Court of Appeals rejects ‘I didn’t know it was illegal’ defense in DUI cases

• Two Arizona motorists claim they didn’t know driving the wrong way was illegal • State Court of Appeals says some offenses are strict liability, knowledge of the law is not required • Prosecutors must show sufficient signage for conviction in wrong-way DUI cases

Two Arizona motorists argue that they cannot be convicted of driving the wrong way in traffic because no one has proven they knew it was illegal.

But the state Court of Appeals says that claim won’t work.

In a new ruling, the three-judge panel said some offenses are those of strict liability. That includes most civil traffic violations.

So someone trying to fight a ticket for running a red light can’t escape being fined by saying they didn’t know the light was red. The same goes for exceeding the speed limit, failing to u