I made a classic (albeit unsuccessful) closing argument recently at the Bronx traffic court. Although charged with 74/50 in a “work area’ on the northbound side of the Throgs Neck Expressway, we had a good legal defense. Incidentally, fine are doubled in work areas.
We argued that due to the undisputed fact that actual construction on this stretch of roadway was about a mile further north, we shouldn’t be charged with speeding in a work area (this not be a “work area” as defined by law but rather an area leading up to a “work area”). When the judge pointed out that there were signs in place designating this pre-work area as a “work area”, I replied as follows:
“You could put a sign over my head describing me as a women but that doesn’t mean I have a vagina”.
Although we lost the case (its still under appeal), I am still quite proud of this argument.