The prosecutor's case began to unravel when he turned his attack to the tea light-candle headlights.

Up until that point, Daniel Lerner had argued that the car in question was unsafe because of its dangerous braking system. Granted, classifying the hollowed-out Buick a car is a bit of a stretch.

It's actually a piece of art made to look like a car by Montreal artist Michel de Broin. More than anything, it's a four-seater bicycle, propelled entirely by pedalling. At top speed, the Buick can hit 15 km/h.

It has no floor. No engine. No transmission. No signal lights. And as mentioned, tea lights sit in place of light bulbs at the front.

"What would happen," Lerner charged with pointed conviction, "if a lit candle hit another car?"

As the small courtroom in Old City Hall erupted in giggles, Lerner withdrew his question.

Now it was legal adviser Terry Fox's turn. Fox, with the Canadian Automobile Association, decided to take on the case pro bono for the group of artists.

"After all, I'm the one that advised them they could drive it in the first place," Fox said earlier. "I thought the least I could do was come down here and back up my advice."

"Shared Propulsion Car" had been put on exhibit at the Mercer Union Centre for Contemporary Art on Oct. 24. The next day, a group was planning to take it for a ride down Queen St. W. That's when Larry Zack, a fan of the gallery, thought he would find out if it was actually legal to take on city streets. He called an acquaintance at the Canadian Automobile Association, Fox.

"After getting the details I told them not to drive at night, because of the headlights, not to go on the 401 or the DVP, use hand signals, and it should be fine," Fox said.

But within the hour, the group had been pulled over. Const. Derek Walsh testified he was driving westbound on Queen St. when a motorist flagged him down to say an illegal pedal car was heading his way.

"Not even close to being legal," was among Walsh's first comments to driver Dean Baldwin, a Toronto artist. He handed him a ticket for operating an unsafe vehicle. Baldwin and a score of others were happy to take it to court.

"Either way, we're happy the conversation about the car continues," Baldwin said before his traffic court trial began.

On the stand, the Crown asked Walsh about the brakes, which are traditional bike hand brakes.

The left cyclers control the left side; ditto for the pair on the right.

And what would happen if the left side happened to brake before the right, Lerner asked Walsh. "It would cause friction on the road, causing that side to anchor (and the other) side to pivot around," the officer answered. This, Walsh continued, could possibly send the car swerving into oncoming traffic.

Fox was quick to point out the car stopped without difficulty when asked to pull over. He also argued that rickshaws – another muscle-propelled vehicle on Toronto streets – have no brakes at all and those drivers aren't targeted.

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And as for tea lights?

"The Amish used candles in their (buggies)" not long ago, Justice of the Peace Patrick Marum said in his judgment. "I would agree with the defence that the Crown has not met the (burden of proof) at this point. The case is dismissed."

To celebrate, Baldwin and his group took the car, or bicycle, or whatever it is, for a drive around Bloor and Dufferin Sts.