Talk to a Cop- The good, bad, and ugly!

so then they will rack up tickets for speeding every single day. how are they only gonna get caught once if the camera sees it every time

 

That happened to me back over the Labor Day weekend. I was driving a friend home late at night and I got pulled over. I had made a wide turn and was going slower (I was trying to up my mileage). He told me about those two, saw I wasn't drunk (we had spent the day making a shed and were tired) and let me go. Didn't even ask me to step outside. Scared the willies out of me, though.

 

I haven't read all the posts yet but some of them seem to indicate irritation over being stopped for incidentials, ie. light out, weaving, sticker or frame around a lic plate. Far as I'm concerned I love it when the cops do that because thats how they got McVeigh and many,many DUI's, and other criminals. Keep it up Officers, just don't pull me over please.

Wildkow

 

DV is a nasty thing. denial, codependence, all that complex sociopsychological stuff comes into play real quick.

what gets me the most is how such a large percentage of cases that are taken to court go in as a felony and get knocked down to a misdemeanor for one reason or another.

Wth is that about???

i think the first time, teach the abuser a lesson they won't forget. something serious makes for serious jail time. no huber law. just your nice person in a jail cell for a few months to think that over. then, the abusee has time to go through counseling and realize they don't need the abuser in their life.

 

Having grown up in Connecticut, I can assure you, you were pulled over for just what you suspected: DWB. That, and the fact that you were "putting" along in the slow lane (even given the weather) on an empty highway gives the impression that you're going out of your way to NOT get pulled over.

CT is one of those States with A LOT of wealthy communities, chances are, you got pulled over on a stretch of highway that went through one. The simple fact the cop mentioned "New Haven" makes me believe it even more, for there are really only two major cities where you can drive on the highways late at night, while black, and not be suspicious: around Hartford, and around New Haven. There are some other spots, but pretty much anywhere other than those major population centers, your chances of getting pulled over go through the roof if you're black.

My friends and I (one of whom was black (he was actually the only black kid to attend my high school, even so it was for only one year)) used to joke that it would be almost impossible to make it across the State, from Rhode Island to NY, without getting pulled over if you were black, and driving, let's say, a late model Mercedes...

 

You're right. I don't get pulled over that much. My friend was actually telling me things like "Don't get out, just wait for him to ask," and "Don't reach over for your resgistration until they ask." Obviously I wasn't aware of my wide turn that time. Just glad it wasn't worse.

 

It bothers me that some police seem to pull people over on a whim, with some arcane or non-existant law to use to justify it when the hunch that they thought would get them promoted doesn't pan out.

Applauding them when they randomly pick up a big-time offender among the innocents will just encourage them to bust down the wrong door a few extra times, in case something other than a door repair-bill results...

 

But if you take some of your most dangerous areas that need a bit more enforcement which would make it safer.. say a place where there are pedestrians or a school nearby.

I did not suggest an unlimited amount of cameras. I think you're taking my words on a much larger scale than I intended. We were on the subject of cameras and I was merely suggesting how this would help in areas that needed it. If you are truly concerned about a school zone that has a high record of problems regarding speeding and safety, why not use it if it makes that area safer?

 

Hmmmm, my kneejerk reaction was to say "Both of those points are so ludicrous I'm not going to comment." but on second thought I'd like to ask why or how you came up with the idea that they stop people on a whim in order to get a big bust for promotional consideration. Secondly I was talking about automobiles and not homes a horse of a different color according to the Supreme Court.


Wildkow

 

As a San Diegan I know about Cara Knott and you wonder sometimes. Fortunately those are few and far between.

 

Huh, I don't understand what you think I've misrepresented? I stated that I got a hand written warning on a plain piece of yellow paper. I have never received any other written warnings, but I figured there would at least be some sort of form. I just didn't see what the point for writing it down was. I couldn't read his handwriting, so the verbal statement meant a lot more than a piece of paper.

I only realized that I didn't state the race of the officer is when Schmika assumed from that the officer was white (in this case he was). I don't think that matters. I was not accusing this cop of being racist. I was accusing this cop of being suspicious of me and pulling me over without reason a valid reason. I think he came up with the plate thing after the stop. If any cop pulls me over and I don't think that they had reason, I would want to know why... which is why I asked my question so that I could get an officers opinion on reasons why, so that if if happens again I would know what the police procedure for such things are.

The bottom line is that I responded to this thread because it was a unique opportunity for me to "Talk to a Cop". At this point Schmika's feedback is all that matters to me. Feel free to continue to accuse me of whatever you want.

 

Actually, here's a provocative question for the Officer of the House:

How does one (and where does one) go about making a complaint against an officer such that there will be some sort of meaningful result? There MUST be some channel, some entity you can go to, and file a well written complaint if it is warranted.

On another note, if Officers can video/audio tape you without your permission, can you video/audio tape the officer without him/her knowing during the "pull over"?