Runner, is 16+ typical? A buddy of mine drives the length of Michigan 10 times/yr, and simply sets his cruise control to 10 over and has never been pulled over.

 

I have another question (which I've pondered while on the highway):

Assuming a state trooper is not in route to a call, is it "legal" for them to exceed the speed limit?

 

Jay, think about it: aren't they always "on call"?

 

Of course and of course I've thought about it but from a strictly legal point of view - and I've posed this question to my lawyer wife Liz (although she's never exactly thrilled with my driving or, should I say high-speed driving, anyway) and she doesn't know - are they actually, technically, breaking the law?. If they are not on a call and they are speeding, why can't I? (Never mind that I do...I mean don't!!!). Needless to say I am fully aware that saying that everyone else was exceeding the speed limit is not justification - that argument is irrelevant and will surely get you ticketed - but what about the state trooper or any law enforcement officer? (I'm gonna ask some cops friends I have and see what if anything they say...but only after reading a book on my hammock and taking a nap).

Look, I abide by the limit to the letter of the law so I really don't care but I've occasionally thought about the legal argument if that ever got to a court of law. And, yes, the ADA would simply say you're speeding so tough luck.

In the end, as a Zen master would say, speeding is speeding is speeding.

 

No, it is completely discretionary. Legally if you are 1mph they could pull you over and cite you.

There readings to the officer will often display lower then the speed you are actually traveling, I don't remember the exact formula, but it is based on the angle radar hits you at.

As an example, say you were traveling 65mph, if I cop was parked directly in the lane on oncoming traffic, shooting exactly straight ahead, he should mark your exact speed, 65mph. However, cops aren't going to shoot radar while blocking your lane traffic.

If they moved to the center median and shot at a slight angle as you approached, the radar would read about 62ish mph.

As their relative angle changes, the displayed radar speed decreases.

With all that said, I am comfortable that driving 8ish mph over is a safe bet, depending on the jurisdiction. (Some, especially small towns, are known for being very strict, especially to the "city slicker folk" that are cruising through their town.)

7-8mph in a 65mph, in most cases, unless the cop is on sitting on an overpass above you, the angle will bring down your displayed reading as roughly 70mph.

So if your buddy is going 80mph in a 70, the cop is probably reading 77ish or so depending on the angle...

Unofficially, it seems in all the cars I have ever owned, when I check my speed with GPS, it displays a slightly lower speed....not sure if that is a GPS issue, but like clockwork if I set my car at 73 (via the speedometer) and check the GPS speed, it shows 70 or.

Obviously one need will also need to account for after market tires as well....

Long story short, I would say 16+ over is a dangerous #, ticket wise, do make a habit with driving.

In larger cities, unless it is a "traffic unit," where their job is strictly to enforce traffic violations, cops don't pull people over to write a speeding ticket, they pull people over to find the bigger stuff drugs, warrants, etc....the speeding violation is just their way to "get in" in order to find larger things.

Your record also plays a part, if people had violations for "resisting arrest," "possession with intent," "aggrevated assault," "negligent use of a firearm" (aka drive by shooter) I didn't show much mercy. I understand some people will not like to hear that, but in my mind, a person's contribution to, or destruction to society plays a role.

Most people with clean records, if you pull them over, they are scared to death. The incident alone is enough to slow them down for a while without the need for a citation.

16+ was my personal "code." Also, when you stop someone going 16+ over, they typically knew they were speeding, they know they deserve a ticket, etc...

Godspeed my friend, and drive beneth the radar.

 

No it is not legal, however, there are quite a few exceptions:

1). In order to gain evidence of an infraction (i.e. Pacing a vehicle)

2) "Silent Emergencies"-no sirens, for instance a robbery in progress you don't want to use your sirens as you don't want to alert intruder that you are coming and/or indicate to them what direction you are coming from, although legally their lights should be on.

(With that being said, I worked night shift and it is not uncommon to "kill your emergency lights" when within a few blocks of the incident, for the same reasons listed above.)

3) There are several occasions were you are not directly assigned a call, but you get your *** in the area as quickly as possible to assist if things get worse. Example of this may be a weapons call, for instance they typically might send 3-4 squads depending on the details, if you are in the area but not "assigned" the call, you are still going to hurry your *** over there and at a minimum, black out and park in the area in case stuff hits the fan.

