It’s Traffic Ticket Season!
March 17th, 2008 Posted in James Baxter, Tips, Traffic Tickets
By James Baxter, NMA President
When it’s 30 degrees below zero you can drive through a school zone at 60 MPH in relative confidence, even if Officer Jones is spraying the street with radar beams. He isn’t about to exit that nice warm car so he can stand outside your car in a 20 MPH wind to issue a ticket.
Those days are over, for the year, and there is lost revenue to be recouped. Spring is traffic ticket season. And, this year may be a real humdinger.
State and local governments are scrambling for more revenue and raising cigarette taxes to $12 a pack just isn’t in the cards this year. Doubly vexing is the effect high fuel costs are having on traffic speeds and discretionary travel.
We are already seeing a significant reduction in enforcement “tolerance.” People are calling us with tickets for five MPH over the posted limit; this indicates slim “pickens” in some areas of the country.
As usual, speeding tickets are the tax of choice, but stop sign violations also seem popular.
Red-light ticket cameras are popping up with growing frequency, but they are a year-round gift that just keeps on giving; as long as the yellow lights remain adequately short. Failure to stop, prior to right turns on red, are a new profit center for the corporate/government ticket camera enterprises that are spreading from coast to coast like a bad fungus.
A few well-worn strategies are still effective at reducing your likelihood of a serious shearing at the hands of the public servants devoted to protecting our welfare:
- Don’t lead the pack that’s flying down the highway.
- Keep your radar/laser detector in place and plugged in.
- Keep your eyes focused well down the road, at least a third of a mile.
- Stay out of the left lane unless you need to pass.
- Check and repair all your vehicle’s external lights and lenses.
- Pay heed to oncoming vehicles flashing their lights, and return the favor when you can.
- Be rigorous about signaling turns and lane changes.
- And, if you do get a ticket, fight it!
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I agree…I have no respect for the law enforcement. They have treated me like scum every time I’ve been pulled over and I’ve tried to be nothing but sweet. I’ve been mocked by police and insulted by them and they show complete disregard for the laws they are “enforcing” day in and day out. Not all police officers are as terrible as the ones I have encountered, however there have been enough bad experiences for me to affect how I feel about the law enforcement in this country.
I am a Libertarian Republican and have lost almost all respect for law enforcement. All they want to do is rape the public of our money to line their pockets. They are truly above the law and they know. Arrogance, authority and a gun is a dangerous combination.
Dee, it’s funny…not… that you should mention that. I’ve just starting noting that when coming come from work out on a major expressway. I get off work at midnight and slightly thereafter, I’m on the road. The Oklahoma State Police have started setting out there with their lights off. Here’s the whole thing in a nutshell, if it’s on a public road….anything is game. There’s are no limitations. They can do anything they desire. Some of it should be illegal but it’s not. They can even set on private property. It’s up to the property owner to kick them off. And there’s probably even exceptions to that. The law is….there is no law against all the crap they do. Unless some of you get together and start bugging your congressmen, nothing is going to change and the cops know that. If it was truly about safety I might feel a little different but it’s not and everyone knows it. Radar doesn’t find bad drivers or bad driving habits. These guys can’t see a driver until they’ve passed them. All the cop sees is his radar. But, that’s all he needs to see because remember it’s not about safety.
Are the police legally allowed to sit parked with their lights out, all lights, while waiting for speeders? This is a big thing in the city I live in, they sit on the side of the road or in a parking lot with no lights on & you can’t see them until you are right up on them, I thought that was illegal,has that law changed?
Andrew, the sheriffs’ department I”m talking about in this case is actually in Tulsa county, Oklahoma. It’s hard to get such figures but I read the percentages a few years ago in the paper. The department gets to keep under 20% of all traffic citation revenue. Frank, while I understand your theory, I really don’t think that’s the case here. I do get the impression however that the county commission who sets the budget does not want the sheriff using his resources on traffic stops. Of all the local governments, the county has the least funding to work with. And since there’s no money in traffic stops, why do it unless a clear, dangerous situation is noted. Unlike the state and municipal cops, if you get stopped by one of them,you probably, actually, deserve it because you’ve presented some kind of dangerous driving action.
