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No one has ever been charged with a felony cheating the toll. It's no different than obscuring your lisence plate. This is a power grab by the Companies that reap the toll benefits executives behind this stiff penalty.
He will beat this charge. There are tens of thousands of cases out there where people drive without a license plate or obscure their license plate. The law is very clear and their is a fine and penalty but there is no Felony charges for it.
If I were this guy I would tell the Judge "Fuck them! Your honor, I'm guilty of a $169 offense and maximum toll allowed plus late fee."
Then loby to end the tolls they are a menace, they caused 30,000 accidents in the toll express lanes in South Florida alone.
Unlawful to alter motor vehicle registration certificates, license plates, temporary license plates, mobile home stickers, or validation stickers or to obscure license plates; penalty. A person may not alter the original appearance of a vehicle registration certificate, license plate, temporary license plate, mobile home sticker, or validation sticker issued for and assigned to a motor vehicle or mobile home, whether by mutilation, alteration, defacement, or change of color or in any other manner. A person may not apply or attach a substance, reflective matter, illuminated device, spray, coating, covering, or other material onto or around any license plate which interferes with the legibility, angular visibility, or detectability of any feature or detail on the license plate or interferes with the ability to record any feature or detail on the license plate. A person who violates this section commits a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable as a moving violation as provided in chapter 318."
Is this any different than a burglar caught with Burglary tools or criminal caught with a police scanner that brings extra charges in some states a felony? Charge might stick since he was using a device specifically for the act of committing a crime and was caught doing so. Curious if they go back through images and see his car over and over again with the plate covered they could charge him for all of those, what if they are in the hundreds if it is something he used daily?
Charge might stick since he was using a device specifically for the act of committing a crime and was caught doing so
Nope!!!
Unlawful to alter motor vehicle registration certificates, license plates, temporary license plates, mobile home stickers, or validation stickers or to obscure license plates; penalty
They don't want to fuck around on this, we're already amassing to have the express lanes (tolls) removed.
Cheating is a third-degree felony. “So for $1.25 toll, he now has a felony charge,†Montes explains, “we want to let people know it's not worth it, pay the toll or don't use the road.â€
Troopers say Joshua Concepcion West could've gotten away with it,
http://www.foxnews.com/auto/2017/01/16/troopers-say-man-tried-to-hide-license-plate-to-get-through-tolls.html
Now you see it, now you don't!
A gutsy driver was pulled over after trying to block his plate while going through a toll plaza, on Wednesday, Fox 35 reports. He used a device that rolls a black sheet across his license plate with the push of a button. It even had the Florida Highway Patrol doing a double-take.
“We've seen people hang out the back of cars to put their hand over it, we've seen motorcycles take different routes through the express lanes to avoid the camera, people intentionally cover their tags, semi trucks block their tags,†says Sgt. Kim Montes with the FHP.
Obviously, if the toll camera can't see your tag, the state can’t send you the bill. Troopers say Joshua Concepcion West could've gotten away with it, if he hadn’t used the device while driving right in front of a trooper, who busted him.
“He was subsequently arrested for petty theft and also for cheating,†Sgt. Montes says.
Cheating is a third-degree felony. “So for $1.25 toll, he now has a felony charge,†Montes explains, “we want to let people know it's not worth it, pay the toll or don't use the road.â€
They stress it's illegal for anything to cover your license plate. “The only thing that belongs on your tag is that year renewal sticker, if you put anything else on your tag it's against the law,†Montes says.
Troopers say that, in recent memory, they can't recall anyone who's been charged with cheating.
#crime #tolls