GICHOE

I got pulled over the other day supposedly going 30 over. I know for a fact that I wasnt going that fast. But the thing is that my radar never went off. So when he pulled me over he came up and started yelling saying i was going 30 over and such but let me off with a warning. I was just wondering if he actually did radar me or he was just eyeballing me and "guessed" what my speed was.

joed40

I'm guessing he eye-balled you. Unless you have a bargain basement detector. Suffice it to say you got a warning. Live and learn. Who knows why they stopped you, leaving the encounter with just a warning....who cares!

Mr. Hill

He could have used Lidar. Some old school Traffic cops can even estimate

within 5mph.

CL Platano

He had to be pacing you, where in the hell where you doing 30 over, I hope on the hwy.

K-Shawn

He might of pace you from a distance in his interceptor, 50 will drive 3 to 4 cars behind you and each car he passes he is pacing your speed. By the time he's on your bumper, he has calculated your speed.

LittleCarp04

he prolly paced you or just estimated, i mean if you are easily passing all other cars on the road then youre speeding.

deke

I know a few states have a process in the a-cad where they certify officers to visually determine speeds. the laws are written where tools such as radar and pacing can be used to confirm the officers suspicions but in the end it is their call on that visual judgement.

subinf

Check out car talk, a few people there have reported their radar detectors not going off.

rockyfeller

iTrader: (6)

I think all this "pacing" and guesstimation is all BS!!! How can the law support something so subjective? They should only let you write tickets with evidence. It's 2006. If they caught me on tape, I'd keep my mouth shut and pay the ticket gladly.

Everytime I got pulled over with this "pacing" method I have ALWAYS plead not guilty in court, it's just his word vs. mine. I can't let them get away with their nonsense. But then the law still yanks your wallet by practically forcing you to plea bargain in court....they don't want to hear your story, they just want your money. Whatever, I'd rather pay $80 than $300.

Keeping the streets safe my ass. Yeah OK we drive a lil fast, as long as you're not crazy wreckless out to hurt somebody, some cars are made to handle the road with a bit more speed just as safe.. Some cops do their jobs well and of course we need them. Too many of them eat our tax money and are looking to catch anyone for anything and just want to show you some muscle and ego. Go do something useful and arrest some drug dealers and solve some murders and leave us good citizens alone.

Look how paranoid most motorists are: They see flashing lights for ANY reason....even a cop who pulled someone ELSE over and they totally panic brake. LOL! I speed up knowing there's probably no speed trap for another 5 miles. Gotta get my hands on a Valentine one. Tired of squinting over the horizon for 5-0s.

subinf

Cars can handle better, no doubt. But can the drivers? I know you are probably on a rant so I'm not gonna go on.

Axis Blunts

My father was a Boston cop for 30 years. From what he told me about pulling speeding cars over, at least his policy, is that if he didn't clock them but knew they were going 15+ over the limit he would pull them over and let them off with a warning. He hated writing up people for speeding since he was a Boston cab driver before he was on the force.

Most cops will give you a 10mph buffer depending on the road and the time of day or night. There are a ton of reasons why cops will let you go with just a warning. He might have pulled you over because he knew you were speeding without clocking you. Most cops will give you a warning depending on the way you talk to them when they approach the car. Calling the cop sir and officer can work wonders, as well as being honest when they ask you if you know why they pulled you over. You would be surprised how many people get warnings for telling the cop that they were pulled over for speeding.

deke

Of couse its his word vs. yours. Thats all it really is. Its not like radar guns print off a sheet with speed/etc/etc. Its just what he says it is. Part of the whole deal with the badge is they "cant lie". When the court is given the choice between an officer and a citizen they will side with the officer. Doing otherwise without sufficent cause would uproot the entire basis of the system of enforcement.
Much like car dealers, its not the guys on the street and in your face.. its the behind the scene big dogs.

deke

At the same time saying you got pulled over for speeding could be construded into admission of guilt. But its pretty much all basised on how you present yourself and act.

Midnight_TL

luckily it was JUST a warning

Shalooby

The thing to never do is admit you were speeding. My brothers a cop. All the 'good old boy' questions like " Do you know why I stopped you ? " are meant to elicit a response from you. As soon as you say something like " I'm late, or I was just keeping up with the flow of traffic " your done. It doesn't matter if he was pacing you, radar, whatever. It also doesn't matter if you try some of the other methods like asking when his radar was last calibrated or getting your own speedometer calibrated. You admitted you were breaking the law and that's all he needs in court.
You can't back out of self incrimination.

