Traffic Cops: Protecting us, or being jerks?

Well, I got pulled over tonight for "running a stop sign". I was a bit confused at first, because I didn't really remember doing so, but I realized what he meant. See, I was coming down a residential street planning to turn right. There was no traffic to my left (which is a 4 lane street), so I slowed down to about 4 mph to make sure. Seeing that I was quite literally clear for a country mile, I turned right and continued on my way. Well, about a mile up the road I get pulled over by a traffic cop who says I ran the stop sign. He claimed he would let me off with a warning, but I "put people in danger" by doing what I did. Thus, I have to appear in court in a week on my 1st offence. Now, by strict definition, I ran it. I did not come to a complete and total stop. However, I know Traffic units are able to make judgement calls (especially considering he said he was going to give me a warning). My problem is, how is a "rolling stop" at 4mph going right onto a 4 lane road with 0 traffic endangering the lives of others? Regardless, he says I have to be in court, but can't I just pay the fine and avoid it?

You should be able to plead no contest and pay a fine without appearing in court. This information should be on the ticket.

And yes, they're just being jerks mostly.

I want to have a bumper sticker that says, "Good job protecting us all from me going 5 over."

Jerks. If traffic tickets only took points off a license, then they'd be protecting us. But they're making money, so up their couches.

Explain it to the judge most of the time simple stuff like this gets thrown out if you put up a fuss. Were I live the cop has to come to court the same day you do. Half the people I know that have went to court got off cause the cop never showed.

[quote name='Graystone']Explain it to the judge most of the time simple stuff like this gets thrown out if you put up a fuss. Were I live the cop has to come to court the same day you do. Half the people I know that have went to court got off cause the cop never showed.[/QUOTE]

The problem is that I'm a student, so I'd be putting myself out trying to show up. I just noticed something hilarious, apparently I didn't show proof of insurance, even though I handed him my ing insurance card. Wow, thank you officer! Now I have to deal with that. Anyone want to buy a New Digital Devil Saga? I'm going to need some money.

[quote name='Dr Mario Kart']
I want to have a bumper sticker that says, "Good job protecting us all from me going 5 over."[/QUOTE]

The problem with that is your still breaking the law. In a street cops eyes all criminals are equal at the time of arrest or ticket. With a bumper sticker like that your basically saying, "hey I'm not as bad as him"

To play devils advocate, I agree with the bumper sticker. As I type this I hear police sirens and a later tonight I will hear gunshots, coming from a few blocks away where they sell guns out of a car wash. My point is yes there people doing worse then me or you speeding, but the cops can't stop all bad people or the world would stop spinning.

i understand what youre sayin. but really now, is it that hard to come to a complete stop and just pause for one second. sure it was clear, and sure you coasted very very very slowly, but thats not the point. you should have just stopped. im sure you would have saved about, oh 5 seconds by doing the ol california stop. but cmon!

[quote name='Graystone']The problem with that is your still breaking the law. In a street cops eyes all criminals are equal at the time of arrest or ticket. With a bumper sticker like that your basically saying, "hey I'm not as bad as him"

To play devils advocate, I agree with the bumper sticker. As I type this I hear police sirens and a later tonight I will hear gunshots, coming from a few blocks away where they sell guns out of a car wash. My point is yes there people doing worse then me or you speeding, but the cops can't stop all bad people or the world would stop spinning.[/QUOTE]

I'm not coming against the fact that I didn't come to a complete stop, but Traffic Cops give warnings. I bet if I had big ing titties he would've let me off with a smile.
*Edit Iheartmetal, I swear, I normally do. It's just that one time that gets you, the one lapse in reason.

I got a story for you: I got a ticket for running a red light with my bicycle once (in San Francisco). Everyone....I mean Everyone....riding a bike will run a red light in San Francisco if there is no traffic. Its all part of the norm.

So when this Cop pulled me over - I was shocked. I went to the courts later on and approached the judge about it and asked for leinency (spelling?) since I was poor at the time. The Judge threw out the ticket.

