RESOURCES

General advice (PDF documents)


Highway Traffic Agent in the media From time to time, we’ve been spotted in a courtroom and interviewed by reporters for a story they may be working on.

Frank Alfano, Highway Traffic Agent Paralegal arguing Section 11(B) Charter Applications when he was interviewed by the National Post. View the National Post article.

About Roadside Stops Learn what to say and what not to say and when vehicle searches are legal. Your battle to beat a ticket begins the instant you realize you're being stopped by a police officer. You will be in a much better position to challenge your ticket in court if you take a few simple steps when you are pulled over. Here are some suggestions.

  • When You See the Police Car If a police car is following you with its siren blaring or emergency lights flashing, pull over to the right safely and quickly. Use your turn signal to indicate any lane changes from left to right, and slow down fairly quickly, but not so quickly that the officer will have to brake to avoid hitting you. Pull over as far to the right as possible so that, when the officer comes up to your window, he won't have to worry about being clipped by vehicles in the right lane. By stopping as soon as you can, you'll have a better chance of figuring out exactly where the officer says you committed a violation. You may want to return to that area later to make sure the officer was telling the truth about how he judged your speed, saw your turn, or witnessed any other violation.
  • Right After You Stop After you've pulled over to a safe spot, you might want to show the officer a few other token courtesies. At this point, you have little to lose and perhaps something to gain. First off, roll down your window all the way. You may also want to turn off the engine, place your hands on the steering wheel, and, if it's dark, turn on your interior light. This will tend to allay any fears the officer may have. (After all, police officers are killed every day in such "ordinary" traffic-stop situations, and the officer's approach to the vehicle is the potentially most dangerous.) Don't start rummaging through your back pocket for your wallet and license, or in your glove compartment for your registration, until the officer asks you for them. For all he knows, you could be reaching for a gun. If you are at all concerned that the person who stopped you is not actually a police officer (for example, if the car that pulled you over is unmarked), you should ask to see the officer's photo identification along with his badge. If you still have doubts, you can ask that the officer to call a supervisor to the scene or you can request that you be allowed to follow the officer to a police station.
  • Should You Get Out of Your Car? An officer who stops you for an alleged traffic violation has the right to insist that you and your passengers get out of your car. You should do so if asked. Also, getting out of your car may make it easier for you to check road conditions, the weather, and the place the violation supposedly occurred. However, many police officers prefer that you stay in your car and will tell you to stay there if you start to get out. If this happens, obviously you should cooperate. If you get out of the car against the officer's orders, don't be surprised to see a gun pointing at you. Cops are trained to expect the worst.
  • Talking to the Officer many people stopped by an officer make the mistake of saying the wrong thing to him and failing to say the right things. And a case can be won or lost depending on what you say or don't say to the officer. Don't speak first. Especially don't start off with a defensive or hostile "What's the problem?" or similar words. Let the officer start talking. He will probably ask to see your license and vehicle registration. Many people make the mistake of insisting the officer tell them why he stopped them before they'll comply. Don't make that mistake. Reply "okay" or "sure," then hand over the documents. One of the first things traffic cops learn in the police academy is to decide, before leaving their vehicle, whether they're going to give a ticket or just a warning. They may act as though they still haven't made up their minds and are going to let you off only if you'll cooperate. Don't fall for this. The hesitating officer may be trying to appear open-minded in order to extract admissions out of you, to use them against you in court if necessary. The strategy is to try to get you to admit either that you committed a violation or that you were so careless, inattentive, or negligent that you don't know whether you did or not. The officer might start by asking you the sort of question whose lack of a definite answer would imply guilt, like, "Do you know why I stopped you?" Or, he might ask, "Do you know how fast you were going?" Your answers, if any, should be non-committal and brief, like a simple "No" to the first question or a very confident, "Yes, I do," to the second. If he then tells you how fast he thinks you were going or what he thinks you did, don't argue. Give a noncommittal answer, like, "I see," or no answer at all. Silence is not an admission of guilt and cannot be used against you in court.


Classifications of Offences The Supreme Court of Canada in the case of R. vs. Sault Ste. Marie, Set out three classifications of offences. These classifications of Offences apply to Traffic Tickets. It is important to know when defending a charge how the offence is classified. The three classifications are as follows:
  • Mens Rae - Mens Rae Offences are offences in which the prosecution must prove the mental element (the guilty mind), sometimes referred to as conscientiousness of guilt. Essentially, in addition to proving the actus reus (the guilty act), the prosecution must also prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you intended to commit the offences.
  • Strict Liability - Strict Liability Offences are offences where the prosecution does need to prove the mental element (or intention) to commit the offence however the defendant can lead evidence to establish or advance a strict liability defence. This sometimes has the effect of appearing to be a reverse onus on the defendant. Read R. v. Sault Ste. Marie and R. v. Bellomo for more information.
  • Absolute Liability - Absolute Liability Offences are offences where the prosecution does not have to prove the mental element (Intention) to commit the offence. Simply proving the guilty act beyond a reasonable doubt is sufficient for conviction. Raising a reasonable doubt is somewhat trickier but there are still ways you could raise a doubt.


Elements of the offence The elements of an offence differ from charge to charge. They are the ingredients of a charge. For instance if you were making Apple pie and had no apples, well... you wouldn't have apple pie. By the same token if you were defending a stop sign charge and there was no evidence of a stop sign, well...there wouldn't be a stop sign charge.

There are common elements such as date, identification, etc but for the most part the actual charge or act is proven differently.

When you defend any charge, in addition to finding out the classification of offence, you should also learn the elements of it as well.


Highway Traffic Agent in the courtroom We have begun ordering transcripts of successful cases which we will be posting to show you how we argue. A summary of the case of R._v._Koumoudouros

In this case the defendant was charged with Speeding. Typically police use a radar or laser (Speed Measuring Device) but this person was paced. That’s when the police use their own speedometer to obtain a speed reading. There was a case from 1974 from the Ontario Court of Appeal. After careful review of the case, it was clear that people were misreading it. In fact, it was relied on at the Appeal from both prosecution and defence. The Judge agreed with the defence and overturned the conviction.


What is Case law? Case law is a previously decided case. A precedent. An issue which was decided by a court. You can use case law to help a court decide something. Visit our In the courtroom page to see if any of the cases we argued help you. You can also visit the canlii site and search for case law on almost any subject.


Using Photographs If you want (or need) to rely on photographs, there are a few things you need to know. Photographs arentt automatically admitted. They need to be qualified.

Firstly, you’ll need the photographer. The photographer should be asked:
  • If he took the pictures;
  • When he took the pictures;
  • There should be evidence that it accurately reflects the scene as it was when the incident happened. You may encounter an admissibility problem if the offence took place in the summer and you photographed it in the winter. They should be taken as soon as possible. Remember, they should accurately reflect the scene as best as it can. If the photos are not accurate, they could be considered misleading depending on what they are proving.


What are Submissions? Submission are your closing argument(s). This is your chance to submit why you should not be found guilty.

It is not an opportunity to repeat the evidence, although you can refer to it. You may for example, say something like "Your worship, I ask you to accept my evidence where it differs from the officer for the following reasons:" and then proceed to explain why you should be believed, or why your evidence is capable of belief, etc.

This is YOUR opportunity to explain your case. Use the evidence that is before the court to your advantage. Point out problems in the prosecutions case, and point out all the reasons why you should be acquitted.