Around here in Northern VA the average speed on the Capial beltway - 495 is about 70 to 75 mph. It's posted 55. If you do 55 you'll be inhibiting traffic flow. However I see the county and state police pulling people over every day for speeding. When I ask my brother how he decides who to stop he simply says " I just pick one ". It's the luck of the draw so to speak. He says they do it as a deterrance, to put the thought of " Hey, that could be me ", in everyones mind that sees someone pulled over .
And for the most part it works. If they didn't do that it would be a free-for-all out there. Kind of like LA.

deke

but in LA its a free for all at 4mph....

mickeyfickymix

Yup, never admit you were speeding... well said. If you do fight it, number 1 thing to say over and over again, Your honor, I was not speeding. It helps if you have a little something to say also (a big truck flew by me, I told that to the officer). But your honor, I was not speeding.

Then it just comes down to the judges call. 9 times outta 10, if you tell them you weren't speeding you will walk away from it.

This comes from 2 law teachers being traffic court judges, one in Malibu, the other at Van Nuys. 95% of the people that faught the tickets had some BS story, but never said I DID NOT DO IT! to whatever they got the ticket for.

Also with one friend a deputy sheriff, and another one in the academy, they can guestimate your mileage without a radar within 3-5 mph. It's something they are taught and refreshed 2 weeks out of every year when they go in for radar/laser training.

Darknesss_TL

Sounds like someone was just having a pissy day and took it out on you. next time that happens (if it ever does) be like "Its not your fault" and give him a tissue (J.k!!!!!)

Axis Blunts

Admission of guilt can work in your favor depending on the the way you present yourself to the cop when he or she first walks up to your window. Usually when a cop pulls you over they will walk up and just say, "license and registration." Before you give it to them always ask why you are being pulled over. That is the key.

Most times they will reverse the question to see which way they are going to handle the situation. That is when you mention that you might have been going a little bit over the limit. They are testing you. They don't want to hear b.s. at that point.

I was pulled over a few weeks ago for speeding. The cop walked up and asked for my license and reg. I asked him why I was being pulled over. He countered my question with, "Why do you think I pulled you over?" I told him that I might have been going a little bit too fast and handed him my license and reg. He walked back to his cruiser and a few minutes later, he was checking for any warrants, he returned and gave me them back and just told me to watch my speed.

Then again he pulled me over at 3 in the morning. Being pulled over at that hour helps with getting a warning as well.

TLyoung'un

Damn... why do I always read online stories about people getting off with just warnings? Where are these cops? I NEVER just got a warning >_<

deke

Theres always more to it as this is the internet and arguing is a core value for anything with .php in the url.
I'd venture a guess that admission of guilt for 5 over is a lil different then when you admit to 65 in a school zone....at 8am...

I got pulled over a few monthes ago at 3am. Many many many cops love to see this method used at night.
All the windows down, interior lights on, car off, keys on the dash, hands on the wheel without documents in hand, not on the cell phone. They are in control for the traffic stop so the more you do to present it as such the better. When they want your documents if they are in closed areas give them a heads up on it. "my license is in my wallet and reg/insurance in the glove box" Nothing puts them on edge more then walking up to a dark car with a driver rooting around a glove box or center console.

I got expired registation and had the paperwork to show how the DMV had screwed up. 2 monthes to deposit my check

deke

Its mainly about your attitude, violation, his/her mood and the position of the moon.

Tswaibel

Everyone has valid points, however I have to be honest here. Being an officer myself for 8+ years and going, being defiant about what actually took place is a very bad thing. What possible good would come out of you going to court and lying? Not wise.

Best thing to do from the moment you are stopped, admit it. We work 5+ days a week, year round. Can you possibly imagine anything we haven't already heard? There is nothing worse than walking up to a vehicle, dangerous in itself, only to have the driver respond with something completely unrelated to the traffic offense such as "I'm pregnant, I didn't see the sign (I thought all signs in the US were the same!), I wasn't speeding, I was trying to keep up with my friend, etc. We hear them all.

Just a few tidbits from my personal practices: I, unless on a specific detail such as a school zone etc, will give most people 20+ mph over the limit to be sure that regardless of when I clocked you, or followed your vehicle, even if (rarely) I'm very bad and miss judge you by a few mph, you're still insanely over the speed limit. Not to mention, at this point, you're well over the limit enough to endanger yourself and everyone else around you be it stopping distance, outrunning the siren with me behind you, too fast for conditions, etc.

An officer following you (At least in PA) he can stop you for doing just 1 mph over the limit if needbe, however most will give you at least 3. Radar usually give syou 6mph, vascar / accutrak hand timing devices (Work with those fancy lines going across the road) will give you at least 10mph over for calibration purposes. Once you've doing over 20mph, be smart, don't lie.

Unless a driver was suspended or had somethign severely wrong with his abilities, the odds of a warning were high even at 20mph over if there wasn' t an excuse when I arrived at the window. A response such as "I apologize officer, I was speeding, I have no excuse as to why." would cause a reply from me (After verifying your drivers info) such as "I appreciate your honesty. The speed limit here is such n such, please pay better attention next time, driver carefully."

How hard is that? Granted like any job we all have bad apples in the public safety field, so there is no guarantee. However, honesty is the best policy. Never go against that.