The instances that I could see speeding for personal gain of the office is if the officers are assigned take home squads, and they drive it while off-duty. In the 2 jurisdictions I worked, very few officers had "take home" squads. They were the school liaisons and K-9 units.

While on-duty, there is no point in speeding, as there is no where to go...you drive fast just to get to the edge of your zone/district, just to race back across it for the next 8 hrs...

Typically you see a patrol cars driving 5mph or so under the speed limit on the highway....slowing down traffic. The reason they do this is not slow everyone down, although that is a byproduct. The reason they drive slower is so vehicles pass them and they can run plates, look for violations etc...

If they drive "with traffic" they would have the same cars in front and behind them which serves no purpose....

4). Another example, in roll call the officers may have been informed of a stolen car, or vehicle description from a felony. If I happened to see a vehicle drive past me matching the description, I would continue past the vehicle (to not alert him) then whip a u-turn, and make up lost ground to get to the up to vehicle. (No lights or siren)

On a high risk stop, like the one above, you call in just about everything about the car/occupants/location and coordinate other squads to perform the high-risk stop, prior to activating your lights-you don't want the thug to know you are on to him until you and your brothers are ready.

In the above example, both I and all of the back-up squads would be driving over the speed limit with no lights/sirens in order to get in the proper positioning for the stop.

(I have always been a car guy and can identify cars pretty well from their taillights. But in the above example, if you weren't a "car person" and we're on the lookout for say, a red camaro and a red mustang drives by, that officer may do the same (u-turn, speed up to the car, etc...) just to get the plate and/or confirm if it was the vehicle in question)

So for the answer to your question: It's complicated-but it's is pointless for a cop to speed for the hell of it...

(Especially during day shift, people will call the PD and make complaints about squads stopping ahead of the white marker line at a stop sign. Lol)

 

Thank you very much for such a comprehensive answer. Please don't get me wrong; I have some good friends in law enforcement - local cops, state troopers, FBI, DEA, ATF (I have no affiliation other than meeting them over the many years...and respect and appreciate what they and many other LEOS do), and remind them of such when I see or talk with them. I've actually gotten into the habit of thanking cops for doing what they do whenever I have the chance.

Best regards and thanks again,
Jay

 

When I was an elected official, I met lots of cops of all ilks. Played cards with them, drank with them. Turns out cops are real people - Just that they have a dangerous, demanding and underpaid job. For our Town Commission part, we made sure that all of our cops had take home cars. It's a small perk for the cop, but actually saves the town money because they treat it like their own car instead of a rental.

Whenever I'm in a restaurant or convenience store and a cop is there, I'll surreptitiously buy them lunch or dinner. Makes me feel good and I hope that they know somebody cares.

 

Now you know how I've acquired so many friends in law enforcement.

 

Glad I could provide some insight. Don't get me wrong either, like other professions, there are some bad apples.

The hard part, imo anyway, is seeing all the garbage in the media. It seems the only time the public rallies behind an officer is at their funeral.

If anyone ever has the chance, I highly recommend attending one. Be warned it is extremely emotional.

I realize that the loudest voices regarding law enforcement, are typically the voices that are opposed to all that law enforcement stands for.

During the funerals of LEOs, the silent majority emerge to show their support: kids, moms, dads, elderly, veterans, etc...fighting back tears, at times unsuccessfully, while being in a motorcade is something that I, and I am guessing many other officers, experienced.

Of course you are sad and grieving the pointless loss of life of a fallen brother or sister, but for me personally, it was the huge support from the public that I witnessed, that I never knew existed. (Holding home made signs, lining the street, waving flags, etc...)

As the police supporters, rightfully so, don't have see the need to "peacefully" protest like the many of the anti-law enforcement groups do anytime a high-profile event takes place (Maybe its because they are busy working and contributing to society

Off my soapbox.

In summary, 99.9% of the time when we get a ticket, we deserve it, and we know it, we are just pissed that we got caught. (The doesn't mean you can't go to court in an attempt to reduce a fine, reduce the points, etc....but if really are a Johnny Cocceran, show your mad-lawyer skills in court, not at the time of the citation.

