California Highway Patrol Crackdown Period

Your dentist, wife and divorce attorney should also be on this list.

 

Good point, Randy.

 

Think about that. Your wife is a dentist, and she is playing around with your lawyer. You are sitting in her dentist chair and she has this drilly thingy there. And you have just given her a ticket. Well F%^& man....you are in major poopoo.

 

You just get deeper and deeper.

 

I was under the impression that since CA is in a huge budget deficit that the LEO's are out collecting revenue. I went on a road trip to San Fransisco (to get race leathers no less) and couldn't spit with out hitting a black and white- all 300 miles, one way. I saw three sitting on the same on ramp, then another two just up the road. Don't get me wrong, I believe in LEO's, and what they have to do. But sometimes it's hard to swallow the whole "safety" thing. two years ago CHP would just sit on an on ramp, and only go after the juicy excessive speeders. But now theres a budget crunch and the cruisers are logging some serious miles........ Hmmm. And of course the average LEO isn't pushing the tickets, it's the politicians, but that fact isn't going to make me any less annoyed. I mean one ticket kills off a track day! All the same, I wish they would spend time really focusing on those who cause problems on the road instead of going after one guy who is doing what the 1,000 people are doing as the LEO's writing the ticket.....

 

Well put Dr.!

 

It is really unfortunate that the vast majority of people out here believe that revenues from tickets go a long way to support the State, Provincial, or Municipal budgets. In fact most places, all the revenue does, is off set the costs of policing. Enforcement and the writing of violation tickets is not revenue positive. The enforcement of traffic laws, as other laws, is a cost of doing business for the purpose of trying to get a handle on keeping our lives and communities safe and comfortable.

As far as seeing several police vehicles sitting on a ramp, there are a few reasons, very valid and operational, that come to my mind right quickly. Aircraft observer is one. And up in the sky, they not only look for speeding, they look for aggressive driving. I know for a fact. I am (was) and Aircraft Observer.

Now having said all this, the real tragedy in police work is this. No matter how excellent of an investigation the police do on a matter, gathering evidence. And no matter how great a job the prosecutors do in obtaining a conviction in these cases, despite the odds being stacked against them with the rights of the accused being protected, in my mind far beyond reason, it fails when the Judges hand out sentencing. This is more evident in Canada than in the USA. The judges are supposed to be representing the Public Interest in their sentencing. Judges for the most part are so far removed from the general public, I find it difficult to believe that they can even imagine what the public interest is. Police, Fire and EMT are great judges of this. As are Emergency room doctors and nurse. Teachers and Victim's Services people are yet but a few of the many out there, many I have missed. The sooner we here in Canada follow the American way in electing our judges, and getting away from this Pretend Jail and Probation for Breach of Probation, then the pathetic judges here may start to study just what the public interest really is.

You have all been exposed to Randy's Rant.:soapbox: Suck it up or ignore it.:boxing2: But always ATGATT and ride safe. eace: and:kiss: to you all

 

Awesome Randy, I'm glad to see at least a police officer at least understands there's a difference between sane speeding and insane speeding!

 

This one will blow your mind away. I have written tickets on that highway for "Driving So Slow as to Obstruct Traffic" And you guys say that is never done.

 

See, not all cops are dumbasses.

 

I am so. I just don't ell anyone......OOOOps!

 

LOL, my grandma (RIP) actually got a ticket for that. Since you did a rant on the judges, I'll do a little rant to be fair While I understand the important role of police officers like you in keeping the roads safe what kind of irks me about some of them is they just decide that just because you were going over the speed limit therefore you are an unsafe driver. Some don't take into account the road situation.

All of the speeding tickets I've gotten were on empty roads and almost every time I got the usual safety lecture. I would understand getting some flak if I was hauling through a school zone or a residential area with kids playing around. I've NEVER gotten tickets in those situations and I've even had people PASS me in construction areas and school zones.

That's why I don't feel guilty about going to court and using the system to get me out of the ticket.

 

2 things play into that, Joey.

1. The cop talking to you at the time does not see you all of the time, so they do not know how well you drive most of the time. They only see you speeding, therefore you are a speeder.

2. It is very easy to forget all of the things you yourself do when pointing out faults of others. Not fair, but true.

 

For the sake of dialogue,

I have said elsewhere I don't necessarily agree that exceeding the speed limit causes collisions. Speed sometimes does but that is removed from the speed limit. However having said this, I used to enforce the speed limits, because that is the law. That is what you and the rest of society paid me to do. And though I don't profess to have been the best cop out there, I always thought of myself as being very good at my job.

You raise some points that should be given some thought by the police, both here and in some of your previous post. I think I can assure you that points such as this are considered by probably 95% of the LOEs out there. (The 5%ers are the ones that give the rest of us the bad rep). The end result is that they use discretion. Otherwise everyone would be getting tickets for doing 1 mile over. Speeding is an Absolute Liability Offense. Either you were exceeding the Speed limit or you were not. Now how much over the speed limit should be be going before the LEO pulls you over? That my friend is where the discretion comes in. Everyone's is different and I would be willing to say, an officer's discretion changes based on circumstances surrounding the situation at the time.

Exchanges such as this, Joey, is what keeps me interested in the people I share this site with.

Cheers mate.

PS.

I support everyone's right to dispute or defend allegations made against them. Where I have to difficulty is when and if there is a conviction, the sentencing is, simply put, a deplorable performance by our judges, especially here in BC, Canada.

 

LOL, glad to keep you entertained Just out of curiosity would you have any horror stories of incompetent judges? Have you had any drunk drivers get away with just a slap on the wrist or something like that?

When you take into account the discretion yea that really opens a whole list of issues, what-ifs, what-elses, etc... Plus for all you know the person you just pulled over could just be a sweet grandma who forgot to pay attention or a serial killer looking to add "cop killer" to his resume.

That's a tough job not only in the physical dangers but in all the moral issues that you deal with. My hat's off to you sir! :canada:

On the flip side I do understand the bad rep that bikers get as well and because of this I'm naturally a little nervous and on full alert whenever I see :mod:. I mean, let's face it, I didn't buy my motorcycle for the great gas mileage.

 

I can't say that any of the judges I have been before would be considered incompetent. Their sense of justice is a way off base though. So yes, there has been many what one would consider, a slap on the wrist. Here in Canada, those sentenced, often serve their sentence at home, with an ankle bracelet.. F%^k man.

As far as who was driving a car I was dealing with, it did not matter. I have pulled over, I think it was five or six "bikers" (I think they were affiliates. One had major attitude) from Prince George a number of years ago. They did not get tickets. I have pulled over a car driven by a nun. She did get a ticket. My discretion was what it was. Some may consider me a hard ass. They may be right. I'm comfortable with that.

We are a representation of society. We are mostly good, but of course there are the not so good and some bad. I can live with that.

It's happy hour and I went to the liquor store a few hours ago. Guess what I am about to do?

 

BTW. Don't call me Sir. Here in Canada in the RCMP, that salutation goes to a Commissioned Officer. They ride horses side saddle and squat to pee. I was a working stiff who made officers look good. LOL

 

I wish it would happen more often. I just think it's in the CHP's brain to go after the faster ones. like- "oohh there's one! Let's get him!" versus "what is this driver doing in the left lane?" since the fast driver causes more excitement and is waaayyy more dramatic, they go after the speeder. Hats off to you for looking at all the angles and taking on the obstructors too.