Initial evidence warranted the citation but the State did not meet its burden of proof at hearing. The defendant with recent lay and expert evidence not possessed by APD convincingly dodged the bullet. He worked for Hyster in product design for 8 years including on the subject compactor model. They reflected for the most part good overall condition and past maintenance. The fluid level maintenance issue is more troublesome.
Evidentiary questions remain.
The evidence is not persuasive the accident was caused by any failure of the brakes. Accordingly, the accident is not persuasive circumstantial evidence of nonoperative brakes. There remain other unanswered questions. A clearer demonstration of fresh spilled brake fluid in the Hyster driving compartment or on the ground would have been helpful but brake fluid on surface is fairly clear with high viscosity. There is no evidence from manual or testimony of the total system brake fluid capacity and nobody measured the fluid added after accident to fill the system.