A Cop Tells Me . . .

[Skyman]

Well to get to the story I went to traffic court yestrday. Both the cops I was against showed up. I got nailed on both tickets. The judge just acted like I was lying. He gave more credit to an old guy who was locked in on Radar doing 81mph.

So I was going to my basketball game last night going up the street my mom lives on. I dropped it into 2nd to nail the gas and kinda say hi to her as I drove by.

I proceeded to hold down the gas till into 3rd. Going about ~55mph. Then I coasted upto the Gym just up the street.

As I pull over. LIGHTS. ******. I don't know where he came from. I sure as hell was guilty though.

Officer pulls me over, I told him I had no excuse, I was just blatantly speeding, and I just fucked up. He starts to yell at me, asking me if my speedo doesnt work. Then he goes, youve modified this car way to far. "DONT YOU KNOW WHEN TO STOP" This thing isnt even close to being street legal anymore. You need to know when enough is enough on a car.

I got really really ******* irritated at this point. I told him to get out and start inspecting my car. I said, TELL ME WHATS NOT STREET LEGAL THEN. He just shut up and went back to his car.

He comes back saying the cars stolen and registered to Jose in Ventura. At this point I was FED UP with his lies, I said, You know what SIR THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE. GO CHECK AGAIN.

So my mom came up the street, luckily, and explained I just do that to say hi to her, and to please let me off.

He deciedes to let me off because of the other two tickets I had today. But he goes on to lecture me for 5 min, saying I need to learn to control my car and my bad driving. And that he was going to be looking for me, and that "I couldnt hide in this car." He said "One slip up and your gone."

My conclusion.....

Cops are good for writing tickets only. They dont want to deal with any real crime. My house gets robbed, they cant and dont do **** about it. What does it all come down to? Money! Theres lots of money in milking the middle class american for a traffic ticket. They dont want to go after guys with guns.

Skyler

[1969Mach1]

**** guy sorry to hear about that bs you were put threw. I would of been so tempted to punch the cop in the face. Not that I would do that, but he was being a total *******. They tell you just to tell the truth and that will help solve things easier and you obviously told him and he goes on his little power trip. I believe your exactly right on the money involved with tickets. Not saying all cops are bad, (g/f's dad is cop so I gotta watch myself. lol) but there are some out there with to much spare time. And who's he to say your car is to modded up. You can never be to fast.

Take it easy, don't worry tommorow will be a new day.
§am.

[StoplightWarrior]

The way I think about cops is like this: (in no way does this apply to every officer) When I was in high school, occasionally I would ask certain people what they wanted to do with their lives. All my smart friends would say the usual, "doctor, lawyer, stock broker, etc etc." On the other hand, all my friends who were punks or wanna be gangsters would all say they wanted to either be in the military, or be a cop. Moral: who do you think becomes a cop. Joe Blow who graduated from Harvard and truly wants to help people, or the guy who maybe did a couple years of junior college, then just wanted a decent paying, exciting job. Most of these guys are tripped out on power, and just love to exert their force on the well off guys like us.

One example: When some friends of mine had wallets, cell phones, etc stolen from a party, and confronted the four african americans who did it, they got beat up, and called the cops. The cops came out, and my friends gave them the vehicle description and liscense plate number. Think the cops even bothered to go find that car... NO!! My friends never got anything back. But you think if I ran from a cop and he had my liscense number that he'd come get me?!? YES!!!

For some cops, it's all about power, and exerting it on those who are not a real threat.

[PKRWUD]

That really sucks, Skyler. You're just going to have to take it easy for a while.

I had a Ventura PD cop who had it out for me in the late 80's. My license had been suspended, but the day it was reinstated, he pulled me over, and said the computer showed that it was still suspended. He wrote me a ticket, and made me walk away from the car. Told me that if I was telling the truth about my license being valid again, all I would have to do is show proof to the judge.

Well, that was the easy part. What sucked was that since the cop wrote the ticket anyway, the DMV went and suspended my license again. The judge told me it was all a misunderstanding, and that I should be able to straighten it out with the DMV when I showed them my yellow paper they give you in court, showing that the charges were dismissed.

Before I could get to the DMV, that same cop pulled me over again. I wasn't doing anything wrong. He said that he pulled me over because as far as he knew, my license was suspended. I showed him the court papers, but he still wrote me another ticket. This turned into a 6 month circus between me, the court, the DMV, and this prick cop. It finally was resolved, and my license was returned to me, but not before being stopped AND ticketed by that jerk 4 times. I was encouraged to file a complaint against him at the VPD, which I did, but he still beat me.

On the last suspended license ticket he wrote me, he added that I was speeding. Said I was doing 45 on Ralston (40mph limit). I didn't even see that. I thought it was just a suspended license ticket again, so I didn't fight it with him. When I got to court, I had the paperwork from the DMV, but the judge noted that I still had a speeding ticket, which I denied, but he still found me guilty. That one ticket stuck, and became the one point I needed to have it suspended again. I made a living delivering pizza's, too. That cop made my life hell. As it turns out, most cops in Ventura county get rotated every 4 to 6 months, so I never saw him again, but he did enough damage.