[quote name='Xevious']I got a story for you: I got a ticket for running a red light with my bicycle once (in San Francisco). Everyone....I mean Everyone....riding a bike will run a red light in San Francisco if there is no traffic. Its all part of the norm.

So when this Cop pulled me over - I was shocked. I went to the courts later on and approached the judge about it and asked for leinency (spelling?) since I was poor at the time. The Judge threw out the ticket.[/QUOTE]

Hmm. Maybe I have a good chance then? It's my first offense, and I'm DIRT poor. I just spent $200 to fix my brakes, and I have to spend another $60 this week for tags. I'm a student for Christ's sake, that's as poor as you get. I swear, if this town had a good mass transit system, I wouldn't bother.

Reality's Fringe said:

My problem is, how is a "rolling stop" at 4mph going right onto a 4 lane road with 0 traffic endangering the lives of others?

Click to expand...

I didn't realize it suddenly became legal to run stop lights and signs when no one else is around.

Go to court, plead no contest and ask the judge for a reduced fine because it's your first offense and you're a poor student.

I'm curious how you went from getting a warning to getting a ticket. I hope you didn't get into this discussion with the cop

I've only been pulled over once, and afterwards I almost wish he gave me a ticket, othe than the hassle. I sped around someone who was going like 15 in a 25, and I guess when the cop tagged me, I was going 44. He tells me I was going 44 in a 25, and to slow down from now on. But the speed limit changes to 35 well before I was within range of him (we're talkin a half mile, and assuming I was going 44 the second I passed the guy in front of me, he would have needed to tag me within seconds), so I was really going 44 in a 35. Regardless of my speed, I'm pretty sure if the cop didn't know what the speed limit was, it would be pretty simple to show he didn't know what speed I was going.

[quote name='botticus']I'm curious how you went from getting a warning to getting a ticket. I hope you didn't get into this discussion with the cop
[/QUOTE]

Oh no, I was compliant and respectful which is way more than I should have been now that I realized he claimed on the ticket I didn't show proof of insurance when I puit the card in his hand. He said he was going to give me a warning, but what I did endangered the lives of others. This is where the disbelief and anger comes in as there was no one ing there. I'm not questioning the semantics of legality here, because I didn't come to a "complete stop", but if the guy was going to give me a warning anyway but didn't because of my "wreckless behavior" then I have to question what the hell he was talking about. Oh well. Live, learn, hold a grudge against cops. :lol:

I hate when some cops act on a power trip like that. IMO, he should have just given you a warning. It seems like cops always want to give people a rough time. There is a school zone that I drive through often that is about 1 minute away from the police station. It's 15 mph when the light is flashing and I try to stay 15 - 20 mph. People zoom through at 25 - 35 mph and even though I see cops on the road all the time they never get pulled over. Yet I was double parked near the school waiting (basically on the shoulder), the cop threatened everyone who was waiting there (a common pickup point that everyone uses all the time for picking up someone from the school) to move or get ticketed.

If someone is going really fast like 40 in a 25 residential area, I can see how they are pulling someone over for safety reasons but not completely stopping at a stop sign is not worth being pulled over for IMO

here's one for you, EVERY car I ever had (4) in my name I would get pulled over on a regular basis with no ticket given EVER, just pulled over for a fake light being broken or some lame excuse. I now have a really nice car but for a experiment I put it in my mothers name (big tymers style) and I have not gotten pulled over once, WTF?!

Also, you have to remember that he is a traffic cop and he is supposed to be out there finding people who violate traffic laws. Regardless of you posing a danger, you broke the law and we pay good money for him to issue you a citation. He has no type of quota, but he is a traffic cop and he is expected to be out there busting people who break traffic laws. You broke the law (and admitted it) even if it was unintential and got caught. End of story.


[quote name='jmcc']Jerks. If traffic tickets only took points off a license, then they'd be protecting us. But they're making money, so up their couches.[/QUOTE]

Umm... you do realize they are taking your money in order to deter you from doing it again, right? Most people couldn't care less about the point system and don't realize the recourse of their actions. However, money talks. In fact, in most places in Europe, the citation is based on your income.

