Here's one for you: Picture a train of about 4-5
cars on a 4-lane divided highway connecting
a state capital city to a somewhat smaller city
bordering the southern state. The train of cars
is traveling above the speed limit, but with no
other traffic around it isn't unsafe. The cars are
approximately 250 feet apart in the train. Three of
the cars are totally stock sedans or SUV's, the other
two are street legal track/solo prepared Sentra
SE-R's (lowered, louder exhausts, wheels,
sponsor stickers, numbers, rollcages, etc).
This is last Friday evening at 6:30 pm, still
with plenty of daylight left. A local cop goes by
in the opposite direction, across a grassy median.
Checking the side mirror reveals no brake lights or
blue lights so the train of cars continues at said
speed - still above the speed limit but not
excessively so. Two or three minutes later all drivers
in the train see rapidly approaching flashing lights in
their side mirrors and get into the slow lane to let the
approaching vehicle pass.
The officer comes up alongside the train and slows
beside the second car in line, which JUST so happens
to be one of the aforementioned SE-R's. He motions for
the driver to pull over and is immediately acknowleged.
One car back, the other SE-R driver realizes
that traffic will be slowing and tries to get
back into the fast lane to pass (like the
other cars in the train are doing). He is
immediately blocked and waved over by
the officer. Once pulled over, both SE-R
drivers are informed that they were speeding -
71 mph in a 55 mph zone.
The SE-R drivers are not "kids". Furthermore,
they are dressed in khakis and oxford shirts
and are cleanly shaven with short hair and no other
indicators of suspicion. They speak in complete
gramatically correct sentences and use bigger
words conversationally than the arresting officer.
Yet they are polite to the officer because they have
in fact been caught breaking the law.
They try to calmly and politely explain that they are
on their way to a racetrack to take part in a high
performance driving school, hence their choice of
vehicles. They then jokingly invite the officer down
to the event to chase them around the track for a
while. He responds jokingly; the relationship between
officer and driver is understood to be mutual respect.
However, the SE-R drivers still each get tickets for
71/55 and none of the other cars in the train ever got
pulled over.
Furthermore, the arresting officer must have done 100+
miles per hour to catch up to the train of cars (based
on the several minute period after radar lock). That
is logically more unsafe than any street car doing 71
because it is still a public road.
Now tell me there isn't prejudice on the part of the
law enforcement community! These drivers essentially
got $78 tickets because they weren't driving Tauruses
or Cherokees. The entire train of cars was breaking the
law but only the racey-looking cars got tickets.
The SE-R pilots are feeling unfairly selected and are
contemplating legal action instead of simply paying their
tickets in advance. The fact that it will cost more money
to go to court and argue the case than it would cost to
simply pay the tickets is not a concern.
Thoughts on this are welcomed but please note that
I'm on digest mode.
Jon Felton
#37 STS/DSP '91 Nissan Sentra SE-R
1.877. 61-WHEEL / http://www.rosenautosport.com
http://www.nasaracing.net next autox 7/23 @ VMP
Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 10:48:11 -0500
From: jon e prevo <tcbracer@juno.com>
Subject: Re: Maps and window decals
By taking exception can we assume that it is your opinion that the
majority of traffic cops don't abuse the system? If so, then just
consider yourself part of the problem. I have found in situation after
situation that patrolmen are encouraged to find any defensible excuse to
ticket and/or unnecessarily subjugate any motorist who seems vulnerable.
Until police departments stop basing their success on ticket and
conviction quotas, all you self-righteous cops out there only make the
problem worse by ignoring it and refusing to acknowledge it. Cops pick
on kids with hotrods because they don't expect any intelligent defense.
They pick on hippies like myself for the same reason, under the guise of
"he looks suspicious," and because they equate long hair, old cars and
work clothes with crime and stupidity. Cops stay away from dignified
yuppy types because they smell too much like legal defense.
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