I really pissed a cop off this morning

[Mad Scientist]

He couldn't give you a speeding ticket because he probably didn't have his radar gun pointed at you, if he even had one. From your story it appears that his "reasonable suspicion" stems merely from you braking which is really weak.

Next time a cop asks you "You know why I stopped you?" and even if you know you're guilty, just say "Uh, no Sir". Now it's on him to clearly articulate why he stopped you, his reasonable suspicion. He's not going to tell you he stopped you because you "applied your brakes", he has to get you to confess to something which, the last time I checked, you don't have to say shit!

I don't know what state you live in but yeah, you had to submit to a sobriety check otherwise you'd have lost your license for a while. But I'm willing to bet his reasonable suspicion was weak on that as well.

The days of Sheriff Andy Taylor, the polite and helpful police officer who is here to help you are over. Everyone who reads this thread would be well advised to be generally more suspicious of the police and their motives and volunteer less information to them. They aren't here to help you anymore, they're revenue generators for the city, county and state.

 

[manifold]

I hate the lectures by cops. It's not their job to do so. Leave it to the judge.

That's where I disagree. I only hate the lectures when they come with a ticket, which in my experience is not the case. When cops lecture me, I make like I'm actually learning something from them, which more often than not leads to getting off with a warning.

 

[manifold]

I hate the lectures by cops. It's not their job to do so. Leave it to the judge.

That's where I disagree. I only hate the lectures when they come with a ticket, which in my experience is not the case. When cops lecture me, I make like I'm actually learning something from them, which more often than not leads to getting off with a warning.

Say things like, 'you know, I never really thought about it like that before, but you're right' (and really sell it).

Works like a charm.

 

[Two Thumbs]

Manners lessons from the manifold

whodathunkit

 

[PixieStix]

Sounds like someone was trying to get his tickett quota in and failed to do so.

Sounds like he needed to go to the local donut shoppe....for coffee of course. Seems him and Si both were in need of the fix.

On a more serious note, I was pulled over once in my driveway. One of the cops gave me a ticket for rolling through a stop sign and my *passenger* got a ticket for driving a car without his license on him. Can anyone figure that one out?

 

[Si modo]

Sounds like someone was trying to get his tickett quota in and failed to do so.

Sounds like he needed to go to the local donut shoppe....for coffee of course. Seems him and Si both were in need of the fix.

On a more serious note, I was pulled over once in my driveway. One of the cops gave me a ticket for rolling through a stop sign and my *passenger* got a ticket for driving a car without his license on him. Can anyone figure that one out?

Whaaaaaaaaaaat? No way!

 

[Si modo]

Manners lessons from the manifold

whodathunkit

 

[PixieStix]

Are you sure you don't live in Denver?

There's a ticket for a failure to pay attention?! Pay attention to what?

Yeah, how can they prove that you were not paying attention? That is just a weird violation

 

[Wry Catcher]

If it were me, I would've Jedi-mind tricked the cop into letting me off with a warning. I've been pulled over for one reason or another probably a dozen times in my life. I've only been ticketed 3 times.

You have no credibilty manifold; I'm sure you posted this simply to get attention.

Si modo, cops come in all sizes, shapes and personalities, they have good days and bad days like all of us. Those who have too many bad days don't make it a career. All agencies have in place policies to weed out those who act inappropraitely and violate policy and procedure.

For several years I managed our internal investigations, phone calls and letters recieved from the public always were considered and investigated. We would send a letter to the complainant explaining that a false accusation could be prosecuted (CA law) and asking for details of the complaint (when, where, what, witnesses, etc.). Most complaints were minor and ended with a counseling memo to the deputy; on two occasions during my two years managing this unit, employees were fired; sometimes a letter of reprimand was placed in their personnel file and other times officers were ordered to complete training on their own time.

 

[manifold]

A few of the tips that I remember from the book:

1. Pull as far off to the side of the road as possible, especially on the highway. If you're so far into the road that the cop has to come to your passenger window for his own safety, he's immediately annoyed.

2. Don't have your license and registration ready before he gets to your window. The time you spend digging it out gives you a chance to plead for clemency.

3. Cops put their lives on the line everyday. And they don't know you from a hardened criminal when they first stop you. So always do everything you can to demonstrate that you are not a threat. One the best ways is to have your hands on the steering wheel when he approaches your car. And when he asks for your registration, politely tell him it's in the glove box before reaching over. Stuff like that.

4. When the cop asks you if you know why you were pulled over, if you do in fact have a good idea, answer honestly and make your clemency plee while fetching your paperwork. If you say 'no' when it's obvious, he'll think you're either ignorant of the traffic laws or being difficult, neither of which helps your cause. Once he tells you that your excuse is bullshit and begins to lecture you, make like he's a really smart guy and agree that he's totally right, but then ask for forgiveness and say that you'll never do it again. Never Never Never counter his argument. This ain't the internet.