Anyway, the guy that's giving you crap will hopefully be rotated out of Ojai before the summer, so just try and drive cool until then. You will always have Ventura and Camarillo to show off in until then.

If he does stop you again, and it's a BS reason, get his name and file a complaint. That gives you the upperhand if there's a next time after that.

Good luck, man.

Take care,
-Chris

P.S. You're missing some killer racing at the track. I'm starting to think you aren't into racing as much as I thought you were.

We run again a week from this Saturday (April 6th).

[Mr 5 0]

Well, when you speed or otherwise break the traffic laws, you always risk getting bagged by some constipated cop who'll mess with you, especially if you're a younger guy. That's just a given and I've been a 'victim' of that kind of legal harassment too.

The fact that this particular cop made a big deal about your car being modified shows the mindset; he would love to control exactly what he thinks everyone should drive.

The urge to control other people is a powerful one for those in authority and why we value our freedoms and rights, but that doesn't mean that a local Barney Fife with a grudge against you can't make your life hell.

Most traffic tickets are simply revenue-enhancers for the towns and cities and probably only a fraction are given for truly dangerous driving, like DUI and triple-digit speeds. That's been true forever and probably won't ever really change. Part of driving.

Sorry for your troubles; I hope things cool down soon and this cop is off your case. Meanwhile, watch it and don't give him more reasons to nail you because, fair or not, the cop has all the power in these situations and as you've found out, the courts back him up, 99 times out of a hundred. Sad but true.

[Dark_5.0]

SKYMAN... I totaly agree with your outlook on cops. Every weekend they break up the street races and pull over everyone with a sports car on the drag.

On a Friday or Saturday night there are 20+ cops out on the local cruising spot pulling over everyone for any little thing.

You would think they would go find some real crime.

I got in a bad wreck last year luckily everyone was OK....Some guy pulled out in front of me and I nailed him in the side going 55mph I didnt even have time to break.

Me 97 F-150, Him 01 Tahoe both cars were obviously totaled. The cop looks at my license and says do you still live at this addess and I say "No Sir I dont" He goes to his car and comes back with a ticket that costed me $106.00 for being honest.

Sometimes honesty isnt always the best policy, and alot of cops Suck!

Later,

[RAGE_5.0]

Man Sky that really sucks. I haven't had any problems with the cops while driving my stang (knock on wood). I would have jsut about flipped on him if he started going off about how my car wasn't street legal or modded way to far. Is it legal for him to say that your car is actually registered to Jose in venture and that it is stolen?????

[Red514LX]

Sorry to hear about running into a cop with a bad attitude. I wouldn't worry about the whole "stolen car" thing. The fact is, if you've got the title and everything is legit then you have nothing to fear. I would take those kind of threats with "a grain of salt" -- don't let this cop or any other one get the best of you. If he wants to throw a fit and insult you and demonstrate his ignorance then let him do so.

About the whole speeding deal and whatnot. I learned very quickly (the 1st time driving my mustang) that driving a loud sports car (or any sports car in general) is sort of like being the prez. of the USA.....everyone has their eye on you ALL of the time and they are all just waiting for you to screw up so they can call you on it.

[MidNiteBlu 5.0]

I got a ticket last wednesday. 41 in a 25 in an area where it is basically impossible to go 25. Right down a hill. No one goes 25 down that hill.

The damn cops had thier bikes down a side street and were hiding behind a bush! I was just cruisin like normal and then this cop runs out into the street and motions for me to pull over. I was like ****

As i pulled away they got two more freaking people! There is so much better thing for them to do then to give tickets on a sleepy road that not a whole lot of traffic goes through. Especially because there are roads not far away that have people who speed and street race on them all the time.

Damn cops and thier quotas

Later

[Unit 5302]

Dude, that sucks SOOOO hardcore.

Loser cops. Most of the doughnut eating, 50point IQ havin, human power trip with a gun don't even know the laws. They have nothing better to do than drive around and ticket people all day. They are never around when you need them, and don't do their job worth a ****. Quite frankly, they might as well cut back law enforcement by 80%. Wouldn't make a difference.

In my city of 20,000 there is 1 totally unmarked silver Crown Vic, 1 totally unmarked Navy Taurus, and 1 totally unmarked White Grand Am. There is absolutely NO justfiable reason for a cop to have an unmarked for everyday enforcement. Undercover operations yes, normal operations HELL NO!!! Just a big revenue machine. Makes me sick, and increases my level of dislike and distrust for the flatfoots every time.

Why don't they get a real job instead of harrassing people all day driving around and eating doughnuts? Oh wait, it's cause they are too fricken stupid!

[tireburner163]

Some cops are cool some are TOTAL *** holes.

