Hello everyone!
I guess i should start from the beginning.
I am currently 34 years old. When I was 20 years old a vehicle pulled in front of me and I crashed into it. The
police report States it was not my fault. For two or three years I was in pain and going to see a regular doctor.
they constantly took x-rays but found nothing wrong. After about 4 years insurance declined paying for any more
services because they could not find anything wrong with me. My father fought it and they sent me for an MRI. it
was at that time they found out I had 2 herniated discs.
About once a year I ended up going to the emergency room with severe neck pain. sometimes I just want to the
doctor instead of the ER if it was convenient. during these visits they usually gave me pain medications.
Last year on 6/22/15 I was rear-ended by a teenager texting and driving at 60 miles an hour. My Dodge Charger
was completely totaled. I went and bought a used recertified truck from CarMax. it was only 3 years old.
I went to the doctor and found out I had four herniated discs now instead of 2. My left shoulder had a torn
muscle and three discs in my back were locked.
4 months later while driving through a small Texas town at 1 a.m. I was pulled over by the local police. I asked
him why I was pulled over he said my license plate was dirty or something. he asked me if I had any weapons in
the car or drugs. I told him I had just come from hunting hogs and I had my rifle unloaded in the backseat in a
case. I also told him that while I did not have any illegal drugs I did have prescription medication in a bag in
the backseat. He asked that I get out of the vehicle for his own safety and my own while he conducted a search of
my truck. I left the vehicle and we went to the rear, i pointed out that my license plate was clean, Not dirty.
He placed me in handcuffs and ask for me to go sit in the back of his vehicle because he did not like my tone.
While taking me to the back of his vehicle I told him there was nothing wrong with my license plate lights. His
response was you have a light out.
He pulled out my rifle verified it was unloaded and put it on the back of the truck. Then he went to my bag that
I had my prescription medication in and pulled it out for a look. Each bottle of medication was in my name and
legally obtained. He opened up one of the bottles and looked at it and noticed that there was a couple of oval
pills mixed in with the round pills that came in said bottle. When he showed me I explained to him that i had a
older bottle of the same medication (strength was different, less codine, less Tylenol) and to save room i just
combined them. Wow. Big mistake on my part.
I was arrested for possession of a controlled substance and charged with unlawful carry of a firearm. Both
felonies. Since I threw away the old bottle I am having trouble finding out where I got it from. I believe it was
from a hospital that I visited while traveling in Texas 2 or 3 years back. I am working to get that information
for my lawyer to mount a defense for me.
Upon being released from jail on bond the next day I went to the impound lot and got my truck out. as soon as
they let me get into my truck I turned on the ignition started the truck and turned on my lights. I pulled out my
camera phone and did a walk around with my vehicle while my camera was recording video. I went to my back license
plate and clearly showed that my license plate was not dirty and both of my rear lights for the license plate
we're functioning normally. I had just bought my truck 4 months earlier.
After obtaining an attorney I showed him the video. he later went and talked to the prosecutor and showed him the
video. the prosecutor came back saying that my license plate was not visible on the dash cam video from 15 or 20
feet behind my truck.
I watched the dashcam video with my lawyer. upon pulling up behind my vehicle the police officer turned off his
headlights. you can barely see my license plate while he came up and talked with me. My lawyer suggested that I
had defective lights somehow. Texas law states that a license plate must be visible and clearly legible from 50
feet away. I took a tape measure and measured out 50 feet at night with my lights on. I have absolutely no
problem reading my license plate from 50 feet away at night. I took out my camera phone a Samsung Galaxy S5 and
took a picture. on that picture you cannot read my license plate from 50 feet away without using the Flash on the
camera phone. You have to get about 10 feet away to read license plate on camera.
I believe the officer just wanted to stop me to see what I was doing driving through his small town at 1 am. (I
think he was fishing for drunks)
I believe the officer on purposely turned off his headlights to make his case for my license plate lights not
working properly.
On the ticket I was given a warning for no or defective license plate lights.
I cannot pull the judge and prosecutor out of the courtroom to go look at my vehicle at night. How can I explain
to them that the dash cam video doesn't see the same as a pair of eyes on a human being?
I have tried doing a little bit of Googling to see if I can find any type of information that would help support
my case. I have had almost no luck. I found this forum and it appears to be one of the most legitimate
photography sites I have stumbled across so far.
Any help that anybody could provide would be greatly appreciated. I work in construction 50 hours a week, I have
no previous criminal record.
I am looking at going to jail for 60 days to 10 years over a stupid misunderstanding on my part (combining what i
thought was same/similar dosage meds).
This will destroy my family as I am the bread winner and pay most of the bills in my household. On top of all
this I am at looking at going into surgery in the near future for my neck herniations. Instead of focusing on my
injuries, i am fighting a legal battle.
To reiterate my question, how can i prove that my license plate is visible to the naked eye from 50ft at night,
when the camera on dash cam cant see it from 15 or 20 feet away?
Thank you for your time and patience with my long winded situation, I look forward with much hope and
anticipation to any responses.
Stephen D. San Antonio, Tx