Conversely, as I was saying earlier, over the last 30 years I’ve observed far more sheriff deputies stopped to help block traffic for a stalled car, push a stalled car out of harms way or even seen one help change a tire on one occasion. They stop to move dangerous items that have been dropped on the roadway, ect. They are the lowest paid of all law enforcement yet they do more as a public servant then all the rest put together. Go figure. I’m sure it happens occasionally but I can’t remember the last time I seen a municipal cop help any driver. Once in a blue moon I see the state police helping a driver. Most of the time though the last two mentioned groups would instead just as soon help you out of your money. And no, I don’t know any law enforcement officer, even a sheriff deputy, so I’m not looking at this in a prejudice manner. I’m just reporting what I’ve observed over the years.
I believe it leaves no doubt about the corrupting effects of revenue on law enforcement departments.
well i don’t know about you Andrew but i have only seen one cop driving a charger. even if they did have nicer cars thats the car dealers cutting them a deal.
I have a uncle that used to be a traffic cop years ago. We no longer speak, but here is a example of “the old days” of speed traps.
Radar guns had just came into use. The general public did not, for the most part, understand the new voodoo that made up the equipment and local courts backed their officers and new gadget without question. One patrol car had the cover of the heater/air conditioner blower motor removed for service from the interior. Just so happened the blower fan spun at 42 mph. This being found out when my uncle was playing with the new radar gun on a slow day. So he would set up in a 30mph zone, and tag away! So when the city needed revenue, THAT patrol went out. As the tickets rolled in, all being in the 42 mph range, a local lawyer handling most of the tickets put it together, and the car was fixed, the revenue went down, and people got wise.
But as it was then as it is now, it’s all about the money, and regardless how unscrupulous the means of attaining the revenue, the cops and cities are always self serving crooks.Drive by your local cop bar hangout, watch them stumble out drunk and they will be the first ones handing out DUI’s the next night. Maybe “self” should be added before serve to the side stickers on all cop cars.
In response to Joe
The reason why most Sheriff Deputies do not write tickest is because their boss is an elected official. How well would that go over with his voters if his employees were out handing them tickets. I’ve been in law enforcement many years and have found that the level of ticket writing is comparative to the attitude of the current administration (i.e. the mayor.city manager or department head). I sincerely hope that the tickets that I’ve handed out over the years have been for the better of the driver.
I have been approached by past violators to tell me that the ticket I gave them cause them problems with their insurance or finances. Your life and other lives versus you paying for your selfishness on the roadway, you choose. But there was one DUI I gave a young man some time ago and he came to me five years later and said that what I did for him that night change his life for the better. He said that the DUI saved his life and he started making better choices in his life. The reason why he was stopped was for a speeding violation.
It may not mean anything to you but to a deputy,city police officer,constable,state trooper or any law enforcement agent to actually know that you mattered in saving a life is worth the venom that is injected in us on a daily basis. Remember drive safe and watch out for your fellow driver.
What state is this Joe? In Michigan, local municipalities get to keep 85% or greater in traffic tickets. They tell you on the back of the ticket and what the state keeps (depending on the local municipal city). For instance, one city showed that the states minimum charge for five over is $30 plus one point, the actual ticket for five over in this city is $155. Also, local cops seem to drive nicer vehicles than Michigan State Troopers. The local cops drive chargers and magnums (unmarked, and w/hemi’s). State Troopers are still driving the Police Interceptors (Ford Crown Victoria which are 99% marked except one per station unmarked). State police get a salary, local cops get 20k plus in overtime (only going to court) per year in Michigan!
ya know Matt, maybe someone was only picking him up and he was going to tow the car himself later. some people are like that because towing prices are outragious anyway, belive me i know. not all cops are idiots and you cant give a tickit for breaking down on the road.
