Coming home tonight and pass a police officer on a side street two blocks from my house. She whips out behind me and right as I pull in the driveway, she hits her lights. I go to get out and she instructs me to stay in the car with my hands visible. She then proceeds to question me, asking if I have any weapons. When I reply no, (though I had a small pocket knife in my pocket) she asks to see my drivers liscense. I am instructed to wait in the car with hands visible while she runs my plate and liscense, (all while sitting in the driveway of my own home). Finally, she comes back and says I'm "clear" and can go about my business. She turns to walk away and I ask her why she pulled me over in the first place. She points to the tiny cross I have hanging from my rearview mirror and tells me it is illegal to have anything hanging from my mirror. She leaves with no further explanation. I've had that cross there for years and since High School I've always had a cross from my mirror. Grrrrrrrr - sorry for the rant but thanks for listening.
Small cross on mirror gets me pulled over
- Thread starter GreeCguy
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Illegal here too. I see people with all kinds of junk hanging from the mirror though.
Illegal, but not really enforced. License plate frames are illegal in NY, but its rarely enforced ... unless the police want a reason to pull you over
Post a pic if you can. If it's actually a tiny cross, it's hard to believe she saw it through the window of a moving car at night.
PS It really shouldn't be hanging from your rearview mirror anyway. If you have to have it in the car, rig it up on the sunvisor so it sits flush and out of the way.
PS It really shouldn't be hanging from your rearview mirror anyway. If you have to have it in the car, rig it up on the sunvisor so it sits flush and out of the way.
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I guess what gets me is that I had to ask. She would have left with me not knowing why I was pulled over to begin with if I had not asked her the question. Plus the whole, "keep your hands where I can see them" and repeated "any weapons" question. Perhaps she's been reading my posts on bitog and knows I have an oil stash somewhere.
I just thought of this, but I have an empty five gallon methanol can in the backseat that my sister gave me. She gets them from where she works and she gives me the empties. Just got a new empty and haven't taken it out of the car yet. It's a wonder my new lady cop friend didn't call the SWAT team to my house. Maybe they're on the way now.
I just thought of this, but I have an empty five gallon methanol can in the backseat that my sister gave me. She gets them from where she works and she gives me the empties. Just got a new empty and haven't taken it out of the car yet. It's a wonder my new lady cop friend didn't call the SWAT team to my house. Maybe they're on the way now.
Originally Posted By: AlienBug
Post a pic if you can. If it's actually a tiny cross, it's hard to believe she saw it through the window of a moving car at night.
Bingo - it's the kind of cross you get when you're confirmed in the Church. It's about one inch long and half an inch wide on a very small chain.
I just got a haircut today and trimmed my beard - I don't think I look that "bad."
Post a pic if you can. If it's actually a tiny cross, it's hard to believe she saw it through the window of a moving car at night.
Bingo - it's the kind of cross you get when you're confirmed in the Church. It's about one inch long and half an inch wide on a very small chain.
I just got a haircut today and trimmed my beard - I don't think I look that "bad."
Power tripping cop who just needed an excuse.
What else is new?
What else is new?
Don't all taxis have a Christmas Tree shaped air freshener hanging from the mirror?
The problem with ANYTHING hanging from your mirror is that it teaches your brain to ignore movement from the center right and beyond. Movement includes kids on Big Wheels, kids on bikes, kids chasing balls.....you get the idea.
I've SEEN a kid get hit and seriously injured. I was on duty as a Paramedic, and I was the first one to his side. It's taken many years to be able to talk about it without having a PTSD moment; scratch that, it's still bothering me as I sit here re-reading my post. It happened in 1985.
Please, one and all, get rid of stuff swinging from your mirror. Someone's life could depend on it.
I've SEEN a kid get hit and seriously injured. I was on duty as a Paramedic, and I was the first one to his side. It's taken many years to be able to talk about it without having a PTSD moment; scratch that, it's still bothering me as I sit here re-reading my post. It happened in 1985.
Please, one and all, get rid of stuff swinging from your mirror. Someone's life could depend on it.
Originally Posted By: olddognewtrks
The problem with ANYTHING hanging from your mirror is that it teaches your brain to ignore movement from the center right and beyond. Movement includes kids on Big Wheels, kids on bikes, kids chasing balls.....you get the idea.
I've SEEN a kid get hit and seriously injured. I was on duty as a Paramedic, and I was the first one to his side. It's taken many years to be able to talk about it without having a PTSD moment; scratch that, it's still bothering me as I sit here re-reading my post. It happened in 1985.
Please, one and all, get rid of stuff swinging from your mirror. Someone's life could depend on it.
What about the GPS with its movement in the same general area of your dash?
The problem with ANYTHING hanging from your mirror is that it teaches your brain to ignore movement from the center right and beyond. Movement includes kids on Big Wheels, kids on bikes, kids chasing balls.....you get the idea.
I've SEEN a kid get hit and seriously injured. I was on duty as a Paramedic, and I was the first one to his side. It's taken many years to be able to talk about it without having a PTSD moment; scratch that, it's still bothering me as I sit here re-reading my post. It happened in 1985.
