Police Officers & Speedguns

[jmc]

@Anyway
Do you ever get out of tickets at the stop? How in the hell can you have any knowledge of the system and not be able to weasle out of a ticket. 10 citations is absurd. You need to go talk to that Captain and learn how to completely avoid getting the citation in the first place. Unless you just use him as an excuse to be a dick to every cop that pulls you over because you know you are getting out of it. I've been pulled over for speeding probably 20 times. About 10 more random stops for following too close, not stopping, etc. Out of about 30 stops, I've been issued 3 citations. That means I got out of getting cited 27 times, all 27 times were because I was polite, honest, and respectful. Yessir, nossir, hands on the wheel, all paperwork nicely folded in an easily accessible book. Asked permission to make any moves neccessary to fetch said paperwork. The three tickets I did receive, One was 90/55 (I was 16), the next was 80/55 (I was 17). Both of those I beat in court. The one ticket I've paid for was a 42 in a 35. Not a typo. Cop was a dick. I paid for it out of court, it wasn't worth my time.

Maybe JMC can correct me if I'm wrong, but most of the time a cop doesn't go into a regular stop with the intention of writing a ticket. It's the attitude of the driver that makes it turn out that way. Save cases in which you were being fucking ignorant, like my 90 and 80 in a 55 zone.

It depends on the unit.

If its a traffic unit, they are there to issue citations....but mostly warnings.

If its a special ops unit, like the motorcycle unit....We are mainly there to simply scare the crap out of people so they follow the laws by being scared. What can help you get a ticket right away without even talking to officers would be:

-Driving like a complete ass

-Not stopping right away

-Sudden movements once stopped

-questioning the officers actions, before even saying hello lol

[Tyche]

Best way, without a doubt to get out of a ticket is...

Don't fuck up and speed, run stop signs, whatever.

I used to date an attourney's daughter, DA actually. I learned pretty quick how to squeeze out of tickets. I've always rolled down the driver and passenger window, and rear windows if I had passengers in the back. Hands at 12 and 9. Asked to enter the glove box, and do not move until asked to do so or given permission. It's really common sense shit. Ask yourself, have you ever seen those "CRAZY POLICE VIDEOS!?!" on TV where a cop pulls some douche over for speeding 15 over and ends up getting shot while walking to the window? Yeah, so have cops, make him feel as safe as possible.

The only time I've mouthed off to a police officer was when I was pulled over for my window tint. I had full mirror tint on my vehicle. Illegal as can be. Cop pulled me over and asked to search my car. I would have been happy to let him, I had nothing to hide. He fucked up when he said "The only people who have tint like this are drug dealers and people who are hiding things". I told him I thought that was unfair and profiling. He walked back to his car and wrote me a warning.

[Khamsin]

-Not stopping right away

So what do you do if you see the cop's lights go on behind you while you're in an area with no shoulder, or it's unsafe to stop (e.g. on a bridge, or interstate with no room on the side of the road at that location, etc.)?

Just keep going until you get to somewhere you can stop, or just stop in the road if you don't see any better place readily available?

[Senoska]

Similar thing happened to me, but it was worse. I was going around 54-55 in a 50 on the highway, brother in the car as well. Get pulled over after driving TWO lights on the highway. Cop is an utter dick to me as usual, instead of just telling me what I did, he goes "You're trying to act like you don't know what you did? I just paced you at 73 mph." Then I started laughing. He said "What's so funny? Speeding is funny to you?" I responded "Well officer, for 1, I was going 55 mph. 2) I heard you say pace, meaning you didn't even use your radar which leads me to 3) There's no way this is holding up in court, I have ALOT of friends. (I've gotten 9 out of 10 tickets dropped usually in 1 phone call.)

He gets pissed off, tells me to watch my mouth, to which I started laughing louder as he walked back to his car. Gave me the ticket and said "Cant wait to see you in court, pal", I said "Do yourself a favor, don't show up, there's no need"

3 months later, he surprisingly showed up. (first time a cop has for me) and I got it dropped down from the 400$ 4 point ticket down to a 60$ obstructing traffic cause I knew HIS Captain on a personal level. He threw a fit, it was so gratifying.

400$ 4 point ticket? dude holy fuck?

[Norelco]

Want to know a good way to get out of a ticket? With me, first thing is to know how to properly deal with getting pulled over and what to do.

I’ve only ever been pulled over once, and it wasn’t for speeding. I was out out at a happy hour with my wife and her parents, and her parents got a call from the grandmother saying something bad happened to grandpa. So her parents left to see what was going on.

