I lost $20,000 after being fined for helping an injured bear – I fought for my innocence, but the judge wouldn’t listen

A DRIVER spent a five-figure sum fighting a traffic fine. He said his road decision was the right thing to do.

A famous wildlife photographer, Tom Mangelsen, reportedly spent $20,000 on legal fees when he fought back against the ticket official. But police said he violated important road laws.

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Mangelsen received the ticket on October 9, 2022, according to Oil City News.

The photographer was driving in Grand Teton National Park when he spotted a famous grizzly bear.

Moments earlier, a vehicle hit the bear on a highway. She was struggling on the side of the road.

The bear was unable to care for her cubs.

Mangelsen drove slowly behind the bear, hoping the vehicles would slow down and avoid more catastrophic injuries.

When police found the driver below the speed limit, they issued a citation for obstructing traffic.

“This is behavior that needs to be deterred,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Ariel Calmes.

Calmes recommended fining the driver $500.

Eventually, the bear fully recovered from her 2022 injury and continued to care for her cubs.

But the beauty haunted Mangelsen. He spent a lot of money trying to fight the fines and went to court in 2024.

He told the publication that he paid around US$20,000 in legal fees to carry out a full legal defense against the infringement.

His lawyer, Ed Bushnell, brought experts to the stand and even questioned police officers at the scene.

Bushnell brought Chris Flaherty, a retired park official, to the stand. Flaherty said Mangelsen made a heroic gesture and was fined.

“Safety is always the priority, and not slowing down traffic was mismanagement or failure to manage the location,” Flaherty said in the statement.

“The bottom line is if this scene was managed correctly, we wouldn’t be here right now having this conversation.”

Despite the investment, the judge ruled against Mangelsen’s defense.

How to fight a speeding ticket

According to a legally reviewed post, there are five effective strategies for fighting a speeding ticket if it was issued improperly.

1. If stopped and a ticket is issued, drivers can discuss or dispute the driver’s personal opinion. When issuing a speeding ticket, the police officer is required to write his opinion and come to an “objective” conclusion. If the fine was written based on this judgment, it can be challenged. An example would be if you were traveling at 75 mph in a 65 mph zone because other people were traveling at the same speed, you could argue that it would be more dangerous to travel at 65 mph.
2. You can challenge the police officer’s presentation of evidence. If you’ve been ticketed for something like running a stop sign or making an illegal U-turn, you can’t contest it if a police officer saw you, but you can take things to court like eyewitness accounts, diagrams, or photos.
3. Argue that the ticket was issued due to an “error of fact.” This is complicated, but a “mistake of fact” is a mistake made by a driver over a situation that was beyond their control, or if a driver legitimately did not know they were violating the law. For example, you were driving in two lanes because the lane markers were so worn out that you couldn’t see them.
4. You could say the circumstances justified his direction. You could say you were speeding to pass a possibly drunk driver or avoiding an accident by quickly changing lanes. However, the argument will not work if there is evidence that you continued to speed after passing.
5. Similar to the above, it could be argued that speeding was necessary to avoid harm. The key is to argue that if you weren’t speeding, you or someone else could have been injured.
6. Consult a traffic lawyer if all else fails. Many have free consultations to decide whether or not there is a case.

Source: Find Law

“This case is about a traffic ticket,” the judge said.

“I was convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that you obstructed traffic. I think you did it on purpose because you were doing it to protect the bears.”

The judge advised Mangelsen to stop fighting the park service and pay the $500 fine.

But the photographer said it’s “a good idea” that could be “a pie in the sky.”

Mangelsen said he is considering appealing the decision.

The US Sun contacted the photographer for this story.