[quote name='valor19']Umm... you do realize they are taking your money in order to deter you from doing it again, right? Most people couldn't care less about the point system and don't realize the recourse of their actions. However, money talks. In fact, in most places in Europe, the citation is based on your income.[/QUOTE]
If people are deterred by it, so be it, but it's strictly a stream of revenue for municipalities.

I know for a fact in my city the officers assigned to traffic DO have a quota.

Aren't you the same guy that said they pull you over for a "fake light" or something like that? And, yet, you know the inner workings of your police department enough to know they have a quota?

Sounds to me that most of you are just bitter at the police.

[quote name='valor19']Aren't you the same guy that said they pull you over for a "fake light" or something like that? And, yet, you know the inner workings of your police department enough to know they have a quota?

Sounds to me that most of you are just bitter at the police.[/QUOTE]

bitter nah, but really I'm sure most cities police force could be of better use then handing out tickets for minor traffic things such as the OP's current situation.

I want to be an NY traffic cop and pull over all these assholes that drive in Hummers and talk on thier cellphones and run redlights since they are to busy talking.

Where I live, I wish the cops would pull over more people.

The fact is, you did break the law and now you'll probably will be more careful in the future, perhaps saving a life (maybe your own).

The whole reason for recieving fines for speeding, running red lights, etc. is becuase its a money making machine for the city and state. Thats all it is... sure a lot of traffic laws do make the roads safer but all its comes down to is revenue. Why do you think there are cameras mounted on top of stop lights now? Imagine the type of revenue that generates.

Another thing is cops are hypocrites. Ive seen cops break all kinds of traffic laws but will pull you over and lecture you for doing the same thing. Its all bullshit.

Heh, beats the $600 ticket my friend just got the other week for going 30 in a school zone (we checked, and the fine for leading police on a car chase isn't even that much)..

Wah, wah, wah. Boo ing hoo.

You broke the law, there's no footnote on a stop sign that says "unless you loook both ways, and you're clear for a country mile, then just roll right on through". You know the old saying, "don't do the crime if you can't do the time". You also signed the ticket saying that you hadn't provided him proof of insurance. You should have read it before you signed it.


As for jeopardizing lives, you did. I was hit by a jackass just like you. I was walking through a crosswalk, with the light on solid "walk" when this prick in an SUV decided to do a rolling stop through the light (there was no traffic coming in the direction he was looking, left), and he "rolling stop"ped right into my ass. If I hadn't yelled and slammed my fist down on the hood of his car, he'd have hit the gas and rolled right over me. But hey, I'm sure it was his first rolling stop, too.

I weep for the death of personal responsibility in this country. Man up, Nancy, and accept your punishment.

no shit it's all about the money. why else do you think they give you a ticket for not wearing a seat belt? $$$. me not wearing a seat belt hurts nobody but me. and if i want to take the chance of risking my life, it's my choice, not theirs. but no, they know they can make money off it, so it's a ticketable offense now. what next? make it illegal to run with scissors?

and if it's not about the money, it's about the ego/power trip. if you're not intimidated by their power and refuse to kiss their ass, they'll do whatever they can to screw with you.

here's a little story that happened to me a few years ago. i was on my way to work, running late so i was going about 65 in a 55. i pull into work. while i was waiting for the gate to open a state cop pulls in behind me gives me a ticket for speeding. i was pissed, so as soon as he handed me the ticket, i crumpled it, tossed it in the back seat, slammed the car into drive and nailed the gas. left him standing there (i was on private property now, there was nothing he could do about it.) so, when i went to mail in the ticket , on that little part of the check where you write what it's for, i wrote "for filling some pig's quota", crumpled the check and ticket into a little ball and stuffed it into an envelope. a week or so later i got the reciept back in th mail with a summons to court for contempt for it. (so much for freedom of expression/speech) the judge lookedup my record to see if there was anything on there he could use to haul me in for, but there wasn't. he was going to fine me $100 and put me in jail for 3 days.
now here comes the good part. my father in law knew the judge, campaigned to get him elected. he called him up, told him i wsa his son in law and got me off the hook. (finally government corruption works in the small guy's favor) i still had to go to court, but when i got there he just pretty much told me not to do it again.

