Law Enforcement - What Are Your Pet Peeves?

[rstcso]

Troopers fly up behind me, some practically touching my bumper, so I would move over so they could fly past me.

Anticipating how a driver will react to a LE vehicle running their lights, and maybe siren, is a crud-shoot. The law says move to the right, but it's common for drivers to just slam on their brakes. Many times you may be trying to get to a call quickly, especially on a two-lane, congested road, and the fastest way through is to fall into the traffic flow with no lights activated until you can safely get pass. Otherwise, someone will inevitably stop in the middle of the road and you won't get anywhere.

Your actions of moving over when the trooper pulled within inches of your bumper are far more predictable.

 

[alarmguy]

....

And no one has challenged that in court ? That's a clear violation of the 1st amendment.

Our local cities ordinance that makes it a violation of said ordinance to curse at a cop. They arrest on that quite often. Not fingerprintable, no real reason to come to jail.

Some places defend it as free speech in other areas it can be considered disorderly conduct (maintaining public order) or obstructing official duties.
So the legality can vary by state and locale. Yeah, you can challenge local or state ordinance's but the officers can use the above. Meanwhile you spend a fortune trying to overturn local laws.

With that said, it's just plain stupid to me, to disrespect law enforcement. They have tough enough jobs. In addition they are human too and can get just as mad for your actions and do something unreasonable, that you might not have thought of and cost you dearly to get out of. If you're wrong about something, suck it up, be polite, pay the ticket.

 

[buster]

Anticipating how a driver will react to a LE vehicle running their lights, and maybe siren, is a crud-shoot. The law says move to the right, but it's common for drivers to just slam on their brakes. Many times you may be trying to get to a call quickly, especially on a two-lane, congested road, and the fastest way through is to fall into the traffic flow with no lights activated until you can safely get pass. Otherwise, someone will inevitably stop in the middle of the road and you won't get anywhere.

Your actions of moving over when the trooper pulled within inches of your bumper are far more predictable.

I'm usually quick to see them fly up behind so I get over. I get over for anyone flying up in the left lane. I don't stay in that lane as it's not really allowed (I think). If I'm cruising at say 80mph in left lane and a car is flying up behind me, I just move over. People that refuse to move or don't notice for several minutes are the problem.

 

[mclasser]

I haven't been pulled over in many years *knock on wood* but the last two times the cop lit me up on busy roads without a shoulder or safe place to stop other than blocking the lane. I turned on my signal to acknowledge them and to pull into a shopping plaza less than 100 feet away but the cop got on the intercom and said to stop now. Was unsafe for both of us to just stop in the middle of the lane like that.

 

[Tdbo]

I spent a great deal of my career working with law enforcement. Some were local PD, some were county Sheriff deputies.
The vast majority of them were great people; however, some of them were total rumps.
The ones that I have issues with are those that just harass, trying to make something happen.
This reminds me of such a run-in from years ago.
In the early 90's I started my career in administration in a small, urban area about 45 miles north from where I was living at the time.
Most of my commute was on state highway that went through a number of small burgs.
One of these was named Mt. Gilead, Ohio.
On the southern part of this town, there was a Certified gas station.
When I went through it at about 5:45 AM, there was a local cop that liked to park there.
I was very aware of this, and always monitored my speed closely.
One morning, he pulled out of the station and started riding my bumper. Not another car on the road.
Went clear through the town and got to the town square, which was a circular intersection.
The light was green when I started, I went through about 5 under the limit because the pavement was wet.
I got through the intersection and the cop lit me up.
He comes up and informed me that the light turned red when I was 3/4 of the way through the intersection.
We went through the usual song and dance, him grilling me on while I was there, etc.
Then he announced that he was going to give me a ticket.
My response was for him to keep the court date free, that me and my attorney would see him in court.
He backed off at that point, said that "Yeha, that light has a short yellow," and stated that he was issuing me a verbal warning.
He then walked back to his cruiser and left.
There were two other times that that happened in the two years that I worked there.
I always just pulled my truck over in a parking space and shut it down. He would pass, and then I would start the truck back up, and get back on the road.

 

[Owen Lucas]

I live in an area with the worst drivers in the state.. people run red lights. Ride ATVs down the street and even the fwy right past a police officer and that officer does not do anything about it.

I think part of this might be a CA problem, enforcing some laws may be "racist". I am sure the police WANT to enforce them, it's most likely the politicians / DAs tying their hands. I hope things get better soon!

 

[Vercingetorix]

When the police are the criminals.
https://www.oregonlive.com/crime/20...tripped-of-police-certification-for-life.html

 

[50yr Street Mech]

My pet peeve is the constant denial of not having a " quota system" of monthly tickets to write out...... Toward the end of the month, they are like rats feeding on whatever they can get their pens to write down. My wife got a ticket, ( I was in the car), for not letting a pedestrian cross traffic at the designated area. It was 2 days before the end of the month. The pedestrian was still on the sidewalk !!!!!!!! He wasn't even standing on the curb,,,, She was supposed to read his mind that he was going to cross ????? Load of B.S. !!!!!

