Just got a ticket for this.

[sqcomp]

I agree, I'll man up and coddle you just as soon as you do the same by not breaking the law and then griping about it when you get ticketed for it.

If I pull someone over for a minor infraction like the eyelid incident, the only real way I'm going to ask about a search of your vehicle is if I have something to go off of...like VERY nervous behavior, sweating, jitters, stuttering, possible drug paraphenalia, if I see a weapon, if I smell alcholic beverages...the list goes on.

If you'll recall I also mentioned that this stop was a little messed up. Still, you can argue the eyelids until yours turn inside out. The officer had a right to stop the vehicle. Personally, I'm not worried about searching Jamal's vehicle until he gives me good reason to do so. I would honestly start talking with him about his Yaris and eventually tell him to get the eyelids fixed (because I'm a fan of the Yaris) and let him be on his way. It is the perogative of the officer to write you a ticket.

Oh, here's a hint...

When a police officer says, "I have to give you a ticket for your speed"...this isn't always the case. Your attitude, my attitude, and other variables would be factors.

You are ABSOLUTELY right! There are "dicks" out there. Guess what? They're on BOTH sides! I pull you over to tell you that your brake lights are out, after asking for your license and registration, you immediately start flicking me shit? Alright, you want to play...I'm game. Of course, I'm not going to tell you immediately what I've pulled you over for, I want to verify your identity first. Just because the plate reads to one Carmelll Yaris lover on my MDT, it means NOTHING until I verify who YOU are that is driving it. After I know who you are...then we'll talk. Me verifying who you are keeps us both safe. BS? Nope. What happens if you look like a suspect put out on a BOLO? This is why you are cordial until there is a need not to be.

Who can say? Perhaps the guy driving your Yaris just took the car from your driveway in the middle of the night? I have to know. If the officer seems a bit edgy...here's an example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZCC9qINBvw

The officer made a traffic stop...WTF? The driver doesn't comply with commands and produces a weapon. Great...the officer's day went from normal to REALLY bad in one stop...

The attitude you get directly corelates to your cooperation (at least with me it would). Being stupid isn't a crime on your part, neither is a bit of gruff attitude on the officer's.

[eht13]

My neighbor is a cop, and he's a really nice guy. I think he is probably doing the job for the "right reasons". I hope that the majority, at least, are doing it for those reasons too. When I hear some of his stories I'm amazed at how stupid/crazy people can be and what kinds of stuff cops have to deal with... it is a thankless job. That said, nobody has the right to get jaded by what they deal with and then take it out on other people who had nothing to do with it. It is a job, so they need to treat it like one and stay professional.

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Originally Posted by sqcomp

The attitude you get directly corelates to your cooperation (at least with me it would). Being stupid isn't a crime on your part, neither is a bit of gruff attitude on the officer's.

I was cooperative and polite on both times I got pulled over by the CHP. Both times the officers acted like asshats. I don't see any reason as to why they would act that way towards me off the bat. If they were having a bad day, they shouldn't have taken it out on me.

[tomato]

^ what a great comment! I think you nailed it, eht13. It *is* a thankless job. On the other hand, there is no need to become a big jerk either.

[eht13]

^ Thanks.

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Again, not saying all cops out there act like dicks. I know a few who are cool guys and are polite.

[SailDesign]

Originally Posted by sqcomp

<snip> I'm not following the ebonics.

<more snip>.

Dood - Just because the guy's handle is jamal, he's from Georgia, and he maybe doesn't write as well as a Harvard English professor, is no reason to bring out the "ebonics" crap.
I mean, really, stick to the cop stuff, which you DO know.

[sbergman27]

Originally Posted by SailDesign

Dood - Just because the guy's handle is jamal, he's from Georgia, and he maybe doesn't write as well as a Harvard English professor, is no reason to bring out the "ebonics" crap.
I mean, really, stick to the cop stuff, which you DO know.

I had missed that. Perhaps we should give officer Sqcomp a chance to explain what he really meant by that obvious racial slur, and describe how he prevents that from interfering with the performance of his job, which necessarily involves elevated authority over other people, of various races, creeds, and cultures.

The floor is yours, sheriff.

-Steve

[sbergman27]

Originally Posted by camelll

Cops are dicks. They go out of their way to intimidate people.