My wife freaks out and asks me to take her to her grandparent’s place, so I do.

I swear, we hit every red light imaginable along the way, and each time this happened my wife is growing more and more concerened and literally starts freaking out thinking her grandpa is going to die and she’ll never see him again.

So we reach another red light where we need to make a right onto the road. She freaks out again, being irrational like most women are, and asks me to “do something.”

So I did something…I did a pull-through on an abandoned lot to avoid the red traffic light, and safely pulled out onto the road that I was going to make a right turn on.

I’ve NEVER done this before, but the ONE time that I did it…a cop saw. So he follows me for about a mile, and then turns on his flashers.

I immediately pulled over, and put on my hazards. I got my license, registration, and insurance ready before he made it over to the vehicle.

When he arrived I was as polite as can be, and started explaining why I did the pull-through because her grandpa’s health might be in jeopardy and we were rushing as fast (yet safely) as we could to get there. That’s when my wife started BAWLING her eyes out and apologizing and saying her grandpa might be having a stroke. He seemed completely unprepared for this, so he asked us where we were headed, and asked what hospital he might be taken to. We did so and he radioed dispatch to see if we were lying about am ambulance being called, but there was one called, so after a quick 10 second lecture about how dangerous it was to do what I did (I disagree, I was very careful with the pull-through), he let us on our way.

I think me being calm and collective to the officer went a long way, but then again I think also my wife bawling her fucking eyes out might have played a role in me getting out of the only traffic stop I've ever had.

Anyway, it turns out grandpa didn't have a stroke. His doctor changed up his diabetes medication and his blood sugar dropped really low so he became unresponsive. He spent a night in the hospital with the nurses just feeding him whatever he wanted. :D

[Norelco]

-Not stopping right away

So what do you do if you see the cop's lights go on behind you while you're in an area with no shoulder, or it's unsafe to stop (e.g. on a bridge, or interstate with no room on the side of the road at that location, etc.)?

Just keep going until you get to somewhere you can stop, or just stop in the road if you don't see any better place readily available?

From what jmcgarrell said, stop immediately, and then ask the officer if you can procede to a safer location.

[Tyche]

When I lived in my hometown, it was really rural, no shoulders what-so-ever. Anytime I was pulled over on a road like that, maybe happened 2 or 3 times, I'd always just slow down really slow to let the cop know that I had no intention of running, and I'd drive to a safe place, like a parking lot or something. I think I pulled into a church parking lot one time.

[Tricen]

Just be nice and look like you know what you did was wrong. I got pulled over for doing 54 in a 30 and got a warning lol. Just be nice. Beeeeeeee niceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

[Khamsin]

-Not stopping right away

So what do you do if you see the cop's lights go on behind you while you're in an area with no shoulder, or it's unsafe to stop (e.g. on a bridge, or interstate with no room on the side of the road at that location, etc.)?

Just keep going until you get to somewhere you can stop, or just stop in the road if you don't see any better place readily available?

From what jmcgarrell said, stop immediately, and then ask the officer if you can procede to a safer location.

Yeah, but say you stop in the middle of the lane, where's the cop going to stand when he talks to you? The passenger side has either a concrete barrier or a ditch or something so the cop can't stand there (or you would have been able to pull over). And standing on the driver's side would mean standing in the other lane.

[Quixon]

Just let the cop no you're getting pulled over by putting on your hazards and slowing down a bit.


In my experience the cop will follow you (Right on your fucking bumper), until he is at a comfortable spot to pull you over. At this time he will throw the lights on lol.

[Dmitry]

The one time I got pulled over, the cop kept flashing his light right in my eyes. It didn't help me, since I was already shaking when I tried to unlock my glove box. lol

[Malreg]

You should get your speedometer calibrated and make sure it's correct. If it's off, you can turn in the maintenance records and get the charge dropped to "Improper Equipment".

That doesn't always work... When I was 17, the speedometer in my car was completely broken, just stayed at 0. I was driving on a back country road and ended up being pulled over for going 76 in a 50 (Kilometerers/ph). I appologized, and informed the officer that my speedometer was broken. He told me to put the car in drive, and advance slowly to show him, which I did... He just said "alright", and went back into his car. He comes back like 20 minutes later, and hands me two tickets; one for speeding($180, 3 points...), and another which was a 48 hour warning, meaning I had 48 hours to get it fixed. He even told me that I was lucky I was still 17 because the maximum fine he could give a minor was $180, and if I was older it would have been more. Owned.... ended up having to drive with just 2 merit points for a year and half until I got my full license....

