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I Respect Cops....But DAMN!

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Old 11-10-2007, 10:32 AM
  #1  
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I Respect Cops....But DAMN!

I leave work and drive through town to check out the late night scene. I decide to just head home and catch up on my beauty sleep. I get out of town and get onto the main road into town....not a single car in sight. The speed limit is 35 and my speedo indicates 40. I pass a cop going the other way, nothing. About 15 seconds later, another. Nothing. I'm about to pass another and lights come on. I quickly pull over (because there are no roads to dip down ). The lady comes up to me and asks for my license and registration. I hand over my license and tell her my registration is under my seat. She tells me not to move and walks back to her car. About 15 mins later...comes back and hands me a ticket and says "I could have pulled your license!" and walks away. Hops in her car and peels out to go chase down another car. Wrote me up for 44 in a 35...and wrote in for traffic: medium!!!
I have many cop friends and respect what cops do...but DAMN! Way to ruin a good night.

Just had to get that off my chest....also open up a new charity....help me pay for a f-ed up ticket! hahaha

Last edited by Blue Ridge Boy; 11-10-2007 at 10:33 AM. Reason: spelling error
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Old 11-10-2007, 10:37 AM
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Hmm?
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You should know better than to take that route home that late. That's when all the fresh doughnuts are made.

Sorry you got a BS ticket. Fight it...?
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Old 11-10-2007, 10:38 AM
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That's bullshit! If you don't have to put up any money to schedule an appearance go for it. Lot's of times cops with marginal stops like this won't show up and you get dismissed.
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Old 11-10-2007, 10:40 AM
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Originally Posted by marmaladedad
You should know better than to take that route home that late. That's when all the fresh doughnuts are made.

Sorry you got a BS ticket. Fight it...?
I would have taken an alternate route home...but the road was blocked off for late night construction on the road.

...and hell yeah I'm fighting this one. It's my first ticket ever on a bike and a bit ridiculous!
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Old 11-10-2007, 10:47 AM
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Show up for court and talk to the DA that morning. They will most of the time knock off 5mph just for being polite with them. If not there is a good chance the cop won't even show up.
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Old 11-10-2007, 10:55 AM
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So...I have never exactly understood:
If I show up....the cop doesn't need to show up?
And If I choose to not show up...the cop has to show up?
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Old 11-10-2007, 10:58 AM
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If you show up and the cop doesn't the judge has nobody to verify the state's case and you get off.

If you don't show up - it doesn't make a difference whether the cop shows or not - you are assumed guilty as charged and the bench issues a warrant.
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Old 11-10-2007, 11:00 AM
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Ok....that's what I thought...but wasn't sure. Thanks
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Old 11-10-2007, 11:02 AM
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No, if you show up to contest it, the officer has to show.
If you don't show, they don't have to show.

My dad got pulled over in a 81 Rabbit Pickup, Diesel and 4 spd, going up an overpass.

Cop said 82 MPH, Dad said no way not even going downhill with a tail wind.

He showed up, cop didn't. Judge said it was worth hearing, rescheduled. Second time, Dad showed, the cop didn't again. Judge held it over again. Third time, Dad showed, Cop didn't again. Judge threw it out, said it must not have been very legit if the cop didn't show.

I'd fight this one, if you know you were respectful and fully cooperative.

Sounds like she was trying to meet quota early this month.
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Old 11-10-2007, 11:17 AM
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Hmm?
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Amazing that the cop would hold it over for a second and third hearing!! Sounds like he had a vendetta against the people's car.
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Old 11-10-2007, 11:57 AM
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Erik, I guess it depends on the judge but that kind of hold over would be very rare for a case like his in Texas. I would think this judge doesn't have a very full calendar and therefore to make sure he can justify his dental insurance with the county if he artificially inflates his case load.

It's all a legitimized scam and they're are all part of it.

When you have the right to make the rules - the first rule is - I win!

Last edited by nuhawk; 11-10-2007 at 04:46 PM.
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Old 11-10-2007, 11:59 AM
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At the time, I think the speed limit was 55, so it would've been 27 MPH over the speed limit. So the judge wanted to hear what the cop had to say.

I later got that pickup as my first vehicle. I can testify that going downhill with a tail wind, it would only do 78. 4cyl non-turbo Diesel and 4spd does not make a speedy setup
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Old 11-10-2007, 12:03 PM
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Blue Ridge boy....

