Ask A Cop!!! Post Your Questions Here!

[Cacia]

you could take a squirt gun...

kidding of course.

My daddy taught me how to not get shot. (FBI)

 

[Mverick]

Mverick: Thanks for the stories! There are any number of reasons you didn't get stopped. One easy reason may be that the officer just didn't give a crap.

Alot of people say: As long as nobody is around, what's the harm? Well the harm is when you crash, die, tie up resources that otherwise would be available for other things, raise insurance rates, cost the local economy tons of money to fix roads, bridges, signs, utilities, etc., and pay for lots of overtime...that's the harm. Yeah, maybe you only kill yourself..but there is a cost to everything. What about your family...people rarely think about the "cost" of the devistation to a familly.

Those are the things that I tell people that always have the wise ***** remark of "I'll only hurt/kill myself...what do you care." Usually I get that from young "men" (16 year olds) that have that indestructable feeling. Next thing you know, I'm scraping their brains (literaly) off the side of the roadway...

I think I know who the cop was and he was far from the "Don't give a crap". Thing. Really good guy. Did a lot for the schools also. It was close to his house. I know since a friend I knew lived near him when I was younger.

Completely understand. But also, more wrecks are in the parking lot of a local grocery store then on a interstate..

I personally liked Montana's speed laws. Resonable. If it's Mario Andretti in a Ferrari running 120mph. They figure the car and the driver is capable on deserted roads. Now a soccer mom in a Mini Van. Not quite as safe of a package.

On cost of wrecks. When I rolled my jeep my insurance paid for all property damage. I know, they sent me a bill first. One industry I don't feel for is the insurance industry. They also paid $5000 on a $13000 jeep. But they paid full value to the state for damages just not to me. And, wrecks aren't the only thing that drive insurance rates. It's been proven that it's more profit motivated. Right now the big kicker is the Katrina incident. And, yep, it's raising your car insurance. They gotta get there money back someway. Spreading it out works for them. I had worked a lot of overtime and fell asleep while driving home from work. In the neighborhood of 112hrs that week.

I do rescue recovery work now. I know a little about this stuff. Don't know why, but about 70% of police seem to have a chip. Fire departments don't have that. Work with them all the time. Used to train at the academy for Rescue work. And fire fighting in a plant.

Met a lot of good cops and met some that needed a little guidance. Kinda like I did... Guess were not so different... LOL I rarely break 70mph now... Even if it's deserted...

 

[RonDawg]

But also, more wrecks are in the parking lot of a local grocery store then on a interstate.

A wreck at 5 MPH doesn't have the same consequences as one at 75 MPH.

I personally liked Montana's speed laws. Resonable. If it's Mario Andretti in a Ferrari running 120mph. They figure the car and the driver is capable on deserted roads. Now a soccer mom in a Mini Van. Not quite as safe of a package.

Yes it worked so well that Montana repealed those laws less than a decade later.

I do rescue recovery work now. I know a little about this stuff.

Then you should know what happens when you crash at 125 MPH, and why it's simply a subject not to be taken lightly.

Don't know why, but about 70% of police seem to have a chip. Fire departments don't have that. Work with them all the time. Used to train at the academy for Rescue work. And fire fighting in a plant.

I've met firefighters with the so-called "chip" as well. They get particularly defensive when you accuse them of ruining your crime scene.

As I stated earlier in this thread, let's not turn this into a police vs. fire peeing match.

 

[RonDawg]

A guy like you should probably keep your hands visible, high on the wheel if you get pulled.

Catherine, you'd be surprised some of the stupid stuff people do during traffic stops, like suddenly reaching beneath the seat to retrieve an item :11: :11: :11:

 

[Cacia]

I would like to see some personality profiles for police officers.

For example....RN's are know to be codependant types. (except for me, of course)

People that like to be in charge of other people must gravitate to police work.
Then you are bound to be pre-selected for people who like to be authority figures.
Best not to ever argue with that type.....Yes sir...give them all the power they want, it tends to go better. I usually beg. " Please, can I look for my new insurance card for a couple minutes, SIR?" Just happened the other day...begging works great. He went from being kinda mean to "okay...I will take your word for it". I was on the phone and my daughter was driving my car. I said "let me talk to him"
She said "he doesn't want to talk to you"....I insisted and then begged. I told him I had the new card, but it was in my wallet. So...no flirting accusations. On the phone, in person, just swallow your pride and beg. Svae yourself a lot of money.


Oh yes, I believe you. I used to crawl into those crashed cars on the freeway and I saw some strange behaviors then too. LIke the woman who had the axle and front end in her lap and the mascara still in her hand.

I don't move myself. Hands on top of the wheel. My registration was never in the glove box either. Since it would be a bad idea for the Glock to fall out. I was always prepared to say "officer, I have a gun in there" if I had to. Thing was, F-troop was shooting girls like me at underpasses for their purses, and I was more afraid of them than the misdemeanor ticket. Thank goodness no need for that in Hawaii.

