Speeding tickets? unconstitutional?

[chasloa]

http://www.americasvoices.org/avarc2002/archives2002/GrimW/GrimW_082402.htm

There is some interesting information there that most of the sept eleventh highjackers were pulled over for speeding jsut before they commited their acts of terrorism. It's funny how our police officers will catch so many people for petty offenses like speeding while terrorists slip right out from under their eyes.

What pisses me off even more is when they claim that the fines are "making the roads safer",and that they don't make any money off of speeding tickets. Of course they aren't profiting personally from it, but you cannot tell me that in my city, where thirty three percent of the city's revenue comes from speeding tickets that they arent using speeding tickets as a revenue builder, rather than for protection.

I'd really appreciate it if the law enforcement would actually do something useful with their resources rather than illegally parking on the side of the highway (emergency stopping only) to collect my hard earned money like a fucking troll.

So what I'd like to know is how long will it be before a politician grows some balls and puts an end to this shit? He'd get my vote.

Until that happens, everyone fight your speeding tickets. Even if you don't win it will keep the cops from writing so many if they have to go to court for every one that they write. Maybe then they'd reconsider giving you that ticket for "endangering the lives of others" on that empty bridge.

[ryan89crx]

makes you think about the system a little bit....

[S Q A D]

makes you think what ? that sometimes this shit is set up AGAINST the people ?

yeah , I get that feeling also

this also can be applied to the classic saying -- " FUCK the police "

[vtece-hatch]

FUCK THA POLICE! Police have never done anything good for me. Only given me some fucking tickets for speeding when they should be giving tickets to people who actually are doing stuff that can get people killed, not going a little over a speed limit. Sure speeding may be bad but I think police should take the driver into consideration when he pulls a person over, me for example, I get speeding tickets for going 87 in a 70, it's a little much i know, but there were no other drivers on the road. I told him that I had no slept for 48 hours and I was just trying to get home to go to sleep, which was the truth, but did he care? hell no! Then when they go look up the insurance and shit, shouldn't they take into consideration that I have not been in any accidents and maybe just given me a warning. This is why I say FUCK THA POLICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[makku]

argggg...

reminds me of a ticket i JUST got.

apparently, it's not enough to go to the DMV in virginia to register your car. In addition to the DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES, you have to go to the county clerk's office to pay taxes on your car AND you need to go to the cops for an inspection sticker. GUESS WHAT? the DMV doesn't tell you ANY of this... nevermind they do the smog inspection (which i did). Now i have to pay a big fat fine... FUCK! stupid cops with nothing better to do

[ryan89crx]

I told him that I had no slept for 48 hours and I was just trying to get home to go to sleep, which was the truth, but did he care? hell no!actually driving tired is just as dangerous as driving drunk...

[Sonny7730]

what you do is reschedule your court date for "work" or "school". 95% of the time, the cop won't show up. but i'm with you guys, tickets are getting rediculous. they tell us there is no "quota" to which they need to give a certain amount of tickets...but then how come many months there are 10 times as many cops on the road towards the end of the month?

[skittyscott]

i got one for 72 in a 55 on a beautiful night with no other cars on the road... the cop pulled me over and started giving me shit about endangering other people so i said, "what other people" and he was all like, "well, i cant be selective on who i protect and serve and i dont want you to hurt yourself."
so i told him about the "suggested" speed limit and how i really was using my best judgement and not driving dangerously but he wasnt buying it. he was being a total dick and asked me if he could search the car. after i said no, he went over to the pass side window when i was getting my reg out and started flashing his light in there.
i faught the ticket (i had no prior tickets or accidents) and ended up with a $135 fine.
fuckers

[rotory20]

I hate cops in general, even though some of my family and friends are ones..its the assholes that sit on the side of the road..they are pissed off at the world. and they want to make everyone elses life miserable!!!
reminds me of a ticket I had gotten a while ago...In the end we had an entire substations cops, badges taken away!! and a message was sent..Dont fuck with ME!!
Everyone has their hangouts..and well ours was at a local bike shop where all of us...stunt riders, racers, or riders in general would hang out every saturday at 2...
They first off blocked off the parking lot with their cars...then proceeded to go into the store and literally pull customers out of the store!!!! It just so happens..I was one and a good friend of mine whos parents are the most powerful lawyers out here!!(thats why he has the Duc 999r) lol
I left one of em followed me..Even bigger mistake...I went my neighbor who happens to be Texas state special investigations!!! first one down...then he followed me on HIS bike...to the shop and proceeded to get all the cops badges names and supervisors...made copies for us all and said if any one of these guys tries anything with anyone on a bike, its profiling and harassment! Later on that night at 5 when the shop was closing...they did it again..Made the call and texas DPS was there to take the Locals away...!! yeah one for the good guys..!!
thats my fun story..

