First time pulled over in the Z

DLSTR · 02-16-2014, 06:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Super Werty

Well it happened tonight after only 6 months of owning the Z.

I was driving home at 7pm minding my own business, driving like a sane person and going the speed limit. Traffic is about a 6 out of 10, so not too crazy.

I make a turn onto a 3 lane road and suddenly some jerk in a truck is behind me with his brights on. So I hit the blinker and changed lanes. He matches my lane change and gets closer...real close! Like right on my bumper. Now Im practically being blinded.

So I changed back to my original lane and he matches again....I changed lanes 5 times in 3 miles and this jerk is right on me. I was actually starting to get worried this person was actually going to follow me home.

Then he turns on his red and blue lights....

I pulled over immediately and he walks up to my window and asks for my license. I handed it to him and said "you know I was changing lanes because your brights were on and I was being blinded" by the way he was driving a Chevy Tahoe and my Z is lowered.

He says "yea but you cant change lanes that quickly"

I said "sir, again you were blinding me and following me"

He says nothing and asks for my registration and insurance...walks back to truck.

As he is taking my info a huge car accident happens about 200 yards behind us. He walks up gives me a warning and say "if we catch you changing lanes like that again we will give you a ticket. Doesnt matter if you use your indicators or not"

I said "ok" and he speeds off to go back to the crash behind us.

lol. Im glad I didnt get any ticket but what total BS reason to pull someone over. Im going the speed limit, using indicators, and changing lanes normally..what else do you want?! 90% of people on the road cant even do that, and he singles me out. end rant

He would lose in court.Did you get his badge number and talk to the District Attorney?? Id like to see what is codified in your state about lane changing. No judge would let a ticket stand if you are not speeding and simply change lanes. If thats all the officer has he has NO CASE. He basically forced you to avoid him at speed. He never early on, showed he was law enforcement. Harrassment plain and simple. I bet you will find him on the same road again. Id get his badge and file a complaint. I wouldnt at all be surprised he has other complaints. People are creatures of habit. He is no different. Law enforcement gets my full respect but if this is true he needs some serious retraining. NO excuse.

1325 · 02-16-2014, 07:50 AM

Well you've all seem as if you've been exposed to the bad apples which in turn, make the rest look just as bad. I can give insight as to why some (including myself) follow closely for brief (or extended) amount of time especially during night time when it's that much harder to see license plate numbers. 0's look like Q's, D's look like 0's, etc. If I don't have probable cause, I don't have it and I move on. No way I'd ever make something up to jeopardize public trust.

As far as changing lanes fast, every state/country is different so I can't speak for all of them, but the way I see it is that if you're doing no harm, I don't foresee an issue. Definitely don't recommended on busy roads, though. Just be careful on the roadways because it doesn't have to be you driving recklessly, but the inattentive, distracted momo beside you.

Leadfoot · 02-19-2014, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLSTR

He would lose in court.Did you get his badge number and talk to the District Attorney?? Id like to see what is codified in your state about lane changing. No judge would let a ticket stand if you are not speeding and simply change lanes. If thats all the officer has he has NO CASE. He basically forced you to avoid him at speed. He never early on, showed he was law enforcement. Harrassment plain and simple. I bet you will find him on the same road again. Id get his badge and file a complaint. I wouldnt at all be surprised he has other complaints. People are creatures of habit. He is no different. Law enforcement gets my full respect but if this is true he needs some serious retraining. NO excuse.

What scares me about court is when the judge sees what type of vehicle the forum member was driving and automatically assumes the officer was right due to the fact the vehicle is a high performance sports car. That is what i will probably have to deal with in my trial for speeding.

Got_Z · 02-19-2014, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLSTR

He would lose in court.Did you get his badge number and talk to the District Attorney?? Id like to see what is codified in your state about lane changing. No judge would let a ticket stand if you are not speeding and simply change lanes. If thats all the officer has he has NO CASE. He basically forced you to avoid him at speed. He never early on, showed he was law enforcement. Harrassment plain and simple. I bet you will find him on the same road again. Id get his badge and file a complaint. I wouldnt at all be surprised he has other complaints. People are creatures of habit. He is no different. Law enforcement gets my full respect but if this is true he needs some serious retraining. NO excuse.

