and the CHP screws me again....

GoldenRivet · 05-18-10, 05:42 AM

Well that sucks man, i know how you feel.

I got busted about a year ago for going about 14 over in my brand new truck, of course i paid the fines etc... then i later found out that a factory defect had resulted in a 12 mile per hour error in my speedometer and according to the service department, it had been that way since it left the factory... I had ALWAYS been going at least 12 MPH over whatever the gauge indicated.

I hate being pulled over by the police as much as the next guy...

but were you actually traveling at the rate of speed indicated on the ticket?

It indicates that you were traveling at a rate of 81 MPH in a 65 MPH zone... if this is the case - and i hate to side with the LEO here - but then you were in fact speeding... and the "I was just going with the flow of traffic" argument rarely works out in your favor either.

I made the mistake once of telling this to a cop... "I was only going with the flow of traffic"

his reply was simply

"Well, im one traffic officer on a highway with a thousand speeding vehicles... it had to be somebody that got pulled over and today, that somebody was you, try to be more careful in the future, have a nice day."

Sometimes you're the bug... sometimes you're the windshield my friend.

I used to see this all the time when my commutes would take me through the greater Dallas area.

every car and truck on the road was going 80 mph, but the cops, even when they worked in teams of 2 or 3 would only be able to stop a couple of cars out of a hundred - and if you got stopped, it was just not your lucky day. Traffic congestion can be so thick that they typically only go after the nearest offender in such situations. Unfortunately on that day, it was probably you.

That sucks, and i feel bad for you, but the only thing you can do at this point is either pay the fine... or take it to court and hope the cop has more important things to do than show up for your traffic stop case.

but one thing to remember, if you tie up the court for a traffic stop case, and the court does NOT rule in your favor, they tend to throw the book at ya.

EDIT:

one time in college, i had borrowed my room mates car because mine was in the shop.

He is in the Air National Guard and had his uniform hanging in the back on the hanging hook, and his windshield had a parking pass for the local ANG base, not only that but his license plate frame was emblazoned with a large C-130 Hercules with "Air National Guard"

during a brief traffic stop, the officer just talked about how cool airplanes were and asked me what i flew. I told him i was in the aviation program at the local college and i was working on my commercial license (true) I never claimed to be in the ANG, i guess it was his assumption because he just said "i generally just give military personnel a verbal warning, so be careful out there" yadda yadda - he thanked me for "my service" and told me to have a nice day.

I didnt say sh*t... i just drove off. LOL

05-18-10, 05:42 AM	#6
GoldenRivet Subsim Aviator Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Texas Posts: 8,726 Downloads: 146 Uploads: 0	Well that sucks man, i know how you feel. I got busted about a year ago for going about 14 over in my brand new truck, of course i paid the fines etc... then i later found out that a factory defect had resulted in a 12 mile per hour error in my speedometer and according to the service department, it had been that way since it left the factory... I had ALWAYS been going at least 12 MPH over whatever the gauge indicated. I hate being pulled over by the police as much as the next guy... but were you actually traveling at the rate of speed indicated on the ticket? It indicates that you were traveling at a rate of 81 MPH in a 65 MPH zone... if this is the case - and i hate to side with the LEO here - but then you were in fact speeding... and the "I was just going with the flow of traffic" argument rarely works out in your favor either. I made the mistake once of telling this to a cop... "I was only going with the flow of traffic" his reply was simply "Well, im one traffic officer on a highway with a thousand speeding vehicles... it had to be somebody that got pulled over and today, that somebody was you, try to be more careful in the future, have a nice day." Sometimes you're the bug... sometimes you're the windshield my friend. I used to see this all the time when my commutes would take me through the greater Dallas area. every car and truck on the road was going 80 mph, but the cops, even when they worked in teams of 2 or 3 would only be able to stop a couple of cars out of a hundred - and if you got stopped, it was just not your lucky day. Traffic congestion can be so thick that they typically only go after the nearest offender in such situations. Unfortunately on that day, it was probably you. That sucks, and i feel bad for you, but the only thing you can do at this point is either pay the fine... or take it to court and hope the cop has more important things to do than show up for your traffic stop case. but one thing to remember, if you tie up the court for a traffic stop case, and the court does NOT rule in your favor, they tend to throw the book at ya. EDIT: one time in college, i had borrowed my room mates car because mine was in the shop. He is in the Air National Guard and had his uniform hanging in the back on the hanging hook, and his windshield had a parking pass for the local ANG base, not only that but his license plate frame was emblazoned with a large C-130 Hercules with "Air National Guard" during a brief traffic stop, the officer just talked about how cool airplanes were and asked me what i flew. I told him i was in the aviation program at the local college and i was working on my commercial license (true) I never claimed to be in the ANG, i guess it was his assumption because he just said "i generally just give military personnel a verbal warning, so be careful out there" yadda yadda - he thanked me for "my service" and told me to have a nice day. I didnt say sh*t... i just drove off. LOL __________________