Posts by James Cox4

Visa Webprepaid

https://www.citigroup.com/personal/cards-and-banking/prepaid-cards/webprepaid/

Basically, that guy is feeding you some BS.
As an individual, you're allowed to bring protein across the border for personal use without worrying about customs duties. Importing protein on a larger scale is strictly for businesses that have specific clearance from the FDA—and in those cases, they get a VAT exemption while you end up stuck paying our local sales tax and customs fees. BTW, you might even dodge the customs duty entirely if the product was manufactured within the EU.

It doesn't necessarily mean it happened through an online payment.
If I remember correctly, there were recently reports of cards being skimmed at ATMs and cash being pulled in Italy. Maybe you’re one of those victims and the charge just finally hit your account.
Have you even used an ATM to withdraw cash in the last few months?

urbanraven16 said:The only thing here that actually sounds "chilling" is the fact that somewhere in the States, there’s an officer being incredibly arrogant by actively preventing a citizen from exercising their right to appeal—which, by the way, is a sacred constitutional right that shouldn't be trampled on by any fine or local ordinance.

Unfortunately, judging by your response, the authorities are never going to find out about this, but hey, that’s your call and your prerogative...

The "reasons" he gave you are honestly laughable; I mean, he isn't some toxicologist, so how would he even know the specifics regarding the "absorption" of a 0.08 BAC? (And for the record, it's elimination, not absorption, and it certainly doesn't take 72 hours) besides, it's not his job to make those calls, nor is it his place to decide on an appeal, and it's definitely illegal—punishable, even—for an officer to just brush someone off and refuse to accept a formal filing... all while acting like they own the place.

As for the violation itself:

Right now, you're looking at the minimum fine, because when the police issue a citation, they aren't allowed to go above the baseline. Only a judge can decide to increase it (I think we're talking maybe $50?), but if you contest it, the magistrate isn't bound by what the officer wrote, so they could technically hike it up (but based on what I'm reading here, I wouldn't count on that being a factor in your case)

Moving forward:

1—I’d strongly suggest leaving the "judge's discretion" part out of any option you choose.

2—If you’re going to fight this using the excuses you mentioned, just file the objection without providing a detailed explanation. If you scroll back a few pages on this forum, you'll find a solid template for that.

3—They’ll call you in for a preliminary hearing, where it's just you, and you can say whatever you want. But if you stick to the story you've told me, expect a debate, likely a confrontation with the officer, and a high probability of a conviction. Once you get the verdict, you have 8 days to file an appeal with the higher court. Until you actually have the official ruling in hand, nobody can really tell you exactly which points to hit in your appeal.

4—There’s a pretty high chance the appellate court will rule before the statute of limitations expires... but if they slap you with a new charge, then it's almost a 100% certainty.

By the way, there's been this ongoing "issue" with the appellate courts for a while now, where rulings are being delivered a year or more after the statute of limitations has already passed, yet internally, the decision was made during a session held within the legal timeframe. Since that decision becomes final the moment it's signed, it technically isn't subject to the statute of limitations by the time it actually hits your mailbox.

Can someone drop a link to that page? I’d love to take a look at that template myself.