[vtece-hatch]

actually driving tired is just as dangerous as driving drunk...
Not in this case...I wasnt falling asleep at the wheel or anything i was just aggitated because of lack of sleep.

[jdmricer]

ahhhhh canadian cops and the judgement system is so easy to get around and dropped down.... not to be braggin or anything but i got pulled over for going 75 over.. so i went to the justice of peace and told him i was under alot of pressure between werking two jobs and taking care of my girlfriend and kid.. i only had one job no gf and no kid.. he dropped it down to no license suspension, 406.00 instead of 927.00 and no points instead of 5.. not to bragg about getting off easy i just think it's funny..

[mikeD16Z6]

They should use the ticket money to fix the roads.

You should always fight tickets. Who knows, the cop may never show up for court. I got out of one like that.






Last year I got pulled over for speeding.

I was driving through campus on a curvey back road that nobody ever uses. It has some really nice turns, one of them posted at 20mph. So everyday I would try to take it a little bit faster.

Well there I am in the middle of the turn going like 65mph (vtec screaming) and a cop passes me going in the opposite direction. I’m like “aw fuck, he’s gonna rip me a new one.” He turns around and I see him in my rearview with his lights on, so I pull over.

I give him my license, registration, and college ID. (Couldn’t find my insurance) He asks me if I knew how fast I was going and bla bla bla. I say, “I’m really sorry it won’t happen again.” As he's about to go to his car to write me a ticket I say, “I am a professor you know.” He looks at me like I’m bullshitting because I look young. He takes a closer look at my college ID then says, “Well, we really don’t give faculty members tickets here, so just ease up on the gas and grow up a little.” I can’t believe he let me off, because I really deserved that one.

[jdmricer]

They should use the ticket money to fix the roads.

You should always fight tickets. Who knows, the cop may never show up for court. I got out of one like that.






Last year I got pulled over for speeding.

I was driving through campus on a curvey back road that nobody ever uses. It has some really nice turns, one of them posted at 20mph. So everyday I would try to take it a little bit faster.

Well there I am in the middle of the turn going like 65mph (vtec screaming) and a cop passes me going in the opposite direction. I’m like “aw fuck, he’s gonna rip me a new one.” He turns around and I see him in my rearview with his lights on, so I pull over.

I give him my license, registration, and college ID. (Couldn’t find my insurance) He asks me if I knew how fast I was going and bla bla bla. I say, “I’m really sorry it won’t happen again.” As he's about to go to his car to write me a ticket I say, “I am a professor you know.” He looks at me like I’m bullshitting because I look young. He takes a closer look at my college ID then says, “Well, we really don’t give faculty members tickets here, so just ease up on the gas and grow up a little.” I can’t believe he let me off, because I really deserved that one.


you lucky lucky guy...i thought i got off easy

[green_hornet_96]

I hate when cops pull that crap.

I almost got one today. I was waiting for some bum to turn left in a 40mph zone, and this Pontiac Grand Am (more mass than I want in my rear bumper!) doesn't slow down behind me. As soon as this car cleared my path, I poured on it, which was just enough to keep this moron off my butt. This was VTEC and everything on a nearly straight-piped car, tires just spinning like mad from dead stop to 50mph on a salt-covered road. It turned to a 55 in about 500ft so I just accelerated to my usual 59mph and cruised away. I looked back in 3 miles and this Pontiac kept backing off, and when I turned onto my road I look over to see the county sheriff behind him slowing down to turn behind me. My luck, tho, he decided to take off after the Pontiac that (stupidly) started to speed away.

I can't believe I've never had a ticket in the year my car's been this loud, especially with how much dad tells me to "get my foot out of the carburetor." Don't know how I'd do that, carbs don't work with mpfi.

[ryan89crx]

They should use the ticket money to fix the roads.

You should always fight tickets. Who knows, the cop may never show up for court. I got out of one like that.






Last year I got pulled over for speeding.

I was driving through campus on a curvey back road that nobody ever uses. It has some really nice turns, one of them posted at 20mph. So everyday I would try to take it a little bit faster.

Well there I am in the middle of the turn going like 65mph (vtec screaming) and a cop passes me going in the opposite direction. I’m like “aw fuck, he’s gonna rip me a new one.” He turns around and I see him in my rearview with his lights on, so I pull over.