[Korietsu]

Easiest way to get out of a ticket? Prove it with the Doppler equation. Along with maintenance logs and knowledge of physics won a couple tickets for me. Especially with the awesome DPS State Troopers out here in tx. Man those guys are assholes on 35.

[Quixon]

Speaking on the whole being respectful to the police etc. I've always been as nice as can be to every cop that has pulled me over. My uncle is a retired chief of police, and his son is a detective in Albany. I have a fairly decent amount of respect for any person out there with a badge.

I have made the mistake of pissing off a town judge before. Please god don't ever do that. I don't even remember what the hell the argument was about. The judge wouldn't allow me into the court b/c of something, I think it was my cell phone going off as I was signing in to go to court, mind you court was about 20 minutes before it starting.

He said something wise from around a corner at a desk, and I just yelled something out to him. Called him an asshole I think lol. The county clerk was then like dumbfounded and told me "You just called your Judge an asshole". I was not one to be fucked with that evening (unfortunate for me), so I said "Well the Judge is an asshole". Of course loud enough for the dude to hear it.

He basically banned me from entering the court room that night. So I had to change my plea to guilty or walk out and have my license suspended. I changed the plea and paid $240 for a fucking "Failure to Signal" ticket.

Don't fight with the fucking judge

[Khamsin]

You should get your speedometer calibrated and make sure it's correct. If it's off, you can turn in the maintenance records and get the charge dropped to "Improper Equipment".

That doesn't always work... When I was 17, the speedometer in my car was completely broken, just stayed at 0. I was driving on a back country road and ended up being pulled over for going 76 in a 50 (Kilometerers/ph). I appologized, and informed the officer that my speedometer was broken. He told me to put the car in drive, and advance slowly to show him, which I did... He just said "alright", and went back into his car. He comes back like 20 minutes later, and hands me two tickets; one for speeding($180, 3 points...), and another which was a 48 hour warning, meaning I had 48 hours to get it fixed. He even told me that I was lucky I was still 17 because the maximum fine he could give a minor was $180, and if I was older it would have been more. Owned.... ended up having to drive with just 2 merit points for a year and half until I got my full license....

You didn't get your full license at 16?

[Korietsu]

You didn't get your full license at 16?

Some states you can't. Sometimes parents won't let you either.

[Tyche]

You should get your speedometer calibrated and make sure it's correct. If it's off, you can turn in the maintenance records and get the charge dropped to "Improper Equipment".

That doesn't always work... When I was 17, the speedometer in my car was completely broken, just stayed at 0. I was driving on a back country road and ended up being pulled over for going 76 in a 50 (Kilometerers/ph). I appologized, and informed the officer that my speedometer was broken. He told me to put the car in drive, and advance slowly to show him, which I did... He just said "alright", and went back into his car. He comes back like 20 minutes later, and hands me two tickets; one for speeding($180, 3 points...), and another which was a 48 hour warning, meaning I had 48 hours to get it fixed. He even told me that I was lucky I was still 17 because the maximum fine he could give a minor was $180, and if I was older it would have been more. Owned.... ended up having to drive with just 2 merit points for a year and half until I got my full license....

There's a huge difference between you speedometer not working and it being off. If it was broken, you knew it, and you deserved both tickets for being a dumbass and driving with no knowledge of your speed. If it's off calibration (larger wheels, tires, a ton of shit can knock it off) then you have no knowledge that you are comitting a crime. When you tell the cop that pulls you over "Hey, my shit hasn't been working lol", then you are asking for it.

To another story, as I said, I was dating the DAs daughter when I was way back when. Funny story, I was pulled over one night for driving with my lights out. I had just pulled out of a well lit parking lot and forgot, didn't notice it. We've all done it. I was pulled over, was driving a minivan (my first car, suck it). The cop wanted to search my car because I didn't have my damn lights on. He said "I need to search this", and for whatever reason, walked back to his car. He came back about 5minutes later and said "Have a good night, and make sure to turn your lights on". I was dumbfounded. I talk with my girlfriends mom a couple of days later and she asked "What happened the other night, I heard you got pulled over". She informed me that another officer had told the cop when he got on the radio that he needed to loosen up and let me go. That was sweet.

I've also, had a cop ask, literally "Oh, your Neil". My license doesn't say "Neil" on it anywhere, it's my middle name. I was pulled over that time for following too close heh. He checked my contacts (edit: eye contacts, I have that restriction) then talked with me about how pre-law was going. Then let me off.

