It is not my day, Fined $5154.00

I have to admit I worry that the same thing might happen to me someday also. I pick up trailers left by other drivers all the time. Even if you roll onto a CAT scale, it typically just gives you a combined weight for both axles on your spread axle. You won't know by that whether one or the other might be bearing all the weight.

I guess the only thing you can do is add a "is the distributor valve working?" check to your daily pretrip.

I'll add that the guy who trained me on flatbed told me the same thing had happened to him once. I think it was a different state and the fine was a little bit lighter (like only $1,500), but same basic situation. It's just like anything else. It can happen to anyone, and it's bull that they would honestly take away a month or two of your wages for something that probably didn't hurt anything.

 

I had a similar situation last summer in Ill. Coming out of PA with 46k load on spread axle trailer. My rear axle slid and I needed to make a 180 and did not want to drag my tires too badly so I shortened up the rear. How ever I forgot to spread my axles back apart before I left. I hit the scale in Hubbard and they let me through. Coming into Ill I hit the scale and he red lights me and says come inside. I figure he just wants to check my bills and papers. Nooooope.

Says I'm 35900 on my rear axles. I say so? Knowing my gauge showed barely 31-32k on my drives,.. not knowing my axles were together in the rear as I almost never slide it. I'm allowed 40k back there I say,. he says no,.. 34k unless I'm spread. I look and realize he's right. I say ok you got me. Let me spread them and I'll be on my way. Not so fast he says,.. you came in how you came in.

Fined me plus I had to pay Comdata fee right there on the spot. What a jerk! When I ran Reefer and was a little over on an axle they always let me slide in order to make it right. I think now with money hard to come by they are looking at fining anyone and everyone they can. Driver beware. My fault, I know better. But ####,.. no slack?

Hurst

 

Well without reading through 6 pages of ranting. This is what I would suggest. Go to court. Odss are they will drop the fine drastically. I have been pinned in Illinois many times. They are fairly reasonable as long as you show up for court. And as far as playing the axle game I dump all the time and flip switches to get legal on certain axles. So to speak. It happens that sometimes an axle gets left dumped. I dunno about pusher axles but I run a regualer spread and half the time I hjave to dump the back bags in order to get legal on the the drives. LOL

 

So have I. More than once. The judge always reduces the fine ALOT. Often all that is required is that I plead guilty on the ticket/summons and attach an explanation and he will reduce it without ever having to appear in court. This is NY tho.

 

It has to be more to that story. I've pulled into scales with a 20' ft container un-extended it being overweight on the trailer axles. They let me extend it and re weigh and be on my way.

 

When I pulled reefer I was always allowed to slide axle to get weight right. Here recently anything they can collect or write you up on they have been doing it.

 

I would think that had to be a rough ride. The ticket is yours, you earned it,but most any decent lawyer will be able to get a reduction of the fine.

 

Not everyone will let you slide it. Mo and Tn always wanted my money first, then slide.

 

There doesn't always have to be a "more to the story" when it comes to IL and overweight tickets that's one of their favorite moneymakers. Even when the ticket "gets reduced".

 

I'm pretty sure they reduce the fine as a "plea bargain" strategy. You can sometimes beat a ticket by pleading "not guilty" if the officer doesn't show up for court. (If he's not there then the prosecution has no evidence and the case will be dismissed.) But if you plead "not guilty", then they won't reduce your fine after you're convicted no matter how good your cry story is.

It's an all or nothing gamble. Odds are an officer that's looking for revenue won't forget his court appointment, so the guilty plea is probably the smart bet in Ilinois. They're willing to lower your fine for saving them the trouble of a court case, which might cost them more money than even what they end up collecting from you.

A good lawyer might be able to heckle with them by threatening to make the trial more expensive by filing all kinds of silly evidence requests or something. They may prefer to meet his price rather than bankrupt themselves on court costs.

I think that's why sometimes you'll hear about a lawyer getting a speeding ticket reduced to a parking fine. He just heckles with them and they see the $ signs of how much they stand to lose if they prosecute.