I give him my license, registration, and college ID. (Couldn’t find my insurance) He asks me if I knew how fast I was going and bla bla bla. I say, “I’m really sorry it won’t happen again.” As he's about to go to his car to write me a ticket I say, “I am a professor you know.” He looks at me like I’m bullshitting because I look young. He takes a closer look at my college ID then says, “Well, we really don’t give faculty members tickets here, so just ease up on the gas and grow up a little.” I can’t believe he let me off, because I really deserved that one. lucky bastard

[vtece-hatch]

I forgot to mention, a week after I got my ticket, I was riding with my friends older brother was taking us to a party...I was trying to get drunk as fizuck so I didnt drive, we were just cruizing down the I-40 at about 2 a.m. He's going a little fast and I'm sitting in the back, and I start thinking about how my friend told me about getting a speeding ticket right about where we were at that moment. So I just started looking. I see over in the median (grassy area) 2 cops with their lights off just waiting to catch some people. I say "uh you might want to slow down, I think I see some cops over there hiding out". He's like oh shit there is and he slows down fast, they pull him over...the cop comes to the window, it's a woman she seems pretty nice. She says do you have any idea how fast you were going? He says no I'm not sure...She says 72 in a 55. She ends up not giving him a ticket. A week after I got my ticket for going the exact amount over in a higher speed limit zone! IT'S BECAUSE I'M HALF BLACK...once again I must say FUCK THA POLICE!!!! haha

[Sonny7730]

I got pulled over this weekend. Stupid cops and their quotas...michigan police are under, so michigan guys watch out. (needless to say, i saw 7 cops on my trip, whereas at the most i usually see 1). anyways, got pulled over, doing 83 in a 70, with a buddy in the car. by all means, I should have gotten a ticket. told him i was heading to see my girlfriend who I hadn't seen in a really long time (which was the truth). he sat in his car for like 10 minutes, and then came back and told me he was going to give me a verbal warning and i should "slow my butt down" (very harshly, but i deserved it). stupid radar detector didn't go off till i was right on top of him.

[ryan89crx]

stupid radar detector didn't go off till i was right on top of him.i hate when mine does that!!

[chasloa]

They should use the ticket money to fix the roads.

You should always fight tickets. Who knows, the cop may never show up for court. I got out of one like that.


exactly. I wouldnt have a problem with it if they were actually working to make the roads a better place. The problem is they are using these fines as a source of revenue. They dont give a shit if they are making roads safer or not. If anything they are making the roads unsafe sitting on the median with their lights off causing cars to slam on their breads and obstructing the flow of traffic.

I wish more people would fight the tickets, it would cut down on the number of tickets they wrote if they had to go to court for each one.

Oh and guess who buys the police departments radar/laser equipment...

the insurance companies.

its a fucking scam :TD:

[Sonny7730]

that's why everyone should invest in top of the line equipment. like a valentine radar detector. they're up-to-date, and will pay your ticket if you get one! i sure wish i had one!

[chasloa]

that's why everyone should invest in top of the line equipment. like a valentine radar detector. they're up-to-date, and will pay your ticket if you get one! i sure wish i had one!
you're kidding right?

they actually trust that the idiots know how to use the equipment?

link please? my passport 4500 works great... but if they pay off your tickets......

[Sonny7730]

lol....what gave it away?

valentine's are some top of the line equipment, but expensive as hell. 400 or 500 bucks. but they definitely work. and if i remember correctly, they are one of the brands that will pay your ticket because of their gauruntee. i wish i had the ad to give you a link.

[YakuzaKirby]

i think somebody should protest the whole ticket thing, saying that driving fast and demonstrating high-speed vehicle controll should be considered as expressing yourself... we are SUPPOSED to have freedom of expressing ya know... so if an officer gives you a speeding ticket theyre taking away your right to express yourself...

[YakuzaKirby]

also, last time i got pulled over i happened to have a box of donuts in my passenger seat... i was tempted to ask the guy if he'd leave me alone if i gave him a donut... but im 16 and i was out after curfew anyway... lol

[makku]

i think they just need to make the DMV driver's test incredibly hard.

Also, the fast lane on the freeway should have no speed limit. AND they need to enforce the "keep to the right" rule!

[Sonny7730]

doesn't america have more accidents in ratio on their highways than the autobahn does?

