brake lighting question (simple, eh?)

well, i got pulled for no brake lites (207bucks!!!!!) the bulbs work fine except for the second filament(?) doesnt lite up when i mash on the brakes, so i pulled the fuse in control of the interior lites and all the lites in the rear and checked it, it was fine, i pulled it in and out again to make sure it was, BUT, the wire behind the fuse box that goes to that fuse, has been cut and taped in several places, should i chase this one down and replace it, or is my problem deeper than that, also when i was jiggling the fuse box, i did get some frying sounds ( indicating a short?) there are alot of wires now that i think about it, with tape on em, they were just twisted together and taped instead of having butt connectors, but anyways, what should i do about this so i can drivvvvve again, where all do i look?

behind the brake is a switch that lights up the brake lights when you step on the brakes, its not a fuse situation