A ticket is merely a summons to appear in court, stating that there is probably cause that a violation was committed. If you decide to pay ticket, you are stated, "Yup, I did it, here is my money." If you take issue with the ticket, that is exactly what court is for.

With that being said, I will be going to court (July 18th) to discuss my ticket.

 

When I'm in my Baltimore cigar lounge, LEOs stop in on a regular basis and I'll offer to buy them a couple of sticks. I noticed any above the rank of a beat cop will not accept unless they know me by name.

 

Which name?

 

Can't be repeated in polite company. lol.

 

When I was an elected official I had the distinct honor (not sure that is the right word) of attending funerals of 2 LEOs. One was our Lt.who died of cancer. Great guy, great sense of humor, very sad. There were several hundred cars in the procession.

The other was for a small town cop in his 20s killed in the line of duty. The funeral was held in a high school gym. I got there an hour early and got one of the last SRO spots. The ceremony was quite moving. Then his fiancé tried to speak...

No idea how many people were there, but when I came out the street was lined with people holding flags. One of the most moving things I have even attended.

One last thought. If you've never been on a ride along, do it. You may gain a new respect for what cops do.

 

WE certainly have options for you:
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A very dear friend of mine - from Pisa, Italy - asked if I would accompany her to traffic court in Portland, Maine this morning for a speeding ticket (10-15 mph over the limit) she received some months ago. I had already advised her to try to get a continuance which she did and this morning was the court date. Her English is outstanding, perfect actually, but she still wanted my counsel for the best possible outcome. I had hoped that the officer who gave her the ticket wouldn't show - and needless to say the court room was packed (isn't it always) - and just about everyone present opted to speak with the officer who gave them their ticket (surely hopeful that said officer wouldn't be there). My friends officer was there - nice guy actually - and we struck what we considered the best compromise which was pay the $135 fine but that no record of her infraction would show. Anywhere. I confirmed this with the ADA who had my friend sign 2 documents and we were on our way. Not exactly a pleasant experience (although I did see a couple of cop friends I know) and something/somewhere all of us wish to avoid for sure. Good thing I don't speed...

 

Got pulled over this past weekend while visiting my grandfather in little old Vero Beach, Florida. For all that have never heard of it, Vero Beach is a retirement town and most of the elderly there do not care for the loud exhaust of the V8 F-Type, my grandfather included. Anyways, I was heading to breakfast with a family member in the car, and there is a nice long straight stretch of road where I was waiting at a stop light to turn green to floor it up to just a little over the speed limit to entertain my passenger. The light turns green, and I implement my plan. Little did I know there was a cop a few cars back and hidden from my view.

After my acceleration up to about 10 over the speed limit, I see the cop car dart around all of the traffic behind me and he pulls right up behind me and hit the lights. I pulled over down a side street and feel pretty confident that the cop only heard me but did not see me speeding. Sure enough! He walked up, checks the license, reg. and insurance and then tells me "Please keep it down to a low rumble, the residents don't like the noise. Have a nice day."

My passenger was stunned at the entire experience.

 

all part of the F type experience.

 

Cant speak of Jags before 2008 but all owners of any V8 cars after that date know that when you pass a car on 2 lane road when you look down you are doing over 180 to 200 kph and it feels like 80kph. I had just bought a new 2008 4.2l V8 XF. I passed a car going way too slow for me , looked down and was doing 180kph in an 80kph zone. Speed limits a bit sad in Canada. I looked in my rear view and saw a car behind me with a car rack on top. I immediately slowed down then his car rack lit up with colours, red white and blue. pulled me over asked for papers etc. He must have been at the T intersection, I thought if he knows how fast I was going this car will be towed, if he does not know then he can't put a speed on the ticket. I waited, he was a young cop maybe 30 and i was in my mid 60's at the time. He came back to my car after 5 minutes checking for previous tickets, (none). He gave me my licence back and said "less vigorous driving in future". "Yes sir" I replied in shock that I was getting off without a ticket.
It was the first XF on the road back then so either he liked the car or thought it was the only way I could get a boner. I have many other laughable stories but don't want to take up too much space.