 

[KrisZ]

It's a corrupt system. Yeah, the usual argument is "few bad apples", but when the so called "good" cops see their co-workers violating law or the constitutional rights and do nothing about it, and then you have judges and prosecutors all protecting the corrupt cops, there is no question the whole thing is corrupt.

Fortunately we now have the tech to record all interactions and a lot of these things are being slowly, very slowly addressed.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

LEO around my town have been generally decent. I also don't drive a vehicle that screams "stop me".

Like most, I don't like speed traps on straight rural highways with no side streets. Lemme go 65 in a 50. I am driving not texting.

I would like to see more enforcement on all these lifted fourby trucks with tires sticking out 6" from the fenders and all emission controls removed rolling coal off the lights - especially if there is a Subaru behind them with a Rachel behind the wheel.

Out of state in Massachusetts I would like to see more enforcement on texters and left lane crawlers on I-93. It's getting really unsafe out there.

- Arco

 

[PontiacHO]

Our local LE (Deputies-Officers) have been instructed to not pull over vehicles for safety issues, expired-no tags, and distracted drivers reading cellphones. But, don’t let a soccer mom in her minivan break the speed limit because she’s late for work after dropping the kids at school. She’s a common criminal. Common sense in law enforcement around here is nonexistent.

 

[Brons2]

I think it is unfair and unreasonable for law enforcement officers to set radar speed traps at the bottom of long hills, so that vehicles coming down the hill get pulled over for exceeding the speed limit when the "speeding" is caused by gravity and the driver not riding his brakes down the hill.

This would not be a problem if you had an EV!
Vehicle will regen brake as soon as you take your foot off the go pedal! In fact, you will have to keep your foot into it somewhat so that it doesn't slow down, depending on manufacturer.

 

[Brons2]

we have free speech, try to ticket me for cursing a cop, and I will sue. If the cop is that thin skinned then I suggest a different occupation.'

Rod

They will find some other reason to arrest you. Here in Texas, they'd probably arrest you for public intoxication, at least that used to be super easy for them to do, and if it's a big city, they can lose you in the system for 24-48 hours.

If you curse at the police you deserve what you get, is my opinion.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Some places defend it as free speech in other areas it can be considered disorderly conduct (maintaining public order) or obstructing official duties.
So the legality can vary by state and locale. Yeah, you can challenge local or state ordinance's but the officers can use the above. Meanwhile you spend a fortune trying to overturn local laws.

With that said, it's just plain stupid to me, to disrespect law enforcement. They have tough enough jobs. In addition they are human too and can get just as mad for your actions and do something unreasonable, that you might not have thought of and cost you dearly to get out of. If you're wrong about something, suck it up, be polite, pay the ticket.

The Supreme Court has ruled on this - like it or not. The fact that they flaunt it is the most disgusting part. How about we all just ignore laws we don’t like. That’s what there telling us.

 

[Olds394]

The police don’t enforce what they used to. I understand they got hung out to dry, but do the job or quit.
Telling me to “click on the APP” after the thief left his energy drink and tools in my car, laughed when I asked about fingerprints.
Go blue!

 

[crashz]

I work with our local police and can say that it appears that the bad rap they got has now just hand-cuffed them. Which further strengthens the entitled behavior of our people in town.

 

[Pablo]

I work with our local police and can say that it appears that the bad rap they got has now just hand-cuffed them. Which further strengthens the entitled behavior of our people in town.

I agree - therefor cops need to run the bad ones out on the rails. Immediately.

 

[chainblu]

I agree - therefor cops need to run the bad ones out on the rails. Immediately.

But they don't. They're too CS to make waves. Like that saying: If you have 99 'good' cops and 1 'bad' cop, but the 99 look the other way; now you have 100 bad cops.

 

[eljefino]

Is this question for LEO, or for everyone? I don't like to see police officers sent to a school zone, and they are in their car on a mobile device. If this is a work device, it's bad optics. But I assume it's their personal cell.

Cops talk to each other on cell phones because it's encrypted, eg not picked up on scanners, and presumably also not subject to FOIA/ discovery/ paperwork retention rules. I'd let them have this "gimme."

 

[eljefino]

I'm usually quick to see them fly up behind so I get over. I get over for anyone flying up in the left lane. I don't stay in that lane as it's not really allowed (I think). If I'm cruising at say 80mph in left lane and a car is flying up behind me, I just move over. People that refuse to move or don't notice for several minutes are the problem.

You're part of a minority, sadly.