Later this month, I'll announce details of a seminar about how to use LinkedIn to find clients and make money. I'm calling it my Economic Stimulus Plan because I'm tired of seeing the sad looks on other business' owners faces because of the market situation. There is plenty of opportunity out there if you're paying attention and know how to capitalize on it.

During my quest to adopt all things social media, I developed a short list of tips and tricks that helped me find clients and make money using LinkedIn. I now have clients all over the country as a result. Some businesses, like my friend Amanda (The Grammar Doctor, www.thegrammardoctor.com) will benefit more than others from these tricks, but I think any small business will benefit.

The Grammar Doctor implemented these tips and tricks and immediately generated new business. She's now singing the praises of my tips and is really excited about the seminar.

The live version will be a good trial run, and I'll learn a lot about some of the questions individuals have regarding using LinkedIn. It's not going to be a "how to set up your profile" seminar but how to use it to make money.

Stay tuned! Details will follow later this month.

Thanks,
Christine
Christine@DesertEdgeLegal.com

PS. LinkedIn is a trademark of LinkedIn Corporation and Christine Springer and Desert Edge Legal Services, LLC are not affiliated with LinkedIn.

Well, not exactly....but now that I have your attention.....

Have you become one of the many entrepreneurs by necessity? Many people are facing some tough choices due to the employment conditions. Many have been forced to become entrepreneurs whether they wanted to be one or not.

I think many people are realizing that they need to fend for themselves and they are starting their own businesses. I've set up a record number of LLC's in the last three months.

What have you been doing to stay financially afloat? Have you started a network marketing business? Have you been a dog walker, house sitter or painter? If so, consider forming a LLC or corporation before the end of 2008.

The biggest advantage to setting up a legal entity is to shield your personal assets from liability. Whatever creative method you've been using to stay afloat financially, you probably need a legal entity to protect yourself.

I'll bet you could use a tax deduction for starting a business in 2008! Check with your tax professional for details on your specific situation.

Call me today to discuss your new legal entity and lock in the 2008 price!

Thanks for all your support in 2008!

Christine
Christine@DesertEdgeLegal.com

If you've read my previous posts about tickets, you know by now that the judge in Scottsdale Municipal Court dismissed the unsafe lane change ticket and reduced my fine to speeding only. Although I was disappointed, I managed to move on and forget about the ticket.

Until October 17, when the postal worker showed up at my front door with a certified letter from Sergeant George. Guess what? He sent me a letter saying he was REFILING my speeding ticket!

Hello, double jeopardy anyone?

Since the officer had already sent me the ticket, I called him and left him a message, and left a message for his supervisor as well. I was so angry about the situation and wasn't sure how to proceed. I called an attorney, who suggested I go to Scottsdale walk-in court. (On a side note, walk-in court is a great idea! A judge is there for walk-ins, which makes it easy to get things accomplished!)

I went to the Scottsdale Municipal Court again to see a judge. Because the ticket was not yet in the system, the court clerk couldn't get me in front of a judge. The court services supervisor was really nice and told me that the police officer could not re-file the traffic ticket and to check back with her a week later so she could get it removed from the system.

Later on that day, I spoke with Sergeant George's supervisor, Sergeant Durrin. He was very professional and was pretty cool about the situation. He told me that Sergeant George probably thought that the traffic ticket was dismissed due to a clerical error and when that happens, the tickets are re-filed. Unbelievable that this happens, but.....

His supervisor told me that he made a mistake and that the ticket would be removed from the system. I told him it wasn't a mistake because the officer was standing in the same courtroom as I was when the judge told him he had not met the burden of proof. 

I contacted ABC 15 through my friend Charlotte Risch (www.themediapush.com). Christina Boomer contacted me about doing a story on the ticket being refiled. It made the news on Thursday. You can watch the video here:

http://www.abc15.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=16929@knxv.dayport.com&navCatId=3 

I think this might be finally over!

Christine

I've received quite a few e-mails from readers asking about my adventures in Scottsdale Municipal Court. When I last wrote, I mentioned that I would be headed to the Police Department to make a records request.

