Apparently, I Unkowingly Ran From The Police

Did the Carolla have out of state plates? You tend to get pulled over more when you have out of state plates, because they know you are unlikely to fight the ticket in court. I would in fact go to court, bring your witness that was riding as a passenger, and ask when the last time the radar gun was serviced and when it was last calibrated. Most police departments neglect to do this, and if they cannot prove the radar gun has been appropriately serviced then that can get you out of the ticket. This trooper sounds like a nit wit who needs to retire. I would also question him in court, if he appears, and catch him in a lie. I would honestly be calling his colonial!!

I would question him, again if he shows up in court, and ask at what point did he turn his blue lights AND SIREN on, because BOTH of them have to be on for it to be a legal stopl I would assume, and to establish that he turned them on AFTER your umm bathroom break there. I would first ask him if a "suspect" were evading him or running from him would he call that in over the radio, if he says yes, then say so if we listen to the radio recordings from whatever date at whatever time we will hear you over the radio broadcasting that you felt that I was running from you or evading you during supposed traffic stop? He won't be able to answer that one honestly, because you were not evading him, and he won't be able to lie because you could obtain the tape. Remember when you question someone in court you should establish what they would normally do in a situation before you ask them related questions to your specific situation, that's how you catch people in lies.

I wouldn't' waste money on an attorney for the ticket, only if he actually charged you with running from him etc.

Good luck, sorry you are in such a crappy situation!

-T

 

As a former state trooper I can tell you that if you run, you will go to jail. No questions. Not sure why he would put that on the ticket.

 

Because... felonious pee-pees!!

 

So, curious if this whole "certification" thing for radar is really relevant any more or just an urban myth, and maybe any current LEO's can answer...

I have been on several ride alongs and, whenever the officer was going to be running a radar that day, the first thing the officer did was to pull out two different tuning forks (one for low speed, and one for high speed), test out the radar gun, and get going. That was SOP.

Now, not saying all officers do this, but it took all of about 30 seconds to do, and I'd be surprised that it would be skipped if it was so easy to validate the radar operation and avoid the "uh... we never calibrated it..." in court.

 

We used to only be allowed to pace and the speedometer had a certificate of calibration that I always pulled from the garage before court. We had multiple cars assigned so that was the only practical solution. When the radar guns came out, they were factory spec'ed and when they reached a certain age, returned for refit and recertification with appropriate documentation. If Deputy Jones is playing with tuning forks then his training and methodology will definitely be questioned. Seems most departments would pursue the service rotation explained above and pass the liability and court expenses of testimony to the manufacturer... irregardless of the tool. We couldn't afford lasers and deputies primarily left speeding to CHP and the city guys. Just my .02

Mild soap box alert. I think radar is a lazy way out. Pacing increases public visibility, keeps speeds reasonable, retracts most of the equipment argument, and gets some solid beat time on the roads to help stranded motorists, seek suspicious vehicles, and stop by local merchants to say hi during slow periods. Then again, my way of thinking is quite dated.

 

Here ya go....

https://www.findlaw.com/traffic/traffic-stops/can-i-challenge-radar-gun-evidence-in-court-.html

 

Interesting... it actually mentions using tuning forks in that article... So I guess the guys I rode with were legit.

 

Stumbled on this old thread and couldn’t help but say DEAR LORD, some of these people offering suggestions/comments…

need to stick to talking Tundras! the OP seems like he had his defense plan figured out. Hope he didn’t listen to any of the clown posts in here.

 

See you’re talking about policing. Not to be confused with revenue generation and collection.

 

I remember this thread from a couple of months ago. I wonder what happened?

 

Not I

 

OP was last seen Apr 29, 2021.

Maybe he is jail for running from the police.

 

So in the off-topic section of the forum, it still needs to be tundra related?

Are you the topic police, and if so, will you chase us if we refuse to return to tundra topics?

 

I’d like to be the police of bullshittery, which is abundant in the earlier posts on this thread. People telling him to bank on the cop not showing up, it’ll get tossed due to radar calibration, request a receipt of his radar lock, etc is all horrible advice and going to do nothing except dig this poor guy a hole. Pet peeve of mine is when people try to offer up advice on things they have no business directing others on. I get that the OP asked for it, but still. My rant is over. You can carry on with the bullshittery now

 

I couldn't agree more and have been saying since I've been driving that if it was truly about safety on the roads all cops had to do was drive the roads. People in both directions will slow down and most are afraid to pass. Hiding in the bushes is nothing more than a money grab.

 

Yeah...the world has definitely changed in the last 25 years.

 

If I was behind on reports, I'd park in a high visibility area and provided people couldn't sneak up on me, solve two issues.. Workload and speed enforcement. I have to give the devil his due however. Calls frequently were stacked and reports often were pushed to the end of shift. You were expected to pickup the next call if not assigned, almost immediately. You could drag out your call on scene to an extent, but often you'd catch hell for it.

On the reverse, dedicated units for speed enforcement would and should have sufficient tickets, accidents, assists daily.
The crux is these shifts are often paid for by state and federal grants. You have to dedicate units to extract the cash and not commit fraud. You also can't allow Fred to tootle around on his motorcycle all day and perfect his mustache. Work ethic matters..so does optics, and Fred does want to work.

So the real question remains. Should the state and feds dangle incentives to shape modern policing? Was The Andy Griffith Show that far off from what America wants? How does that approach intersect with suburban life?

As far as the clown post comment, it was appropriate to place in an off topic category. Alot of retired LEOs don't mind helping people understand why things happen. If a disagreement exists with any post from me, I'm more than happy to discuss it. For the record, the OP didn't have collective sh*t together, AT ALL. His story, the LEO response, and the whole T stop story was a hot mess that none of us have the truth on.

 

I’m referring to the responses as clown posts, not OP. Sure his post fits the off topic bill, but it shouldn’t be cart blanche for some interweb lawyers to come offer up horseshit advice. A retired LEO, maybe…but anyone who has policed longer than 11 minutes knows there’s no shortage of cops who can’t tell their head from a tree stump. The OP had it together in that he hired/was hiring an attorney that was recommended by both a prosecutor and a judge in the circuit. I’d say that carries quite a bit more weight than the opinions (including my own) of some randos on the WWW. As far as the stop, his actions, the trooper, etc…well that was all said and done before the OP…and real cops don’t spend their free time running traffic in the first place; wink wink

 

First time on the innernets?

 

Not from ‘round these here parts

 

nough said, most in that part of missislippy have "your ass is mine boy" each and every morning for breakfast !

@CourtJester , the masses want to know....guilty or not guilty !

 

Yeah, but it is effective, that is why they do it....?

 

Haha.. well it's the internet. I see your point. I simply tried to background for the guy...pretty basic knowledge really.
Got a chuckle out of your real cops don't T stop comment. Been hearing/using that for years. Now I just drive to gun range and watch people drive like morons. Life changes quick.