We’ve been lacking in OT in the “fuck da police” thread department. You know the ones. Some little gangsta whining about getting popped for a list of violations a mile long. This isn’t a bitch, this isn’t a rant. Consider this a guide on how you can possibly conduct yourself during a traffic stop (especially if you have a fuck da police attitude). I know I fucked up and the cop cut my break. Here goes:
I was heading back from the avengers around 1100pm tonight. I came to a 3 way Y shaped intersection with stop signs in all directions. I know this road well and at this hour the biggest threat is hitting a large deer or buck. I slowed down and thought I stopped at the stop sign for long enough, but proceeded through the intersection on my way. 10 seconds later I’m getting lit up by the police.
I signaled and pulled over to the right as far as possible. I then turned on all of my interior lights and rolled down my driver side window. I had my license ready, sitting on the seat. When the officer approached my car he said
“sir you failed to stop at the stop sign. Can I have your license registration and insurance card please?”
I responded with “Yes officer. Here is my license” (I hand him my license) and then I said “my insurance and registration card are in my glove box, I’m going to open the glove box and remove the documents with my right hand (my left hand is still on the wheel in plain view)”. I open the glovebox and hand the officer the documents.
the officer does a quick spot check with the flash light, checks my inspection sticker and says “Thank you sir. I’m going to take these back to my car for a minute.” The officer returns to his car. During this time I keep both hands on the wheel and look straight ahead. I don’t fidget or touch anything. I pretend not to notice the second police car arrive on scene, nor the second officer walking around the passenger side of my car with his flash light.
About 5 minutes later the officer who took my paper work returns
“Sir I didn’t cite you for failing to stop. Instead I gave you a ticket for hazardous operations. It carries no points so all you have to do is pay the fine by the court date. Here is your license and registration”
I take my documents and reply with
“thank you sir. I greatly appreciate you issuing me a no point ticket. Do you know the amount of fine sir? I’d like to write a check as soon as I get home so that can mail this out and clear this up in a timely manner.”
The officer said " Sorry sir I don’t have a schedule of fines but the ticket should post on the website in a day or two. You could also try calling the violations bureau tomorrow morning."
I reply with “Thank you officer. I will be more careful in the future and I’ll slow it down. Have a good night”.
some things to take away from this interaction:
You won’t win a court battle on the street. If you think you’re not guilty take it up with the judge on your court date. The cop is human too and might have been having a shitty day. In my case I KNOW I fucked up and don’t plan on fighting this in court.
I always spoke to the officer in a respectful tone and addressed him by either officer or sir. I also told him my intentions before I acted and made no sudden or threatening movements. I thanked the officer for cutting me a break and made it clear that I did not intend to contest the ticket / wanted to resolve the matter in a timely fashion.
Years ago I spent thousands of dollars and hours in court due to traffic stops in a certain NJ municipality. I had a really shitty attitude when it came to stops and may have increased the financial damage to myself based on the way I acted. Its so much easier to take the ticket and go with it. Had I been issued a points ticket, I would have gone to court and asked the prosecutor to allow me to pay a larger fine + court costs in exchange for no points on my license. As this would be my first points based offense in 14 years of driving, the prosecutor would have likely cut me a break.
