Commonwealth v. Trent Williams
Oct 13, 2010OUTCOME: Trent Williams was found Not Guilty
On June 6, 2010 Mr. Trent Williams was pulled over by a Fairfax County police office for allegedly driving 90 mph in a 55 mph zone. In the State of Virginia a Reckless driving charge such as this can ... result in driving privileges being revoked for up to 6 months. The officer provided a certificate showing the car's speedometer had been calibrated in February, and the certificate indicates it has been notarized. The law requires a document's authenticity to be sworn to before it can be admitted as evidence. However the mechanic for the county who serviced the car did not testify that he had the calibration notarized. I objected to the certificate, and Judge Keats threw it out. "For this document to be admitted," Keats said, "it has to be done under oath." I then asked the judge to dismiss the case, and the judge did so without further comment.