5. If you're knowledgeable of police rank and can figure out the officer's rank, addressing him as such is a huge bonus. But if you get the rank wrong it could quickly backfire. Otherwise, address him/her as 'Officer' for local police and 'Trooper' for state police. State Troopers do not like being called 'officer'. In no case should you ever address them as 'Sir' or 'Ma'am'.

 

[PixieStix]

Sounds like someone was trying to get his tickett quota in and failed to do so.

Sounds like he needed to go to the local donut shoppe....for coffee of course. Seems him and Si both were in need of the fix.

On a more serious note, I was pulled over once in my driveway. One of the cops gave me a ticket for rolling through a stop sign and my *passenger* got a ticket for driving a car without his license on him. Can anyone figure that one out?

Whaaaaaaaaaaat? No way!

It took 2 months and thousands of dollars(out of MY pocket), missed days at work. To finally get this thrown out. I was in complete disbelief. I never recieved an apology.

My logic was that if I got a ticket for driving my car...was my passenger sitting on my lap, driving the same car?

Plus, the cops placed my passenger in the squad car and took his thumb print. All because he has long hair, and a leather jacket? He did nothing wrong. It actually became kinda scary, when one of the cops was about to put his hands on my passenger and I reminded him REAL FAST, why he did not want to do that.

Needless to say, while I used to trust the public service employees, I am now very leary of them all. Thanks to that night.

 

[Si modo]

I've currently got EIGHT, count 'em, EIGHT cases against cops for police brutality. Every one of them legit. This is already a bit of a cop-bashing thread...I dont want to add more rancor to the discussion, but I must say, anyone who believes that it's just a SMALL group of cops who treat people badly is sorely mistaken.

I am coming to that conclusion, too. Again, I am not anti-cop. But, it was recommended to me by the Citizens Advisory Council to go on a ride-along with the cops. I did one in February of this year.

I was absolutely amazed at what I saw. On my ride-along the cop to whom I was assigned had the occasion to encounter three separate groups of folks who were likely up to no good. In each and every one of these instances back-up was called and the rhetoric of both the back-up cop and my cop did nothing but escalate the situation into something that it didn't have to be. There was no reason to arrest anyone because no one caught them doing anything, but it was clear to me that the cops were baiting the alleged perps into doing something they could actually arrest them for.

It was ridiculous, to me. And, I have to believe that the cops who do ride-alongs curb their behavior for PR.

 

[manifold]

Cop bashing threads like this make me miss Kitten Koder.

If she was here, she'd be telling Si that she's a twatwaffle and that the cop had every right to harass her sorry ass.

 

[PixieStix]

I am not bashing cops. I am stating facts. I struggle with trusting them now. I totally get the fact that not all cops are like the ones that pulled me over in my driveway.

That night was really quite scary. I and my passenger was at the mercy of two people, and there were no other witnesses.

 

[Si modo]

I am not bashing cops. I am stating facts. I struggle with trusting them now. I totally get the fact that not all cops are like the ones that pulled me over in my driveway.

That night was really quite scary. I and my passenger was at the mercy of two people, and there were no other witnesses.

I am struggling with the same thing. I used to naturally give a cop's version of a situation (in a trial, for example), now I don't. They do not get an elevated level of credibility from me by default.

And, they brought this on in me themselves. Seems like I am not alone. This is a great loss to them.

 

[Swagger]

I (and my brother) were bashed - repeatedly, between the legs - by police officers. I'm not bashing them, as such. I'm just recounting a personal experience that should go towards putting some of yours' into perspective. That's all.

Though the majority of manifold's list shouldn't come as a surprise to most and should be filed under pure common sense. The moral of the story should be: even if they don't have sufficient grounds to arrest you or bring charges, the police have the power to seriously inconvenience you and in doing so ruin your entire day or week in a stroke.

 

[Liability]

Interesting reactions to Si Modo's story.

She did a bit of "speeding." When pulled over (& in reply to the cop's question), she could have said, "Gee, I don't know, officer. Why DID you pull me over?" But despite her right to remain silent, she chose to answer AND to be honest.

Yeah, the cop may have been in the wrong for "hoping for" a bigger fish to fry. But his initial behavior wasn't "wrong." Was it? And interestingly, Si Modo doesn't complain about having been pulled over.

However, many of the other "replies" take this thread as a good opportunity to bash cops.

So, now, out of passing curiosity, who thinks that the officer was "wrong" to pull over a motorist who candidly acknowledges that she was speeding?

 

[Modbert]

Cop bashing threads like this make me miss Kitten Koder.

If she was here, she'd be telling Si that she's a twatwaffle and that the cop had every right to harass her sorry ass.

She'd be calling her a criminal too.

 

[manifold]

I guess Kitten Koder-light will have to do.

 

[Modbert]

Sounds like someone was trying to get his tickett quota in and failed to do so.

Never understood the point of quotas. It's like saying that if you don't ticket a certain amount of people each month, then you must not be doing your job.

After all, it's totally compliant with "innocent before proven guilty" by assuming there's a set amount of people committing crimes on a monthly basis.