Never underestimate begging.

 

[RonDawg]

What I mean is that the selective enforcement is a cash grab.

If I cannot figure out how to park, then that is a problem.

If I get fed up, that is a problem. If law abiding citizens feel screwed and not protected (I don't) that is bad for society.

Maybe it is different in other places, I think it is. The police here are very lazy from what I see. Everytime I see one, he is just eating. Sitting and eating. Ask anybody who lives here.

So...sorry for the rant.

I like the police, I give to their programs...support them.

But sometimes citizens need to say enough with attempts to target easy revenue.

Who directs them to go there and give tickets? The politicians?

Meanwhile these scooters are going to kill me all over the bike lanes.

I wish the LAPD could take this place over and fix it for a month.

I just want to fight this ticket and not add to the roll-over inertia.

catherine,

Because we're the ones giving out the tickets, the police are the ones that are usually the target for citizen frustrations with things like traffic fines.

However, we're not the ones setting the fines. Your local politicians do that, and the rules they make are interpreted with varying degrees of strictness by your judges, who may or may not be elected officials themselves. The same politicians who enact the same laws that we the police are now expected to enforce.

As far as the "they all just sit there and eat" issue. A lot of people complain when they see a cop "eating" or worse "having a donut" However, when I ask people how they would feel if their meal break were denied to them, they'd get quite defensive. Unless the guy is having excessively long lunches, or having multiple meal breaks within the same day, you can't really judge how lazy an officer is unless you watch their movements over several hours if not days.

If HPD allows it, see if you can go on a ridealong with them, before pronouncing judgment on them.

 

[RonDawg]

I would like to see some personality profiles for police officers.

For example....RN's are know to be codependant types. (except for me, of course)

People that like to be in charge of other people must gravitate to police work.
Then you are bound to be pre-selected for people who like to be authority figures.
Best not to ever argue with that type.....Yes sir...give them all the power they want, it tends to go better. I usually beg. Please, can I look for my new insurance card for a couple minutes, SIR?

Psychological testing is a pretty standard pre-employment item in order to get hired. In places like CA, it's mandatory.

You are right though, cops do have a typical "profile." We are take charge type of people, we can be quite opinionated and we tend to be more cynical of people and their motives, especially those who have been on the job for a while.

I wouldn't say people who "like" to be in charge tend to gravitate towards this work; more like people who "do what needs to be done when it needs to be done."

 

[Mverick]

A wreck at 5 MPH doesn't have the same consequences as one at 75 MPH.



Yes it worked so well that Montana repealed those laws less than a decade later.



Then you should know what happens when you crash at 125 MPH, and why it's simply a subject not to be taken lightly.



I've met firefighters with the so-called "chip" as well. They get particularly defensive when you accuse them of ruining your crime scene.

As I stated earlier in this thread, let's not turn this into a police vs. fire peeing match.

Well, a lot of people die at 5mph. Also, long standing conditions of Whiplash, Back strain, can be Shock, A wreck is a pretty intense thing for people at any speed.

Montana repealed the law. But what was the reason? It was because of Federal pressure. They were about to loose there Support for there hiways if they didn't. Not because of wrecks or problems.

I know what a wreck at 125mph does. Because I was in one on a motorcycle. Broke clavicle in 4 places. Grass burns. I was lucky.

On the Police vs. Fire peeing match. Uhh..... I'm not a Fire man. So, the chip hit the mark with someone and you attacked the wrong group.

I said I was stupid for the things I did. Without question. Don't know why you took it as a attack.

When I work for the police, fbi, dea, atf, they all love me. Cause they think I'm crazy and would never go where I or my buddies go for them to solve there case. Plus, I don't get paid. I'm one of 5 that will do it. See others say no and pack up all the time and there getting paid by the state, say it's to dangerous.

Takes all types. Lets be friends... I'll buy first round....

 

[ShakaZulu]

I got a speeding ticket when I was doing about 115mph, but I don't think the cop knew how fast I was going cause as soon as I saw the lights in the distance, I braked and pulled over. He gave me two citations:

(i was late for a boat dive btw)

22349A - Exceed 65mph
22348B - Exceed 100mph

Then I got a correction notice from the Highway Patrol where they deleted the "22348 - Exceed 100mph" citation.

In the courtesy notice I received from the court, they indicated I do not qualify for traffic school. They don't know how fast I was going so they don't know if I exceeded the speed limit by 26mph. What is going on?

 

[TJcop]

In the courtesy notice I received from the court, they indicated I do not qualify for traffic school. They don't know how fast I was going so they don't know if I exceeded the speed limit by 26mph. What is going on?

I can't answer the traffic school question, since your state apparently has different requirements than mine. But, with the speed violation, I'm suprised you didn't just get a ticked for Unreasonable/Imprudent Speed. It's kind of like the "catch all" for speed violations. Think of it as the "disorderly conduct" version for traffic laws. In my state, you'd be better off with the unreas/imprud. ticket than the speeding violation at those speeds.
Good luck.