I should have married that girl, but she was a total bitch. Her mom was hot though.

[Talus]

So we reach another red light where we need to make a right onto the road. She freaks out again, being irrational like most women are, and asks me to “do something.”

So I did something…I did a pull-through on an abandoned lot to avoid the red traffic light, and safely pulled out onto the road that I was going to make a right turn on.

I’ve NEVER done this before, but the ONE time that I did it…a cop saw. So he follows me for about a mile, and then turns on his flashers.

The ticket you would have gotten would be for evasion of a traffic control device. Glad to hear grandpa was ok, though. I'm sure the officer was too when it was confirmed as being a legitimate story.

[jmc]

-Not stopping right away

So what do you do if you see the cop's lights go on behind you while you're in an area with no shoulder, or it's unsafe to stop (e.g. on a bridge, or interstate with no room on the side of the road at that location, etc.)?

Just keep going until you get to somewhere you can stop, or just stop in the road if you don't see any better place readily available?

Hazards on, and keep going at a slow pace until you reach a safe area to pull over.

[Blackwidow]

I"ll reply to each portion as it pertains to your questions in blue text:

I just got pulled over last night by a police officer en route to school, and she said she caught me going 73 in a 55. I know I was going 65 on cruise, and even if I was going a little higher, there's a big difference between 73 and 65. So, I asked her to show me her speed gun, and she said:

1) The speedgun doesn't save the speeds it registers (so there's no way of showing my speed)
First, clarification is needed when you refer to a "speed gun." Are you speaking of R.A.D.A.R unit that is attached to a power cord that connects to an outlet within the officer's vehicle, or are you speaking about a L.I.D.A.R. unit (commonly referred to as a laser) that's self contained? In the latter case, the display is showed as a digital reading that can be shown to the person, but is not necessarily required. This would depend on the state as well as departmental policies for that agency. If it was the former, they also display the reading in a digital text for a few minutes time after the reading is obtained. In either case, the officer was correct in stating that it doesn't "save" the speeds.
2) She is not required by law nor am I entitled to seeing the speedgun
There is no law that an officer show the readout that I'm aware of in any state. The last portion of this statement about you not being "entitled" to seeing it is based off of an "officer safety" standpoint. There are very few departments that have policies about showing the readout to the person who's been stopped. The most blatant reason for this is that it places the officer in a comprimised position where the potential threat (the driver) has a greater range of motion. What I mean is that if it is the type of unit that has to stay with the vehicle, then that allows the driver to exit their vehicle and go to the officers.
Is this true? I've been told countless times by friends/co-workers that if you get pulled over for speeding, always ask to see the speedgun, and if they don't show it to you, then you can use that to try and dismiss your case.
You can ask all you like, but as stated above it's not required. As for using it for a defense... your friends/co-workers have been watching too much television cop shows.
Now I have to figure out which is more worthwhile:

Paying 61$ ticket and not going to court, but taking the "hit" to my driving record The "hit" that you mention usually doesn't effect much of anything unless you have multiple moving violation infractions on your record. The point system that determines whether or not a person is allowed to keep their valid license varies from state to state and is also determined through the Motor Vehicle Division. One, two, even three citations for speeding will not impede you from keeping your valid license.
OR
Paying a minimum 50$ (max $111) for a damn court-cost and trying to get my case dismissed so it doesn't show on my record. Usually the total court costs/fees are lower than the set fine that's imposed on citations issued by officers. However, take that with a grain of salt because your state may be different than mine. Also keep in mind that a lot of people that are responding to you are referring to their particular state's/county's laws and what they know of them. I'm trying to give you the best overall picture.

It's double-or-nothing if I choose to go to court.

Several people have stated things in reference to the Doppler Principle and trying to "get out of the citation" based on that fact that your speedometer may not have been properly calibrated. First, let's take the defense of the officer not being able to describe the Doppler Principle: Most states have what's referred to as "Frye," or their state's equivalent. What it means is that the officer just need have basic knowledge of how the device works to use it rather than knowing the scientific principles behind it and how it works. Second, I would never use the defense that "my speedometer is broke." Reason being is that not only could you be cited for speeding, but also for defective equipment. One violation does not excuse the other. Hope this convoluted response gives you some aid. By the way, I instruct officers in the use of both the machines formerly mentioned and am well aware of how the Doppler Principle works. I say this to let you know that in thousands of cases concerning speed enforcement, the Doppler Principle has never come into question, nor have I ever had to explain it to any jury.