yet another 'speeding ticket' story

[jimlem]

Originally Posted by TPAJETSKI

Cops and lawyers. Two people nobody likes until they need one.

And dentists! They say each year cops and dentists trade off 1st place in suicides. lol Pretty sure this is all antidotal evidence.

[Angrybird 12]

Originally Posted by jimlem

Trying to Help Here with Info you Can Use:

I apologize for length but hope it helps.

@Ernest
Very well said above, Ernest. This is me following you and seeing a tail lamp that's flickering on and off or a brake lamp out. That's enough PC to stop you. When stopped, we talk about it. You tell me you had no idea and you'll fix it ASAP tomorrow. Or you say you know about it but don't know why it started. Maybe I stand back there and have you test some lights. Then I can tell you exactly what, when and where it's happening. With PC I can cite you for the violation, or not. In the absence of seeing a bag of weed in your shirt pocket, all we have is an infraction for which you cannot be arrested. This is where most cops say get it fixed and drive safe and let you go on your way.

@Angrybird
On the other hand, while talking to you, I smell burning marijuana from the car. This gives me a reasonable suspicion a crime is being committed. I ask some questions and check it out a bit further and now believe I have probable cause to search the car and make an arrest if I find evidence supporting my Reasonable Suspicion. Bird, Probable Cause is not loose it's very narrow. You must be able to support it with very detailed facts from right then and there. It's like that on purpose to keep US cops from tuning into Mexican Federalis (sp?) or Russian KGB. It's called The 4th Amendment. lol

OK, Back to the Original Story: You start talking sh*t and accuse me of picking on you because you drive a Camaro and say I'm just wasting your time and holding you there to mess with you. Now we have a problem, and it's not you being a dick. It's that those accusations could be construed as an illegal detention if you complain to IA or the courts. That's serious stuff to a cop. If I have any inkling at all that you may be calling my supervisor or IA, I MUST document EVERY detail of the stop and it cannot be just me telling a verbal story to the boss. It must be officially documented. This means accounting for every reason for the stop and how long I kept you there and why. This equals a CITATION! This is the only WAY I can cover my butt on any further complaints you might make. The cite has all times, locations and reasons spelled out.

No matter how uncooperative you may be, you cannot be arrested just because I think you're being a dick. Cannot happen. As said above, in Ernest's post the side of the road is not court and we do not argue or play court on the street. You refuse to sign the cite, then we are no longer looking at an in fraction for which you can't be arrested. Now you've bumped it up to a misdemeanor for which you can be arrested (and definitely will be for refusal to sign). I have no choice. In my state it's a form of contempt of court and I can get bit in the ass just as easily as you. Signing the cite is not an arrest! It is a promise to appear. Now if you blow off that promise, the court will issue a warrant for your arrest and next time you get stopped, YOU WILL BE ARRESTED on a misdemeanor warrant and sit in jail until the judge wants to see you.

Believe it or not (I don't care either way) I am trying to help you guys gain some insight as to what's really going on in the cop's mind and why he most likely stopped you. Also on why he may decide to give a warning rather than a cite and how what you say and how you say it can easily influence how he decides which way to go. He's just doing a job like the rest of us. His job entails stopping cars for many reasons. This deters crime and accidents in that area by showing people the cops are out and about and doing their jobs so better drive safe and go commit your vehicle burgs somewhere else. No one is out hunting for any of you personally. lol

Sorry this is so long. I keep thinking if I can just get the right words down here, I can some how make people understand and keep future police/driver contact from turning into situations where someone says they hate all cops and wish bad things to happen to all cops. I guarantee no cops walk away from a stop with you and your Camaro and say they hate all Camaros and wish all their drivers would get in an accident.

It's all about being civil and polite- both ways. If you're accused of speeding and you know you weren't, by all means assertively state you think he made a mistake on figuring your speed and leave it at THAT! Don't argue. Don't ever answer "Do you know how fast you were going?" with a Yes or No. It's lose - lose in court. Don't call names or accuse him of being a liar and a crook etc. That will all come up in court too in exact quote or even on video. This will ruin your credibility in front of the judge. Funny story: Back in the old days, way, way before my time if you were a prick to the cop, he would write Adam-Henry (meaning AH, meaning A$$h*le) on the back of the cite and when the judge saw that you automatically lost and paid a BIG fine. Definitely illegal now but it shows things are improving and we are no longer in the dark ages.

Again sorry for length. I just hope somehow, somewhere, someone, on either side will take note and we can stop all the hating back and forth. Both sides have bigger problems right now. Half the world wants to boost you dream car full of lots of expensive mods you added after saving the cash for years. The other half wants to ambush and kill cops because a few incidents in the news are being blown out of proportion. God Bless all of us.

You miss interpreted what I meant by loosely defined. All I meant is like my examples there are many small reasons you can be pulled over that most of us do every day that could get us pulled over. Most cops ignore the small things but the 1% of them if having a bad day could use one to pull you over. I have also been driving for over 40 years and never pulled over without deserving a ticket, which I sm happy to say has only been a couple times.
The only attention I have gotten from the police in my Camaros are a few thumbs up and nice car comments when stopped at stoplights.

[Snoman]

Originally Posted by jimlem

...

No matter how uncooperative you may be, you cannot be arrested just because I think you're being a dick....

In very general terms, if anyone comes to Texas and tries this....I can absolutely guarantee you will not like the outcome received.

[CurtiSSWatson]

Originally Posted by myold88

You get pulled over for "no reason at all"? I thought the police needed a reason such
as speeding, broken tail lamp, etc....