[makku]

doesn't america have more accidents in ratio on their highways than the autobahn does?

that's why you make the driver's test really hard. That or you make a special fast lane that requires you to take some high-speed driving lessons... :)

[thatguy]

yeah, fuck 'em...fuck them and the 35 tickets they issued me over a 3 year span, thus resulting in the loss of my license...

god, to be young and dumb :werd:

[Steve-O]

ive been to court more times than i care to remember. when cops start pulling you over simply because your car stands out a bit more than the rest (back when i was ricer), you tend to get thick skin towards them.

of all the cop storeis i have, one night i was stopped by an officer just outside of town on my way home from work. he told me my yellow headlights were illegal (in ontario, white or amber lights are legal...ask jdmricer above how i know that ;) :TU: ).

anyways, so i tell him theyre perfectly legal and thats why i have them and he lays on me "I've been a police officer for 15 years and ive handed out over 10,000 tickets. I think i know whats legal and whats not mister". so i said to him "well im telling you ive been fighting tickets for years and i know these ARE legal. so he barks back about him basically knowing the law and i dont know shit.

court day comes, he no-shows and i walk out the better man. and they wonder why i own a paper copy AND have an e-copy on my hard drive of the Ontario Highway Traffic Act. let me tell you its not so i can pick up chicks.

point being, if you know you are guilty as sin (you got caught doing 30 over the limit when you were racing home), then just be nice about it and calm. try to make the situation as forgetable for the cop as possible. if you do choose to fight it, you want him to forget all about you, not remember YA THATS THE KID WHO STARTED TO FLIP OUT ON ME AND I THOUGHT ABOUT PULLING MY GUN TO SHUT HIM UP SO I BETTER SHOW UP AND MAKE HIM PAY FOR DRIVING A HONDA

get my drift?

BTW for those interested, this is a very good site for info on fighting speeding tickets that can be used for other bullshit* tickets as well:

http://www.magma.ca/~fyst/index.htm#toc

trust me, i know firsthand the info works because i used a few of the "be cool" methods and barely talked using only polite YES and NO answers. it got two of my tickets dropped right at the curbside by the cop himself from 35km/hr over the limit, $150+ fine and 4 demerit points to 15km/hr over the limit , $50 fine and no points. as well, i received a ticket for running a yellow light and the cop didnt show up in court.

as much as i know we'd all like to just rip into him for ruining our night, it does pay to be quiet and courteous. if you look sincere and genuine, most of the time they will just give you a warning or give you a lesser fine.







* bullshit tickets: those that cops give which are absolute bullshit and harassment tactics i.e. tickets for headlight or signal light bulb colours, window banners, lowering, tint, loud music, etc...

[zrowcool]

those respectful and courteous tactics do work. I was speeding once at double the speed limit with my mom in the pass seat. i was real honest and courteous and not made him feel threatened and he dropped it to expired tag. Other times i was just yes and no and when i went to court he was real cool and told me not to worry and he'll take care of it where both tickets got dropped from moving violations to parking tickets. I've gotten those bullshit tickets too for loud exhaust, too lowered for conditions, unsafe modifications...the usual bullshit stuff.

[custom_junky]

one time in illinios on my way to cincinnati, i was doing ~90 in the 65 weaving in and out of traffic, passed an unmarked car, no radar but he KNEW i was going over, so he chased me saw him in the rear view, so i pulled over, and he comes up and says "damn you know how fast yous goin? we didn't think we would catch up to you." so i told him that i saw him the rear view and pulled over. gave him my liscence and military ID, he comes back and says "today is your lucky day, just stay off the accelerator." god it's good to be in the military sometimes.

for the most part i don't mind the cops around here, basically if your not going 10+ over they won't budge. and here the money from teh tickets HAS got to go toward the streets, hell every where i look there is construction, i mean damn the county must spend 100's of thousands of dollars on road construction a year. o well, i guess i'll count myself lucky.

P.S. there is one cop that i would like to KILL, me and some friends were driving around and we pulled into a empty parking lot. we get out and talk and decide to go up to the local gas station for reestrooms, drinks, and whatnot. well when we get ready to leave a cop pulls in and keeps us there for 45 min. WTF?!?! anyways, she comes out and said "so, no racing tonight huh?" with a shit eating grin on her face, so we say "what are you talking about?" anyways, she didn't believe us, took it to court and lost...damn egotistical FEMALE cops. (i think she was PMSing.lol)

[hondaex125]

i think somebody should protest the whole ticket thing, saying that driving fast and demonstrating high-speed vehicle controll should be considered as expressing yourself... we are SUPPOSED to have freedom of expressing ya know... so if an officer gives you a speeding ticket theyre taking away your right to express yourself...

You've got a point about the freedom of speech and expressing yourself, but you have to remember that driving is a Privelage, not a Right. On the track or on a private course, yes you can express yourself. But on public roads or highways, your privelage to operate a car or a motorcycle is enforced under the law, so no freedom of speech or expressing yourself because driving Privelages can be taken away by the law. Sucks, but thats the real deal.

