Goddamn Cop.

[watergirl]

Yesterday, in the nasty snowing ick, I got a flat... $142 to replace that today... then, headed southwest into the midafternoon sun, I was off on an errand -

and noticed a cop following me.... through 2 lights, down the road about a mile, onto a busy three lane... I was in the left lane, he was behind me, and flashed his lites & siren - I thought, shit, I must just be poking along and he wants me to move over.. so I did... and he flashed em again, and I pulled over - quite a ways from the next parking lot or birm - we were up against a jersey barrier...

and he sat there, and sat there, and sat there, behind me... what the fuck? So I'm getting out my license and reg., and we sat there some more... traffic goin on by...

Anyway, the short asshole napoleonic freak finally comes up, asks for my lic & reg.... goes away.. I sit there and sit there and sit there.. and he finally comes back, to inform me that I ran a red light, back at Montgomery St. That was before about 5 blocks before I first noticed him behind me... plenty of opportunities to pull me over, into any number of parking lots, businesses... busy stretch of Rt. 1... but no, he had to follow me for a about a mile first...

Anyway - I really really truly honest to god DO NOT BELIEVE I ran a red light. I wasn't speeding, wasn't in a hurry, wasn't tail gating... Didin't argue with the asshole, I'm thinking he just likes to yell at women and see if he can make us cry. He asked how my driving record was... I said, "Good." I've only gotten one speeding ticket, from a camera in DC... and I'm 26. I think that's pretty good, don't you?

So the evil little nasty yelling misogynistic freak asshole wrote me a $120 ticket.

Does that sound excessive to anyone else? On top of my $142 new tire (the nail was in the tire where the sidewall curves over to the tread, on the flat... couldn't be patched...) I"m just really pissed off about my day. Shouldn't have gotten out of bed, I swear.

Oh, well - at least it's time for Buffy. I'll check back in an hour, I'd love any sympathy or voodoo curses for cops, or similar stories...
thanks, all -

watergirl

 

[Guest]

 

[JazzManJim]

Ooh...and you're local to me, too!

First off, my sympathies. Even though I know from where he's coming (or at least cops in general), I'd suggest you don't pay the fine and take it to court. I'm betting that with the snow and the heavy traffic int he area, you stand a good chacne of beating the ticket.

 

[Guest]

You got to know how to handle these fuckers.

Massage their ego.

Don't be so GAY, Hanns.

 

[MaggieH]

that really sucks, hon...you have my sympathies *hugs*

 

[penguindance]

 

[tyme]

I would fight it. Why did he not pull you over right away? sounds fishy to me.

 

[freakygirl]

Not sure how it works where you live..

but I do know that sometimes officers don't pull someone over the minute they do something wrong. They run your license plates to see if the car has been reported stolen.. to see if the registered owner is a wanted felon. (They kinda wanna know, for safetys sake, who they are pulling over.)

You had every right to continue on and find a safer place to pull over. He wouldn't have shot your tires out or anything.

Like everyone else has said.. take it to court. Most times they will atleast drop the amount of the ticket to half.

 

[watergirl]

Thanks, everybody... it's so good to have a place to come and bitch.....I've been working by myself a lot, lately & I miss that group input. Seriously, I really do HATE PG county cops.

Quick story -

My former housemate noticed his back license plate was missing after he had driven all the way down to shenandoah ntl. park for a weekend of hiking. The park police sent him to VA state police, who referred him to pg county cops on the phone - who said, oh, report it when you get back. So, he came back, and called them up... the officer who came out YELLED AT US - "Why on earth would nice people like you move to a neighborhood like this?"

Well, gee, officer fuckhead, some of us aren't rich, don't have parents to finance our adulthood, and don't yet have rental history, since we were just out of college, and had been working for theaters that gave us free housing...

THEN, he yelled at Bill some more - accused him not even trying to report it, since Bill couldn't name the person who'd said, "report it when you get back" - and, then, said that Bill should have called 911 to report it! Excuse me, I thought there were serious fines for calling 911 with a non-emergency?

I really really hate the cops here. Sorry, just venting... Yeah, I'm taking this to court. I understand about running the plates to see if the car is stolen - but - no, this was in a really awkward place to pull me over.

T hanks, again, for the hugs & sympathy -

 

[christcat69]

yOU HAVE TO READ MY JOKE ON THE LAST PAGE OF THE JOKE THREAD.

 

[watergirl]

oh, and Jazzman - thanks, you're my hero... good point - snow, traffic - I'm from northwest pa, so i'm used to that, and slippery roads - and the traffic is just ever present down here -

but here's the thing -

I have no awareness of running the light. It wasn't a conscious choice, I didn't speed up for a yellow, I wasn't not concentrating.. it was heading into that wicked glare of afternoon, so I totally remember checking all the little cross streets between lights for turning or proceeding traffic, and all the parking lots for people pulling out - it is possible that I did run the light - but I just - I'm baffled... yes, running a red light is bad, but - clearly no one honked at me, there was nothing to call my attention to it.... argh!

I'm just bewildered.

 

[*Eve*]

Me and an ex were parked somewhere and we were making out a bit. The cop taps on our window, askes us both to step out of the vehicle, and asks, for id, searches the vehicle, calls for back up, pats us down like common criminals. Now that was excessive. I can sympathize with you dear. There are a lot of nice cops, but some are on such a power trip that it makes them feel better to make someone else feel miserable.

 

[watergirl]

It's the $120 that is getting me as being really really excessive in this case.

I can rationalize the yelling as making sure he was heard over traffic. I can rationalize at least 1/2 the following distance as verifying the car wasn't stolen (9 year old suzuki sidekick, covered in bumper stickers - if they steal this, they got problems).

but - $120 ! Damn me!


but - for making out, you got all that - jeezus! You win the prize.. not that it's a good prize, but, hey..

 

[bknight2602]

Sorry you got a ticket. Maybe you should have tried to sweet talk him out of it? Or tears, I've heard that works in a lot of cases.

 

[watergirl]

thanks, sexy....

I didn't want to give him the satisfaction. I cried a little when I got home.

silly women, huh?

 

[bknight2602]

You're supposed to cry in his face, tell him you don't know what daddy will do etc.

LOL

 

[Lasz]

No they like to drive behind me when I am speeding, then let me slow down once I notice them. Then give me the speeding ticket, after I slow down because I realise what I am doing wrong.

It pisses me off because they always catch me when I dont notice I am speeding.