if they can't make money off of you, and nobody is about to die, they don't give a crap about you. my father called the cops one time because there was someone vandalizing his truck. it took them 2-3 hours to show up. we live in a small town, about the worst we ever get here is an occasional case of domestic violence. so i highly doubt there was any serious crimes going on at the time that needed the attention of every cop in town. they didn't see the chance to make any money so they didn't do shit about it except file a report when they finally got around to showing up.

another time i caught the neighbor kids shooting my car with a bb gun, so i called the cops. (i would have beat their asses myself, but they were only 12 or 13 and i was 18-19) took the cops 1 - 1 1/2 hours to show up. they didn't even question the kids. all they did was file a report.

then there was the time someone hit my car in a store parking lot. they hit it hard enough to put a good sized dent in the door. the cop tried to tell me a shopping cart done it. now the way my car was parked and the side the dent was on, a cart would have had to roll UPHILL to hit my car, let alone to put that size of a dent in it.

i have plenty of other stories of police laziness, but i've ranted long enough for now.

[quote name='abrannan']Wah, wah, wah. Boo ing hoo.

You broke the law, there's no footnote on a stop sign that says "unless you loook both ways, and you're clear for a country mile, then just roll right on through". You know the old saying, "don't do the crime if you can't do the time". You also signed the ticket saying that you hadn't provided him proof of insurance. You should have read it before you signed it.


As for jeopardizing lives, you did. I was hit by a jackass just like you. I was walking through a crosswalk, with the light on solid "walk" when this prick in an SUV decided to do a rolling stop through the light (there was no traffic coming in the direction he was looking, left), and he "rolling stop"ped right into my ass. If I hadn't yelled and slammed my fist down on the hood of his car, he'd have hit the gas and rolled right over me. But hey, I'm sure it was his first rolling stop, too.

I weep for the death of personal responsibility in this country. Man up, Nancy, and accept your punishment.[/QUOTE]


Thank you, Mr. Internet Hardcore Topical Person Man for your badass attitude regarding my "plight". Your Dirty Harry no nonsense forum post has made me realize that maybe I should show up for court, even though I had already resigned myself to doing just that. I also appreciate your story, which while illogical, makes me realize that my situation was exactly like yours. Except I looked right and left twice(even on the sidewalk), it was a stop sign, there was no traffic pedestrian or otherwise, and (unless he was doing a speed slower than people jog) I was going slower. I'm also glad that you got the point of my post which was, of course, "Man, I broke the law and I shouldn't have to pay" as opposed to "The cop was going going to give me a warning, but changed his mind for a reason that makes little sense". I'm happy that you think I would be foolish enough to sign something without reading it! It's not as if the cop wrote the ticket, tossed it in my window, told me to show up for court, and then sped away or anything. I'm also glad you took the time to lament the lack of personal responsibility in this country, because we were all blissfully unaware of that. Thus, I have to thank you again, especially for the part where you called me "Nancy" at the end(which is what I assume to be an attack on my "manhood", because men always take what they feel to be injustices and annoyances in stride. I've never seen a guy blow anything out of proportion, ever) because it has inspired me to new and great heights. Your Judge Mathis like tough-love is much more poignant than simply stating (like others in the thread) that the cop was right.

::shurgs:: around here, if you take the chance by not coming to the stop, you take the chance of them writing you up a 150 dollar ticket.


generally speaking it's easier to just stop. I mean it's not like he's in the wrong by doing his ing job. Unless you're going to protest the fact there was a big red sign with STOP written on it..