Was the ticket for speeding? i can definetly help you with it, if you decide to fight it, and i can even tell you what to ask the officer, as long as NC laws arent that much different from GA laws. i can do some asking around. sounds like a bullshit ticket in my professional opinion. if it was a speeding ticket and (in GA, at least) she did not offer you an accuracy check on her radar unit, i think that pretty much voids the ticket. were there any signs or obstructions between you before she turned around? she said you were doing 44 in a 35...was it raining? thats too fast for conditions, and that's ok if she wants to be an ***, but, if its like GA, you have to be going at least 11 mph over before you can start enforcing speed with a radar unit. is she even radar certified? did she perform an accuracy check on the unit before and after shift? did she document this? were there and moving objects behind you? how far away was she visible from? were you on a steep grade? semi's around you? there are a million variables. the one that i've seen kick officer's asses is "whats the difference between a calibration and an accuracy check?" actually...ill tell you a good defensive tactic based on that word if you decide to fight it, and if she will bite on it, you will make her look stupid. tell me some more specifics and i can try to help you out. this is what happens when you give a woman a badge. the other officers that just passed you were probably pretty cool guys and you had to meet the *******...
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Old 11-10-2007, 04:39 PM
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The condors we have in Texas are dark gray to black. You, sir, are golden!

I followed a kid on a GXSR the other day the nine-tenths of a mile from Shell to my office. During this excursion we encountered two red lights and one slow-down. The kid pulled four wheelies and two seriously close lane changes. I'm all for parking the punks in jail. For the rest I have no patience. Do they pick on the slower guys simply because they're an easy target and won't cause a high-speed chase. The courts need to figure this out and the unfair enforcement will end right there. Having the right tools (again, thank you!) will help get this job done.

If I was an unmarked and had the opportunity to stop this kid - even if I couldn't get him on radar and knew I couldn't build a case - his tank would have been severely leaned upon with my batton several times.

What would ensue for the next thirty minutes wouldn't be pretty and the first time the kid slurred a word, I would blood test him. If he had anything in him for the last thirty days I would press the DA for DUI.
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Old 11-10-2007, 04:45 PM
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I forgot one thing - this road is 5 lanes with a chicken lane in the middle. Anyone can turn left in front of you in a moment's notice. It is traveled by more than 50k vehicles per day.
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Old 11-13-2007, 10:41 AM
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There are a bunch of lawyers out there who just charge a flat fee for that kind of stuff. When i had my R6 i got popped going 97 in a 60 on the highway(I know i know, think what you will) and the ticket was like 340$. But i gave it to a lawyer i was referred to and it was 300 bucks. 2 and a half months later i get a call saying that he got me off the hook and it didn't go on my record. I love or legal system But yeah, try and find a lawyer, they're everywhere.
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Old 11-13-2007, 11:49 AM
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i will tell you at the very least, go talk to the judge. tell him you don't need the points on your license and they will most likely reduce the speed. they may keep the fine the same, but at least the points won't go on your license. or keep transferring your case to state court and asking for them to continue it. sometimes they get tired of seeing things like that in state court and will just dismiss the charges. WORD.
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Old 11-13-2007, 01:12 PM
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Thanks for everything Condor.
The court date is 12/17/07 so I have plenty of time to make a decision on what exactly to do.
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Old 11-13-2007, 04:36 PM
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I don't hate cops, and I'm sure many fine people are cops, but I don't automatically respect them. They work for a scam system and spend much of their time scamming regular everyday working people out of money, in addition to being dependent on taxpayers for their salaries. There is nothing respectable about that, unless you think guys like Al Capone and John Gotti were respectable.






Last edited by killer5280; 11-13-2007 at 04:51 PM.
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Old 11-13-2007, 04:51 PM
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we live in a society based on rules. we cannot function off of the honor system, so...
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Old 11-13-2007, 04:58 PM
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While I can't say I don't get frustrated by things cops do sometimes, I know to many police that work hard doing their best not to think your comment out of line killer. But as will always be the case, one bad apple will continue to spoil the bunch.

