When you and I say "fishtailing" we refer to a specific behavior displayed by a RWD car when the power transmitted to the driven wheels exceeds traction limits. However, the officer and the judge, if they are not car nuts like us, may both be using the word as they understand it to mean "driven beyond adhesion limits".
There are many words that have different meanings depending on whether you are a professional or a lay person in a field. Many people use the word "door jamb" or "AC plug" in a meaning different from that of a carpenter or electrician. There are other examples in the field of medicine and chemistry (e.g. "alcohol" does not always mean ethanol). Yet as long as the prosecutor (or the officer) and the judge understand each other, trying to make arguments in court based on the meaning of these words might look like you were going for technicalities. In addition, I think even some car nuts might refer to throttle-off oversteer on a FWD car as fishtailing. Saying this does not mean that I believe your son was guilty of the reckless driving charge (it seems like he wasn't), it's just my opinion with the disclaimer that I am not a lawyer. Sonny '91 164S Baltimore -- to be removed from alfa, see http://www.digest.net/bin/digest-subs.cgi or email "unsubscribe alfa" to [email protected]