Teenagers get the worst crap from them. I've been at several parties, where the cops, showed up and my car got searched for no reason. Probable cause my ***, there wasn't one drop of liquior of pot at the whole party.

My brother has had cops actully turn around and follow him, when he had his GT.

[Stang_Crazy]

My buddy was giving me a ride in his old stang (93 GT) and kinda flying around. When we got back to my house, this cop pulls up and turns on the lights!! My friend had his car in the driveway, parked, and off . The cop had no reason to turn the lights on. He then came up to the car (my friend was still in it) and questioned him about what he had been doing. My friend said he was just giving me a test ride and the cop got irritated with that answer. He grabbed my friend's arm and tried pulling it out the window!! We were shocked and didn't know what to do. The cop gave him two tickets (even though he didn't see us doing anything but sitting in my driveway). When we went to court to fight it, the judge let the cop tell his side first.

The cop told this elaborate story about how we were racing in the car. The judge let my friend get two words out before he said he was guilty!?! We filed a complaint against the cop but nothing was done. Between the two of us, we've received 6 or 7 tickets courtesy of this one damn cop.

[Topless In Texas]

SKYLER,
I think you need to tell him to meet you at the track then open up a can of WhoopA$$ on him!!!! IMO ofcorse!!!!!!
Sorry man, that sux. I feel for ya!

[joe4speed]

Grrrr
that's BS, I'd be pissed too....

sounds like the police dept. where I live...

2 summers ago they picked up a guy on a riding lawn mower and gave him a DWI,turns out the guy was drinking,but who knows,maybe he was mowing a friends yard,then just heading back home

*LOL*

geez I mean the top speed of a riding lawn mower is what?

[WADS56]

You are lucky he let you go.
That is the truth about cops and money. Most cops are little punks that got the crap beat out of the in highschool and now want revenge on the world. They love the power being able to ruin someones day and costing people a crap load of time and money.
Most of the time if a cop is yelling at me or giving me threats i won't take it. I will yell right back and tell him to give me my ticket and bother someone else. My self pride gets me in trouble sometimes.

[cyberstang5.0]

I agree with you man! I got pulled over a few times cuz the cop (or should I say PIG) "thought" that I was racing. Some times having a NICE, lound sportscar sucks

If I was you, the next time I saw him on the street... I would though my car into N and rev the motor as high as I could just to piss him off!!!! They can't do anything to you for reving your motor

[mustangman65_79]

There are a few nice cops though. I got lucky one time racing my friend in my '79 with a 4 cyl. I was going about 90-95 in a 55mph zone, when i seen him. I tried to slow down real fast, but when I did, I only had one hand on the steering wheel, making the car swerve a little back and forth. He pulled me over a little ways down the street. He came up to the window, asked me why I was going so fast, when I pointed at my friend, and siad I was racing him. He had a little toyota 4x4. He said he clocked me at 74 and said if I was going 75, or more, he'd give me a ticket. He also told me his cut off points too, on a sunny day, 70 gets u pulled over, 75 is a ticket. He let me go with a verbal warning. Got lucky on that one.

[Mustangbelle306]

Ok, here's the voice of reason coming in, so get ready to hate me.

Yeah, lots of cops are dicks, but the lousy ones make a bad name for the officers that actually DO their job, and don't just write up tickets. I would imagine the most incomptent cops are stuck on traffic duty.

And yes, I think its OK and perfectly understandable to have the mean old police officer break up your street racing (I say this when I used to go every weekend), because whether you like it or it, it IS illegal, and people DO get hurt. Not usually because of Mustang euthansists, but stupid ricers running around doing risky burnouts or pulling the e-brake too close to other people. Either way, many unfortunate times has it PROVEN itself dangerous,.and therefore I can't look down on them for breaking it up,especially when they usually just tell us to get going instead of handing out stupid tickets. I considered myself lucky when that happened, not like my "civil rights" were being violated

Sky, I regret that the cops in your area haven't been doing their job, but the average person will rag on the police when they get a ticket, then call them the minute they need assistance, and expect them to show up ASAP.

I think a career in law enforcement is probably one of the most thankless professions...having to respond to domestic violence calls, deadly traffic accidents, or some other emergency call---just to be called "pigs" by the public. Sure, some of them ARE pigs, purposefully picking on V8s and handing out worthless tickets, but some actually do their job, and I think sometimes people forget that

[Unit 5302]

Yeah 1 out of 100 are good, for the first 6mo on the job. Then it drops to 1 out of 1000.

It's not because they enforce laws, it's because they enforce with prejudice, and angst.

You're damn right we expect them to show up ASAP, that's their fricken job. They aren't gonna get much thanks from me for doing it once in a while. Actually, they are supposed to show up and actually do something. Like that happens a lot when your **** gets busted into, or something goes down that stinks.

The career is thankless because they are on a power trip, harrass the crap out of people, surround themselves with assholes, and expect a big thank you every time they actually do their job right. I maintain there are VERY few that do their job.