I visited the Scottsdale Police Department on October 3 and made a very broad records request from the police department. If you want to see the items I asked for, please send me an e-mail and I'll be happy to share. I still haven't received the documents from the SPD, but they have called to say that they are ready. I'll tell you why later on in this entry.

On October 15, 2008 I showed up for court, along with three or four other offenders who were stopped by the same police officer. By the way, his name is Sergeant George. Another person who appeared to fight her ticket said that she'd read that he was rookie of the year in 2005 and said that he told her not to bother appearing in court because "he always shows up and he always wins."

I wore a suit and carried a briefcase. (By the way, if you ever appear in court, you should always show respect for the court and wear a suit. I learned this from the various attorneys I've worked for over the years. At the very least, wear something conservative and make sure you look presentable.) If you're going to be taken seriously, you should look like you mean business.

I was prepared to win a dismissal of both tickets. I had a copy of my clean driving record, I did all the research on radar and its flaws, how often the police department is supposed to have the radar devices calibrated and how often the officers are supposed to recertify. I also had photos of the scene of the ticket.

All the defendants went inside the courtroom and watched a video on the hearing procedures. To my surprise, the judge would allow hearsay in the court.

I was the second defendant to have a hearing. I was nervous beyond belief, and let me tell you that the judge was tough! I'm not sure if I had a law degree if it would have been easier. I tried to get both tickets dismissed first because the Police Department had not given me the records I'd requested. Also to my surprise, the judge informed me that I was not entitled to a records request under the Administrative Procedures Act. 

If you're going to defend yourself in court, forget about wasting your time collecting the police department records. The judge doesn't care. I also tried to admit a certified copy of my clean driving record and she told me point blank that she didn't care about that either.

So, after Sergeant George finished reading from his court notes, I started cross examining him. I had eight pages of cross examination questions and I grilled the officer about his use of the radar, his experience and traning, especially on the use of radar, and other things. A couple of times, the judge stopped me from asking the questions.

Sergeant George became very defensive on the stand. He was a little sensitive when I told him that the NHTSA recommends that police officers be certified every year on the use of radar and that they don't recommend using the internal calibration setting on the radar guns. This guy was clearly not used to being cross examined by someone who was actually prepared. Sergeant George couldn't explain how I could have possibly been going 37 mph if the traffic was moving at 25 mph.

The judge finally told me to wrap up my case and make my final arguments. I had one more thing to bring up, and that was the photos. I showed the judge the photos of the scene, told her that Sergeant George made a mistake and radared me outside of the school zone in front of Chapparal High School and wrote the ticket in the speed zone. The clincher here was the photo of the "McCarthy Construction" sign in front of the school. I argued that if a driver was not familar with the area and missed the school zone sign, it wasn't obvious that it was a school zone given all the construction.

All of this argument over the speeding ticket resulting in totally distracting the officer from the unsafe lane change ticket. I didn't plan that as a strategy, but he forgot all about proving the lane change ticket.

The judge finally made her rulings. She dismissed the unsafe lane change ticket because Sergeant George failed to meet the burden of proof. She also reduced the speeding ticket from speeding in a school zone to speeding only. I thanked her for her ruling and sat in the back of the room until I received the piece of paper from her assistant.

What should you take away from my experience? First of all, you can't just walk into the courtroom and expect the judge to dismiss the ticket just because you showed up. You need to look the part and have logical arguments and defenses as to why you are not guilty. The judge is unfortunately compensated by the City of Scottsdale and he/she is going to almost always side with the police officer if you don't have some solid arguments and aren't persuasive in your points. Speeding tickets are a major source of revenue for municipalities, and given the current state of the economy, they are not going to let you off easy. They need the revenue to make up for the shortfalls in their budgets.

It really bothers me to admit this, because I work in the legal field and have a healthy respect for it. I was disappointed by the outcome of the hearing because I don't think should have paid a fine at all. For those of you brave enough to fight the tickets, know that the odds, at least in Scottsdale, are stacked against you before you even walk into the courtroom. That doesn't mean you shouldn't exercise your constitutional rights, however. Just be prepared for a fight.

If you need assistance preparing for ticket hearing, drop me a line and I'll try to help.

There's more to this story! Stay tuned! Christine