In cases like this, where I stated in my original post where I was behind a minivan doing less than 10mph, or when I was turning at a light casually driving under a bridge(but my car is loud), but the cop on the other side of the bridge could not see me, could only hear me and said himself that he "assumed" I was speeding due to the sound. They just give a "exhibition driving" because they cant clock the speed and you cant fight the ticket.

Now speeding tickets, ive owned up to the 2 that I received, and I pay them. They are cheap in North Dakota and I was obviously in the wrong, full cooperation.

[Mr.Jgunn65]

word!

[MrChrisLS3]

I don't know, the whole sports car, "arrest me red" , ticket quota, things like that seem pretty much like urban myths to me. I don't think cops in general care what you're driving, just how you're driving it.

As far as quota, I'm sure that there is a statistic for how many tickets/stops and officer makes. I am also just as sure that there is threshold where if that officer doesn't reach, he gets questioned about it. My guess would be that this is an internal measurment to make sure officers aren't showing up to the station, getting in their patrol cars, then driving back home and spending the rest of their shift chatting on Camaro5, lol.

Look, whatever the case, the best thing you can do is treat the officer with respect. Personally I start the conversation with "how are you today officer?" I like this approach because first, I want the officer to know that I'm not going to be an a$$ about this situation and also it helps me gauge how this is going to go. If the officer responds kindly, then this all going to go down all nice and friendly like, I might even try to get the laugh out of the officer, whether they write the ticket of not. If it's abrupt and professional, then i am just going to do as asked and answer yes sir, or no sir. If asked, and actually, I can't remember being "asked" but rather told, why I was being stopped I do reply with a no sir/ma'am. But whatever the outcome, I will not treat it like roadside court, there is no point, and nothing to gain.

Now the OP has an interesting situation. He was in the right, and the officer was wrong about the speed limit on that stretch of road, okay. Now if it were me, I would simply state to the officer that I thought it was 65 on this stretch, and leave it there. At this point the officer may question themself and realize that I am right, and that's the end of it. Or they will not and may or may not write the ticket. If they do, I sign it and we're done because I know that all I have to do is provide evidence that in fact the limit was indeed 65 in court. But going roadside 'Judge Judy" does nothing but waste a lot of time.

Keep in mind also that officers work out of a locality, and patrol the same streets day after day, just like we drive the same streets to work, and wherever else we drive around. I'm not saying that police hold a grudge or anything like that, but if you're out there building a reputation for speeding and being a general a$$, when you do get stopped, things might not go your way.

[Angrybird 12]

Originally Posted by MrChrisLS3

I don't know, the whole sports car, "arrest me red" , ticket quota, things like that seem pretty much like urban myths to me. I don't think cops in general care what you're driving, just how you're driving it.

As far as quota, I'm sure that there is a statistic for how many tickets/stops and officer makes. I am also just as sure that there is threshold where if that officer doesn't reach, he gets questioned about it. My guess would be that this is an internal measurment to make sure officers aren't showing up to the station, getting in their patrol cars, then driving back home and spending the rest of their shift chatting on Camaro5, lol.

Look, whatever the case, the best thing you can do is treat the officer with respect. Personally I start the conversation with "how are you today officer?" I like this approach because first, I want the officer to know that I'm not going to be an a$$ about this situation and also it helps me gauge how this is going to go. If the officer responds kindly, then this all going to go down all nice and friendly like, I might even try to get the laugh out of the officer, whether they write the ticket of not. If it's abrupt and professional, then i am just going to do as asked and answer yes sir, or no sir. If asked, and actually, I can't remember being "asked" but rather told, why I was being stopped I do reply with a no sir/ma'am. But whatever the outcome, I will not treat it like roadside court, there is no point, and nothing to gain.

Now the OP has an interesting situation. He was in the right, and the officer was wrong about the speed limit on that stretch of road, okay. Now if it were me, I would simply state to the officer that I thought it was 65 on this stretch, and leave it there. At this point the officer may question themself and realize that I am right, and that's the end of it. Or they will not and may or may not write the ticket. If they do, I sign it and we're done because I know that all I have to do is provide evidence that in fact the limit was indeed 65 in court. But going roadside 'Judge Judy" does nothing but waste a lot of time.

Keep in mind also that officers work out of a locality, and patrol the same streets day after day, just like we drive the same streets to work, and wherever else we drive around. I'm not saying that police hold a grudge or anything like that, but if you're out there building a reputation for speeding and being a general a$$, when you do get stopped, things might not go your way.

Red cars may get noticed more, in fact any bright colors will, but in all my years and the dozen red cars I have owned I have never been pulled over in any of them. the only cars I have been stopped in was a dark Green 74 Vega Wagon and a Medium Blue 76 Malibu, both within 6 months of each other.

No matter what the officer's attitude is you should always keep your cool and be cordial with them. You could get a dash cam, if you get pulled over rotate it towards the window and record the entire encounter.

[arkentect]

Originally Posted by Angrybird 12

Red cars may get noticed more, in fact any bright colors will, but in all my years and the dozen red cars I have owned I have never been pulled over in any of them. the only cars I have been stopped in was a dark Green 74 Vega Wagon and a Medium Blue 76 Malibu, both within 6 months of each other.

No matter what the officer's attitude is you should always keep your cool and be cordial with them. You could get a dash cam, if you get pulled over rotate it towards the window and record the entire encounter.

I don't know about you guys but I was pulled over coming home from the Camaro Parade this past May in Saratoga because the cop wanted to know what color the Synergy Green was lol. Stands out a little more than red does lol