[green_hornet_96]

The time cops infuriated me the most: I was in driver's ed class, and our school officer was the "guest" of the day. He kept bragging that in our county they can pull you over for doing 1mph over the posted speed limit, whether its on the normal signs or those yellow ones before corners. $70 ticket right there. Heck, my Honda dealer says the '96 model year civics had a tolerance of 4mph on the speedometer.

Or how about when my dad had my car: he was driving down a 35mph zone doing 40mph, where most traffic does 45mph or so. Cop pulls him over and he loses in court. WTF??? Our insurance is still high from that BS.

[Lule]

The line between law enforcement and revenue is a blurry one.

In Florida, we have a program called 'click it or ticket'. Tickets for not wearing your seatbelt. Reactive, not proactive. Since seatbelt are to keep us restrained during accidents, how about some enforcment of red-light running, which causes accidents? When was the last time you saw that?

Our legislature just passed a law allowing officers to pull over anyone not wearing a seatbelt. Sounds like they just gave them the ability to run wild.

[green_hornet_96]

The line between law enforcement and revenue is a blurry one.

In Florida, we have a program called 'click it or ticket'. Tickets for not wearing your seatbelt. Reactive, not proactive. Since seatbelt are to keep us restrained during accidents, how about some enforcment of red-light running, which causes accidents? When was the last time you saw that?

Our legislature just passed a law allowing officers to pull over anyone not wearing a seatbelt. Sounds like they just gave them the ability to run wild.

Michigan got that law too. Even the same name. Kinda sucks for those with tinted windows, they'll pull you over cuz they can't see your seatbelts.

[Steve-O]

all i can say to everyone is if you have been pulled over and you think you were treated unjustly or unfairly. i cant speak for the US states but here in ontario the police MUST stop you for something and present you with either a) a ticket or b) a WRITTEN warning of some sort. if they just pull you over, check you info, make you wait in your car while they sit in their car and do nothing, thats harassment and you can file a claim against them. if you do, just make sure you document EVERYTHING...their badge number, the time they stopped you, what t was supposedly for (ask them but be polite about it), the number o the cruiser, etc. the more info you have the more your claim will stand up and be taken seriously.

for my ontario peeps who seem to be taking alot of heat from the law, if this sounds like your situation contact the ONTARIO COMMISSION ON POLICE SERVICES. they handle all the claims against officer conduct. i had to file two claims against two different officers in town here because for the longest time i would get stopped for doing absolutely nothing at all, simpyl because my car stood out and was one of the few modded hondas in the city. for real, i could have JUST started moving from a red light, pass by ONE of those cops in the middle of the intersection and they would flip the lights on, whip around in the middle of busy afternoon traffic on a friday and pull me ver for a half hour and do nothing but walk around my car with the higway traffic act in their hand looking for any single thing to nail me on.

this happened not once but several times, the creme de la creme being one night when i was just leaving work amidst the rest of the afternoon shift traffic rush. for anyone who's done factory work knows what traffic can be at shift change. 11pm, everyone is bunched up at the light waiting to go. i turn the corner to head out of town down the main road and this cruiser passes by me. suddenly he whips around, flips the lights on and off to the side of the road i go. this was way back in the day when i had the whole lowrider stance kickin with the gold wire wheels and all (yes, I rolled dayton wires on my civic WAY back in the day :hammer: )

anyways, do they stop me claiming i have illegal wheels and tires (which according to the HTA i dont and i know this already). so i try to talk to him but he's set in his ways. next thing i know, four cruisers show up and surround me and im like WTF???? this single event spawned a fierce war between myself and several chatham-kent police service which saw me spending numerous days in court fighting what i believed was unjust treatment and harassment.

the pinnacle of this battle and foreshadowing of victory came when i was stopped for having decals on my widnshield (yes, this ACUTALLY happened). i was ticketed, chose my court option and worked on making a case. the moment when i knew i had won already was the officers showed up HERE at honda house and were asking the technicians and the parts and service dept to testify against me that i could not have decals because they claimed it obstruced my vision. they refused on the grounds that they knew i never knowingly added parts to my car that were illegal and more importantly i was a loyal paying customer. rob in the parts dept told me that the one officer quietly admitted to him:

"that steve really knows his shit and he's tough to beat in court."

music to my ears.

moral of this LOOOOOOONNNNNNNGGGGGGG story is just as with ethnic people being stopped unjustly for the colour fo their skin, being stopped because your car stands out or you have been stopped once or twice before is considered "profiling". be it harassment ofr simply a ticket for something stupid which does not affect the safety or well being of those on the road i.e. light smoke window tint, you have the right to contest it in court.

just because some poilce want to make a name for themselves and abuse their power dont take it up the ass from them.