Yes indeed, the poorer guys do actually help people. I’ve seen many bent over changing a tire on the side of the interstate while the driver does a panic dance in happiness. Then i see those that look like they auditioned for baywatch driving cars with 5k worth of strobes alone sitting next to a disabled motorist clocking traffic…… with a laser. Worst of all that one person i saw today in that situation got the green car sticker stuck to his car; its the pretow warning, while he was in the waiting for help! Cop was behind him running laser… i wonder if he gave him a ticket for breaking down on the road
‘to protect and serve’ awe what a joke. What ‘da ‘ya mean… you don’t feel protected when your around a cop? But they got the “serve” down real well. How many tickets may we “serve” you today sir.
And speaking of the money, When I see some of the homes these guys live in it’s hard to believe they are so down and trodden. Interestingly enough the least paid law enforcement officer around here, the sheriff deputy, is by far the most likely you’ll see helping a driver. I’ve seen it many times. More then the municipal and state police put together. Tickets are not their game because in this state their department gets to keep almost none of the money, the state takes most of it and the DA’s office takes most of the rest, so the incentive is gone. That’s a good example of what happens when law enforcement is not into it for money. The traffic stops go way down. As I said, the sheriffs’ department is proof of that.
Trust me, these traffic enforcement cops aren’t “revenue agents”! They get a nice chunk of that “revenue bonus” too. A local television station had a special report saying that one police officer “earned” nearly $30,000 extra from just showing up to court for the citations written! He “earned” a minimum of 4 hours overtime everyday he went to court. He could have only spent 45 minutes in court, but got the 4 hours. If he went over 4 (very unlikely) he got paid that additional time rounded up the next hour. If this isn’t incentive to protect and arrest criminals, I mean pull people over, I don’t know what is! For some reason, this city has a very high crime rate :(
‘to protect and serve’ on the side of cop vehicles is good marketing. On one hand if fools the gullible, and on the other it does say something about the actual role of the police, that they ‘protect and serve’ the system.
See Warren v. District of Columbia
http://www.firearmsandliberty.com/kasler-protection.html
If the police will not protect the citizenry against an actual threat, why would they expend so much time, effort, and energy against a potential dangers, such as ‘bad’ drivers?
I want to free the police from being revenue agents.
There isn’t anything more laudable than offering service to the public good.
The speeds are that way becasue people know the consiqueces of any violation. For instance, if you are caught over the legal limit then you lose your licens for good and there is no second chance. The speeds are faster and the consiqueces are harsher. also dirving that fast kills your gas mileage so the German law-makers must figure that you are all ready paying enough for the gas to go that fast.
(P.S I am not a cop so dont think it)
If speeding is risk and dangerous, please explain to me why the German autobahns, where speeds over 100 MPH are routine, have 30% fewer accidents than American Interstate highways?
Could it be that driving slowly bores you to sleep?
Could it be that speed taxes have drivers looking for cops rather than paying attention to real driving?
Yes and again this spring the driving public will take it on the chin without so much as a whimper. Not only is the price of gas getting astronomical with no end in sight, we have the added problem of municipal coffers lower then normal because of the downturn in the economy. What does that mean? I think we all know. So, salute to the sheepeaples (drivers).
Well, here we go again. Ya seriously Chris, how many times on these various blogs has speeding been repudiated as the cause of accidents? Browse around. So Chris I suppose you want to catch a thousand drivers for safe driving, albeit technically speeding, to catch perhaps one driver who may be slightly over the .08 limit? Further, if you’re really an officer you should know that “really” drunk drivers tend to drive “under” the speed limit. I’ve always said two things come out in the spring; flowers and speed traps. James, I noted an OHP trooper hiding in the shadows of a major expressway when I was coming home from work last night. Hmmm, come to think of it, it is getting close to the end of the month. After 40 years of driving, I’m so sick of this needless crap. In my next life I don’t want to see another traffic cop!
^ HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA ok officer chris, I`ll get right on that
Seriously please dont flash your lights at other motorist warning them to slow down/cop ahead. Doing this can cause a drunk driver to correct his driving for the moment and allow him to get by the police. We are out there for your safety. Help us out.