~b

[quote name='raveneyes']::shurgs:: around here, if you take the chance by not coming to the stop, you take the chance of them writing you up a 150 dollar ticket.


generally speaking it's easier to just stop. I mean it's not like he's in the wrong by doing his ing job. Unless you're going to protest the fact there was a big red sign with STOP written on it..

~b[/QUOTE]

I'm not sure why people still think I'm contesting the legallity of the situation, rather than the bizzare "Well, I was going to give you a warning, but-" issue. That's what I'm on about. Why mention that you were going to give me a warning, but then pull out an excuse that makes no contextual sense? Did he want a bribe, or for me to beg for a warning? I wouldn't have even bothered to post if he just gave me the citation, but this circumstantial nonsense is what made me angry. Strictly speaking, every traffic law you break "endangers someone" (which is the theoretical reason the law was made). It just makes me question motive.

The cop was doing his job, but it obviously still sucks that you got the ticket. I just got a court citation for nearly hitting a cop. He was pulled over on a bridge and I stopped about 5-10 feet behind him because I admit that I wasn't paying particular attention since I have never seen a cop on that bridge/there is no break down lane. After coming to the stop, I tried to go around the cop, but instead, he cut me off, got out of his car, and flipped out with profanity and all, which he denied later. I understand that he was pissed that he almost got hit, but as I wrote, I never hit the guy.

I apologized to him and told him that I know I made a stupid mistake, but nothing actually happened. He said, "Well what do you want me to do? You have a court date on April 6, I suggest you be there," and then he walked away. Here's the best part: He never gave me back my license and registration. He told my father, who insisted on calling the state trooper barracks, that he would mail my information back by last friday. However, I have still not received my info, and the cop has been on vacation over the last week.

Now, I know that since I have not received any tickets and that I have a clean record, the "violation" will be thrown out of court. However, am I wrong in thinking the whole thing is ridiculous since I actually didn't hit the guy/wasn't speeding/stopped at least 5 feet behind him? I know it was stupid and trust me, I feel like an idiot about it, but I'm just particularly pissed that I haven't had my information for over 10 days now.

Reality's Fringe said:

It just makes me question motive.

Click to expand...

Agreed. If you read my post, I'm in a somewhat similar situation. I have to mention that the trooper told my dad that I never apologized and if I had, it would have made the circumstance different. Hmm, well, I actually did tell him that I was sorry, but not initially. If you had almost hit a cop, would you be able to immediately apologize while catching your breath AND getting yelled at by said cop? I doubt it.

I got a speeding ticket in 1995 on my way back from an REM concert. I was going 69 in a 65. It was 2 a.m. and there wasn't a single other car on the highway for as far back and as far forward as I could see. What a dick.

Definitely assholish for him to say he would just give you a warning but you are too much of a menace so he has to issue the ticket. If you are going to issue a ticket for something that BS, just do it and don't try to justify your trifling ass.

I try not to slow roll through stop signs but pretty much everyone does it. In my area I see people do it right next to cop cars all the time. (I'm not that bold/stupid.)

I was with a buddy (girl) that ran a traffic light (turned red before she was in the intersection), cop pulled her over and I was shocked that he just gave her a verbal warning and told her to slam on her brakes next time. I mean in this case she actually was a danger to other cars as that's exactly the sort of thing that can cause major accidents. Luck of the draw I guess.

Reality's Fringe said:

Your Judge Mathis like tough-love is much more poignant than simply stating (like others in the thread) that the cop was right.

Click to expand...

Oh, I was going more for Judge Judy than Mathis... Gotta work on that...

[quote name='onetrackmind']
Another thing is cops are hypocrites. Ive seen cops break all kinds of traffic laws but will pull you over and lecture you for doing the same thing. Its all bullshit.[/quote]

Yep...that happens everywhere. They can do it and no one can stop them..

go to court, if it doesn't get thrown out, the fine would be reduced. For 2 years I lived in a mid coast maine town. Middle of ing no where, no offense any mainers out there. I got a ticket for jay walking. It was the middle of winter, 2am, and I was walking back to my apartment from the town bar. I lived in the center of town, and during the winter months, there was NO traffic, 80% of the stores/restaurants closed after tourist season. The bastard cop gave me a jay walking ticket for being about 10 feet outside of the lines. In the 15 min it took for him to give me the ticket, not 1 car passed. I went to court and got it dismissed.

