge, avoiding stunt driving charges and a license suspension.
Colterman said the officer’s speedometer was at 115 km/h when he pulled in behind Pacitti.
“You don’t need a radar, you don’t need a laser, you don’t need to calibrate your speedometer. Anyone can make that estimation,” she said.
Pacitti’s lawyer, David Anber, argued that the city’s appeal should be dismissed if the justice of the peace’s decision was reasonable, and not whether the judge hearing the appeal agrees with the outcome.
Fournier agreed, finding he had no choice but to dismiss the appeal.
“The test is not whether I agree or disagree. The test is, is it a reasonable verdict or is it a totally unreasonable verdict. I can’t find it is a totally unreasonable verdict,” said Fournier.
“I think the justice of the peace could have concluded the guesstimate was accurate enough to warrant a conviction,” said Fournier. “Nevertheless, the justice of the peace thought there shouldn’t be a conviction. I can’t overturn that.”
Pacitti, whose insurance rates have skyrocketed on top of his lawyer fees, wasn’t in court to hear the outcome. But Anber said the court battle has been hard on him.
Anber, who accused the city of “making a mountain out of a molehill,” said the case raised fundamental legal issues about proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
“It’s one thing to read between the lines. It’s another to prove it in court,” said Anber. “And they couldn’t prove it.”
10-12-2010, 10:12 PM
#5
Three Wheelin'
It's such a BS case. Either you have concrete proof that they guy was speeding or you don't. guesstimates don't count. seems like a pretty simple open and shut case to me. The JP absolutely did the right thing. Now i wonder if the guys insurance will go back down now that he has been found not guilty.
As for Fantino running in the next election...God help us all!
As for Fantino running in the next election...God help us all!