Please, one and all, get rid of stuff swinging from your mirror. Someone's life could depend on it.
What about the GPS with its movement in the same general area of your dash?
I used to have a police scanner and the next town over rigorously enforced "dangling doodads" but for a reason.
It's a "primary offense" in my state and the police need no excuse to pull you over for "obstructed view".
At the time, not wearing a seat belt was a "secondary offense" for which a ticket could only be generated in conjuction with a primary.
You guessed it, no seat belt plus obstructed view equalled trouble.
You had something, fair or unfair, that the cop wanted to check out, but couldn't directly. So she got you with the cross. It could as easily have been a tag light out or a rolling stop, etc.
Was it the time the bars get out?
It's a "primary offense" in my state and the police need no excuse to pull you over for "obstructed view".
At the time, not wearing a seat belt was a "secondary offense" for which a ticket could only be generated in conjuction with a primary.
You guessed it, no seat belt plus obstructed view equalled trouble.
You had something, fair or unfair, that the cop wanted to check out, but couldn't directly. So she got you with the cross. It could as easily have been a tag light out or a rolling stop, etc.
Was it the time the bars get out?
I've had a pair of fuzzy device hanging from the mirror of Neon. Never had a single problem, even when I've been pulled over.
I drive a lot for work and always have my GPS to the right of my rear view mirror and have never been pulled over while driving for work.
I drive a lot for work and always have my GPS to the right of my rear view mirror and have never been pulled over while driving for work.
I would have just said "I'm not taking it down, so either write me a ticket or let me go". I would also be recording it on my 'droid as well.
Originally Posted By: GreeCguy
She points to the tiny cross I have hanging from my rearview mirror and tells me it is illegal to have anything hanging from my mirror. She leaves with no further explanation.
Eh....just an excuse to pull you over and try to get a big bust for SOMETHING that would hold up in court if you had a major infraction.
My niece is a state trooper as well as her husband. You should hear all the reasons and excuses that some of their co-workers have used to pull over cars for really no reason at all.
You could take the cross (or anything else) off your rear view mirror, but they would pull you over for some other minor reason. Just stay clean and don't give them a reason to write you up or take you in.
I live out in the country and several years ago I met a cop (at night) as I was about a mile from home. He whipped his car around and by the time I turned into my driveway, he was right on my rear view mirror. I got out of the car and started walking toward my house and I heard him say "Oh, it's you!" (By that time, he had run my tag and knew that I lived there) Why did he whip his car around to check me out and run my tag? Because I had my driver's window half-way down and it "looked suspicious". (I knew the dispatcher for him during that time and I was filled in on all the details later) Like I said, it was just an excuse to pull me over and if I did happen to be the big fish, that would have been the reason that he used later on and would have used that for reasonable suspicion.
She points to the tiny cross I have hanging from my rearview mirror and tells me it is illegal to have anything hanging from my mirror. She leaves with no further explanation.
Eh....just an excuse to pull you over and try to get a big bust for SOMETHING that would hold up in court if you had a major infraction.
My niece is a state trooper as well as her husband. You should hear all the reasons and excuses that some of their co-workers have used to pull over cars for really no reason at all.
You could take the cross (or anything else) off your rear view mirror, but they would pull you over for some other minor reason. Just stay clean and don't give them a reason to write you up or take you in.
I live out in the country and several years ago I met a cop (at night) as I was about a mile from home. He whipped his car around and by the time I turned into my driveway, he was right on my rear view mirror. I got out of the car and started walking toward my house and I heard him say "Oh, it's you!" (By that time, he had run my tag and knew that I lived there) Why did he whip his car around to check me out and run my tag? Because I had my driver's window half-way down and it "looked suspicious". (I knew the dispatcher for him during that time and I was filled in on all the details later) Like I said, it was just an excuse to pull me over and if I did happen to be the big fish, that would have been the reason that he used later on and would have used that for reasonable suspicion.
Originally Posted By: QuantumRift
I would have just said "I'm not taking it down, so either write me a ticket or let me go". I would also be recording it on my 'droid as well.
Better check your local laws before you purposely record the voice of any law enforcement. In some areas, that could get you over a year in prison.
I would have just said "I'm not taking it down, so either write me a ticket or let me go". I would also be recording it on my 'droid as well.
Better check your local laws before you purposely record the voice of any law enforcement. In some areas, that could get you over a year in prison.
Originally Posted By: Miller88
.......License plate frames are illegal in NY, but its rarely enforced ... unless the police want a reason to pull you over
Seriously?????
I'm afraid to ask the logic behind that genius of a legislative move. New York has problems spewing out of every orifice. And they want to make it a crime to put your license plate in a frame?!
.......License plate frames are illegal in NY, but its rarely enforced ... unless the police want a reason to pull you over
Seriously?????
I'm afraid to ask the logic behind that genius of a legislative move. New York has problems spewing out of every orifice. And they want to make it a crime to put your license plate in a frame?!
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