You make me wonder why I bother to type so many words to express something which can be said so concisely. :-)

-Steve

[jamal1984]

Originally Posted by sbergman27

You make me wonder why I bother to type so many words to express something which can be said so concisely. :-)

-Steve

+1
It's a FREE Country after all, a lot of educated peoples live in this country.
As my first posted say, i don't get mad for getting this ticket.
There are a lot of right laws out there that i absolutely agreed to it, example.....Speeding, super dark window tinting, hit and run.....loud speakers....
etc,
But when it's come to something like this, in my 2cents it's Stupid, they are Bullying us, Harassing innocent peoples, trying to make revenue out of us, we are tax payers.
If i'm not a criminal or a killer let's me do something to my car that make it's look nice, let's me buy stuff spending the moneys to help the economy, rather than pull me over just for something like this. The more they doing this, the more it's remind peoples of communist.

[sbergman27]

Originally Posted by jamal1984

As my first posted say, i don't get mad for getting this ticket.

You are doing very well there, then. I think you should be concerned. And posting here demonstrates that you are.

I would be *angry* and concerned. To be sure, anger is a double-edged sword. Anger can prompt us to take action which we might otherwise be too lazy or distracted to take... or it can cloud our perspective.

I don't think that those agencies who abuse their authority really want cases which involve their abuses paraded before the courts. The courts *could* put a crimp in their style. Concerning my own recent adventure, I considered contacting an attorney, or an organization like the ACLU, to see what, likely small, action I could take too bring this incident to the attention of at least someone in the legal branch of government. I haven't. The infraction, in my example, was relatively minor in the grand scheme of things.

But still, what we're seeing can be viewed as death by a thousand cuts for principles which we thought we held sacred.

There are a lot of right laws out there that i absolutely agreed to it, example.....Speeding, super dark window tinting, hit and run.....loud speakers....

Indeed. I would agree. Others' freedom ends where my nose begins. And rattling the plates in all the houses one passes is... well... in a great show of restraint, I won't call for capitol punishment on that one. Just 25 years in a federal penitentiary, say. ;-)

But when it's come to something like this, in my 2cents it's Stupid, they are Bullying us, Harassing innocent peoples, trying to make revenue out of us, we are tax payers.

It's not just stupid. It's dangerous to the long-term health of our society. To be sure, we have lots of those. But this is a symptom of something that really eats at the foundations.

The fact that you or I got stopped and harassed is of no fundamental consequence. But the general trend, going far beyond traffic issues, *is*.

-Steve

[eht13]

Originally Posted by jamal1984

super dark window tinting

I wonder about this one. I'm in Georgia too, and I know our laws have a tint limit. But I see cars all the time that almost definitely exceed the tint limit. I assume they can pull someone over for just that reason, but maybe not... maybe there has to be another reason, such as speeding, and then they can also say, "by the way, I need to test this tint percentage". Did you (the OP) get stopped for any other reason, or just the eyelids/headlight decals?

[jamal1984]

Originally Posted by eht13

I wonder about this one. I'm in Georgia too, and I know our laws have a tint limit. But I see cars all the time that almost definitely exceed the tint limit. I assume they can pull someone over for just that reason, but maybe not... maybe there has to be another reason, such as speeding, and then they can also say, "by the way, I need to test this tint percentage". Did you (the OP) get stopped for any other reason, or just the eyelids/headlight decals?

just the eyelids, nothing else.

[sbergman27]

Originally Posted by camelll

But thank god we have rights and lawyers to defend us from people of that mentality...

I'm supremely appreciative of the rights. The lawyers are a mixed bag. (Mercenaries in the cause of justice.)

I highly approve of the lowercase 'g'.

-Steve

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Originally Posted by camelll

If a cop is being a dick to the guy who breaks into my house that is cool, but to search someones car after being pulled over for speeding, not using turn signals, etc etc..... is just plain silly. Minor traffic violations do not warrant a search.

If you are jaded by the way you get treated on your job or you just don't like your job then QUIT! No one is making you do you job, no one. Only you. Don't take it out on average citizens. What a way to live a life always think someone is doing something wrong or someone is trying to hurt you. Man up and just do your job fairly and don't be a dick! Unless the person actually deserves it. Don't act like you are better than the person you are pulling over. Don't abuse you position of power. And please don't say police don't do it cause there is a lot of dirty police that do way worse shit than want to search someones car after a Minor traffic stop.