Just to clarify, I wasn't calling you the bad apple, killer
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Old 11-13-2007, 05:00 PM
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so...what? We should put up with being scammed out of money by people and entities paid for by us? We should put up with red light cameras and speeding cameras (yes, they will be widespread in a few short years), which automatically generate revenue generating tickets (to put it mildly), but which are not criminal offenses, but civil? For what are essentially victimless "crimes?"
Because we can't function, as you say, off the honor system, we should accept big brother and big government intruding into our lives everywhere we go, including in our homes? Where does it stop? Is this kind of thing a hallmark of a free people? I sure don't think so.

(This was in response to Condor's post above.)
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Old 11-13-2007, 05:19 PM
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Killer,

I don't feel we are being "scammed". At least I'm not. I'm 32 now. I have not had a ticket in 5 or 6 years now (knock on wood). It's in part to my growing up and following the rules.

If you feel you are being scammed, then look at why you feel that way. Are you heavily ticketed? If so, then that is your fault I am sure.

I was pulled over by a Officer of the Law, who was genuinely concerned for my safety. She saw me go by on my motorcycle, after I passed her, I "disappeared". Turns out my rear bulb was blown. She chased me and pulled me over to let me know. I thought that was very cool.

Want to talk about a scam, how about professional sports. There's a scam. I can buy a pack of 10 hot dogs at the store for $2.50, but at the ballpark 1 hot dog costs that much. Soda, Beer, Peanuts, etc.

Those Red Light Cameras and speeding cameras ONLY GENERATE REVENUE BY CAPTURING THOSE WHO ARE BLATANTLY BREAKING THE LAW! We had a speeding camera in Fort Collins, CO, 11 years ago. It NEVER caught me! Even at 21 I knew to take it easy in town.

Am I to infer from your comments that we don't need a Military either then, I mean they must be a scam of some sort too. If everyone "could just get along" then we wouldn't need our Armed Forces would we.

Hmm, so if everyone "could just obey the laws of the land", we wouldn't need our law enforcement officers.

I would bet Killer, that you also complain about the fact that the cops should be catching the real criminals. Well those cameras that you speak so ill of, will allow the Law Enforcement Officers to spend more time on catching the major criminals, and less time on the petty stuff.

Choose your poison, or less of two evils.

As for your "hallmark of a free people", we have always had law enforcement of some sort. It is a proven fact that anarchy is a fallacy and would result in total self demise.

It will stop when people start being responsible for themselves, and stop blaming anyone and everyone else for anything that happens in their lives. I mean that it will stop when people start owning up for their actions. The courts would be less busy if people paid their find for their crimes, civil or otherwise, instead of trying to pull on over on the system. OR BETTER YET, DON'T BREAK THE LAW. BUDGET AND PLAN YOUR TIME BETTER SO THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO SPEED. I try to live by the motto "I'm never late, if I'm always early" I get to work at least 15 minutes early, EVERYDAY. Want to hear something interesting, by doing this, when I am late.....My boss knows it is legitimate and I'm not trying to bullshit him.

Anyhow, getting off my soapbox now. Flame away if you want.

Erik
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Old 11-13-2007, 05:47 PM
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It's clearly a scam and, no, I'm not a habitual offender, although, at 47, I have had a few tickets. It's about revenue generation and the almighty state, not public safety or justice. Freeing up officers because a machine can raise just as much or more money at less cost than a human doesn't really give me confidence that law enforcement will catch more "real" criminals. Honestly, I wouldn't feel one bit less safe if we had less cops than we do now. In fact I would feel safer, but then I'm fairly self reliant and quite proficient with firearms.
When the need arises a military is necessary, but standing armies are prohibited by our Constitution.
Thanks for the lifestyle advice on how not to get tickets in the future.
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Old 11-13-2007, 06:16 PM
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Ok, off-topic real quick, but the part where you're saying standing armies are prohibited by the US Constitution is rather ignorant. Congress has the right to establish and support any armed force it wants to, but cannot appropriate things for said support for longer than a period of two years.

Anyhow, back on topic. Kind of.
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Old 11-13-2007, 07:49 PM
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You just clarified my point for me. More than 2 years=standing army. Preventing standing armies from harassing citizens, which was one of the things the British did to the colonies (harassed them with standing armies) that led to the Revolutionary War, is the reason for this clause. It is worded thusly: to raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years.
Sounds like a prohibition on standing armies to me.
Conversely, the next clause says: to provide and maintain a Navy. That sounds like a requirement and there is no mention of systematic two year review periods.

