Brian Jonathan Wolk is either a maverick hellbent on improving the legal system, or he's a brash upstart who deserves the slap-down he recently received.

        Either way, he's a hero with me for championing the cause of motorists who are bullied into paying traffic tickets.

        Mr. Wolk, 32, recently published Ohio Traffic Tickets Are for the Birds: A Practical Defense Manual for Juveniles and Adults, a 300-page, easy-to-read guide to fighting unfair traffic tickets in Ohio courts.

        The book preaches that it's a citizen's duty to keep courts and police honest by forcing them to do their jobs. Motorists are innocent until proven guilty, he says; make the system prove it.

        “If only half the people ticketed simply pled not guilty, the traffic court system would hemorrhage and shut down,” he writes. “Then, and only then, it would reform.”
       

Suit follows firing

        The book reveals quirks and loopholes in state law and common mistakes in law enforcement that, Mr. Wolk says, would yield victory if only drivers went to court.

        But the book has cost Mr. Wolk his job.

        Until April 1, the Monday after the Akron Beacon Journal reviewed his book, Mr. Wolk had been — get this — a legal intern prosecuting traffic cases for the city of Akron.

        He was asked to resign, Akron officials said later, because a judge believed his book mocked the courts. He sued the city,of course, for $75,000, claiming wrongful termination and violation of free speech rights.

        Born in North Canton, reared in Anchorage, Alaska, Mr. Wolk sports an independent, almost pioneering spirit when it comes to the law. Government and laws exist for people's benefit, he says, not the other way around; too many municipalities and court systems use traffic tickets for revenue generation, not to ensure safety.
       

A growing movement

        He's not alone in his sentiments. Motorist discontent has boosted groups like the National Motorists Association and a whole cottage industry of books and legal kits for fighting tickets.

        Even some public officials recognize the power of pushing motorists' rights. Ohio's state auditor, Jim Petro, has been cracking down on tiny New Rome, Ohio (population 60), for the $377,000 it generated last year writing tickets.

        Mr. Wolk, a former Marine, says he's trying to get people engaged in their judiciary, not to encourage speeders. Prosecutors and city officials can benefit from his exposure of weaknesses he saw in traffic courts, he says.

        For instance, police officers often list the wrong legal citations on traffic tickets, providing grounds for dismissal in court.

        Cities with speed traps often improperly set up speed-limit signs that are too short or incorrectly placed. Sometimes, the legally required traffic studies to set speed limits aren't done, making tickets based on them invalid, he says.

        Officers who use radar or laser sometimes forget to calibrate the devices, and record the calibrations before and after each shift, as required by law. When that happens, the speed-detection devices can't be considered accurate.

        Mr. Wolk's insider observations and hypothetical courtroom cross-examinations are fascinating. But the book isn't armor.

        It can't protect you when you break the law and everybody else is doing his or her job properly. Lose in court, and it won't pay the extra court costs, and even jail time, that a judge can add to your ticket troubles.

        Playing Perry Mason still has its risks.

        Call Denise Smith Amos at 768-8395, or e-mail damos@enquirer.com.

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