Would I be bitter if I were to give a cop static because he attempted to pull me over for turning left on a red? It was a one way street, and in Tx its perfectly legal. Thats the ONLY damn thing I learned in defensive driving.

I used to work with a retired PA state trooper when I was in high school. I asked him once if it was true that troopers had quotas for giving out tickets. His answer was "No, that would be illegal in PA. But if you don't give out enough tickets you'll get in trouble....."
On the OP, though. Life sucks, we all get caught at least once doing those kinds of things. Think about the ten thousand times you've probably done that and gotten away with it.

[quote name='javeryh']I got a speeding ticket in 1995 on my way back from an REM concert. I was going 69 in a 65. It was 2 a.m. and there wasn't a single other car on the highway for as far back and as far forward as I could see. What a dick.[/quote]

I don't know if this is actually true, but I heard(maybe just PA) that cops can't pull you over if you are less than 5 miles over the speed limit. Or maybe it was that they can, but the ticket won't be enforced if you challenge it. Guess it depends on the $ amount if i would bother going to court for it if that were to happen.

Some cops will write a ticket for anything. I got a ticket for running a red light when i was 90% through the intersection when it turned red. I was going 45 MPH and was about 5 feet from the intersection when the light turned yellow. I guess he wanted me to slam on my brakes so i would skid into the middle of the intersection and block traffic.

Traffic cops = Traffic tickets / violations = Money for the government (state and local)

tha po-leece. tha po-leece, yo. 'em.

[quote name='Michaellvortega']I would get pulled over on a regular basis with no ticket given EVER, just pulled over for a fake light being broken or some lame excuse. [/QUOTE]


With the first car I had (a 79 VW Bus), I was pulled over constantly with the "broken taillight" excuse. It was happening about once every other week or so. (I also drove home a lot at 2:30 in the morning.) On my current car, (a 00 Ford Escort) I know for a fact my right taillight is busted. This not only shows when I brake, but doubles as my rear right turn signal. I still drive around at 2:30 in the morning quite a bit, but I have not been pulled over with this car once. I've had this car for a little over 2 years now.

Yeah; the "broken taillight" excuse is common place in traffic cop bullshit.

My friend and I got pulled over for a "broken taillight", slammed the breathalyzer in my friend's face, asked us out of the vehicle, searched the car, found nothing, asked us where the "alcohol" he "smelled" was (and there was none), and then bitterly let us go 'cause he couldn't find anything.

Later, we checked the taillight... and it wasn't out.

This happens all the time, from what I hear. How can we, the citizen, prove it? Nobody will listen... and if they do, the cop will deny it.

[quote name='Brak']Yeah; the "broken taillight" excuse is common place in traffic cop bullshit.

My friend and I got pulled over for a "broken taillight", slammed the breathalyzer in my friend's face, asked us out of the vehicle, searched the car, found nothing, asked us where the "alcohol" he "smelled" was (and there was none), and then bitterly let us go 'cause he couldn't find anything.

Later, we checked the taillight... and it wasn't out.

This happens all the time, from what I hear. How can we, the citizen, prove it? Nobody will listen... and if they do, the cop will deny it.[/QUOTE]
Uh, get out and make them show you which light is out?

[quote name='jmcc']Uh, get out and make them show you which light is out?[/QUOTE]

Why? So they say "No"?

Cops should deserve the benefit of the doubt, which we gave them that time, as we wouldn't expect a cop to lie through his Burt Reynolds moustache.

One is quick to think what they'd do in that situation, but I'm 300% sure you wouldn't ask for him to show you the out taillight.

Regardless, if you did ask him to show you the taillight, they could say they made a mistake and still go about their real motives of pulling you over, since they can pull the "suspision" card.