The founding dudes wrote a lot about the evils of standing armies because they knew that standing armies are instruments used by power mad warmongering kings, dictators and other executives, and that's why they didn't want them in the newly formed USA.
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Old 11-13-2007, 07:56 PM
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Ok, stop. Nowhere did I say they couldn't have a standing army. Nor does it define a standing army as one that is in place for longer than two years. That portion refers to appropriating goods/money/etc for the betterment of said armed force for such an amount of time.

The line you quote is quite open to interpretation, thus why we have a living Constitution that has been and will continually be altered throughout history. Until now, it has been determined that an appropriation to support for a period longer than two years is meaning some special tax above and beyond what is currently in place. So really, based on precedence and how I'm seeing it, as well as 232 years of US history with the different services in place and "standing", it doesn't seem too much of a prohibition.
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Old 11-13-2007, 08:22 PM
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Originally Posted by killer5280
so...what? We should put up with being scammed out of money by people and entities paid for by us? We should put up with red light cameras and speeding cameras (yes, they will be widespread in a few short years), which automatically generate revenue generating tickets (to put it mildly), but which are not criminal offenses, but civil? For what are essentially victimless "crimes?"
Because we can't function, as you say, off the honor system, we should accept big brother and big government intruding into our lives everywhere we go, including in our homes? Where does it stop? Is this kind of thing a hallmark of a free people? I sure don't think so.

(This was in response to Condor's post above.)
traffic offenses are not civil offenses, they are a violation of that state's criminal code and are therefore criminal infractions, not civil. police cannot enforce civil law unless there are civil papers signed by a judge, in which case they become criminal to no follow, so....whats your point? and actually, the speeding cameras and whatnot are not making very much headway...here, at least. i disagree with them anyway, but thats personal opinion. you sound like a conspiracy nut, man. and when i read that people actually think this way it kinda catches me off guard....are they playing devil's advocate? anyway...that's life, man. i never really think of myself as "big brother". you know how hard it is to get a search warrant?? its not like police are just kicking in doors and making up infractions to jail people on, and if they are im sure its EXTREMELY isolated and im sure its punished in the long run. take for example in atlanta this summer when the red dog team kicked in a door on a search warrant and it eventually came out that they lied...they friggin crucified those guys, and rightly so. but giving someone a speeding ticket is not as dramatic as all of the "abusing your authority" talk. give me a break. thats why theres a judicial system in place and you can choose to have a jury of your peers.... and driving on a roadway is not a right. find it for me in the bill of rights or the constitution. the sad reality is that when you drive on their roadways- your *** belongs to them. they can put a camera up if they want. its for revenue. suck it. don't drive like a pissed off teenager and they wont see a dime from you. problem solved.
if you think that having to rely on taxes to pay your salary is pathetic, then every civil servant you have ever met is a joke. and every soldier, and every guy that makes sure you have clean drinking water, and every guy that has ever worked for state, local, county, federal... etc. etc. That was actually a pretty shitty thing to say.

im sure there's nothing you can say to change my mind and i know theres nothing i can say to change your mind.....your thinking is just so alien to me i don't even really know how to respond to it. you, sir, have blown my mind. don't Taze me, bro!

Last edited by Condor; 11-13-2007 at 09:20 PM.
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Old 11-13-2007, 08:54 PM
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Glad to be of service. If this blows your mind, I shudder to think what something really stressful would do to you. Conspiracy nut, indeed!
Red light camera offenses are CIVIL offenses, at least around here (which isn't too far from you, if you live in Athens). They don't put points on your license, just money in their pockets. Do a little research, because municipalities won't tell you the truth. It's a money grubbing scam.

Do you think justice was served in the Red Dog incident (they didn't just kick in a door-they killed an 88 year old woman) because those criminal cops got caught? They were just so egregious and stupid that they got caught, but how many times did they get away with **** like that before (in the name of the ridiculous "War on Drugs")? These crooked idiot cops even pressured the informant who sent them to the house to lie in front of the judge so they could get off. What about the lady (Kathryn Johnston) they blew away? Do you think her family thinks justice was served when the cops were jailed? It sure as hell won't bring her back.

I guess you should PM me if we are going to continue this discussion.
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Old 11-13-2007, 09:07 PM
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we disagree. i handle pressure rather well. the truth lies somewhere between.... i am of the opinion that law not enforced is not law, and you think that people should be able to run around like ******** without reprisal.

Last edited by Condor; 11-13-2007 at 09:55 PM.
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