Doesn't matter if he would lose or win in court. Cops aren't concerned with the end result. They just have to meet their quotas. I once received a ticket for going 63 on a 60. Got dismissed immediately in court.

-M-

1325 · 02-19-2014, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Got_Z

Doesn't matter if he would lose or win in court. Cops aren't concerned with the end result. They just have to meet their quotas. I once received a ticket for going 63 on a 60. Got dismissed immediately in court.

-M-

Common misconception. Not for nothing, but quotas are illegal. Besides, whether one citation or a hundred are issued in a month, the paycheck is still the same.

Z1NONLY · 02-20-2014, 07:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1325

Common misconception. Not for nothing, but quotas are illegal. Besides, whether one citation or a hundred are issued in a month, the paycheck is still the same.

It's illegal when they get caught, yes...

L.A. approves $6-million settlement over alleged traffic ticket quotas
L.A. approves $6-million settlement over alleged traffic ticket quotas - Los Angeles Times

Stossel: Alabama Cop Fired For Recording His Sgt. Ordering Ticket Quota "The Police State" 8/15/2013 - YouTube

But there are ways to keep people in line:
Cop Fired for Speaking Out Against Ticket and Arrest Quotas
Cop Fired for Speaking Out Against Ticket and Arrest Quotas - Reason.com

Do police have quotas

New York Post reported Monday that two city police sergeants have testified they were ordered to meet a quota.
NYC cops reportedly confirm ticket quotas - US news | NBC News

They can call them "performance standards" or whatever, and tie them to overtime and promotions, so they can effect pay and skirt the legality issues.

ABC15 Exclusive Investigation: Do DPS officers have to meet traffic ticket and arrest quotas? - Story

We asked DPS about what appears to be quotas set out in the memo.

Arizona DPS Spokesperson Officer Tim Case insists they are not quotas.

"We don't have quotas here," Case said.

Officer Case calls the requirements performance standards and says that it's just a way the department has to make sure officers are doing their jobs.

http://www.copssoundoff.com/is-there...vity-standards

The Emperor has no clothes.

Leadfoot · 02-20-2014, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Z1NONLY

It's illegal when they get caught, yes...

L.A. approves $6-million settlement over alleged traffic ticket quotas
L.A. approves $6-million settlement over alleged traffic ticket quotas - Los Angeles Times

Stossel: Alabama Cop Fired For Recording His Sgt. Ordering Ticket Quota "The Police State" 8/15/2013 - YouTube

But there are ways to keep people in line:
Cop Fired for Speaking Out Against Ticket and Arrest Quotas
Cop Fired for Speaking Out Against Ticket and Arrest Quotas - Reason.com

Do police have quotas

New York Post reported Monday that two city police sergeants have testified they were ordered to meet a quota.
NYC cops reportedly confirm ticket quotas - US news | NBC News

They can call them "performance standards" or whatever, and tie them to overtime and promotions, so they can effect pay and skirt the legality issues.

ABC15 Exclusive Investigation: Do DPS officers have to meet traffic ticket and arrest quotas? - Story

We asked DPS about what appears to be quotas set out in the memo.

Arizona DPS Spokesperson Officer Tim Case insists they are not quotas.

"We don't have quotas here," Case said.

Officer Case calls the requirements performance standards and says that it's just a way the department has to make sure officers are doing their jobs.

Is there a difference between Quotas and "Productivity Standards?"

The Emperor has no clothes.

Thank You!

Infidel · 02-20-2014, 07:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1325

Common misconception. Not for nothing, but quotas are illegal. Besides, whether one citation or a hundred are issued in a month, the paycheck is still the same.

They may be illegal but are an unwritten rule. My friend went to the road and eventually got on a motorcycle. He told me he has to write 50 tickets a week or they will pull him off the bike. It's about revenue folks, there are quotas...believe it. Maybe not every department but most big cities. The economy sucks and tax revenue is down, gotta pay the bills somehow.

Jasonle · 02-16-2014, 09:21 AM

Total B.S.

axmea? · 02-16-2014, 12:35 PM

This is unheard of. It seemed like the officer was trying to get you to do something stupid. Good that you held your composure. If that were me, I'd do a brake check first to get him to stay back. If that does not work, downshift and stay away. Probably get stopped at that point. There was a time when I was stopped by an officer for my exhaust and he complimented me, asked where I got it from, said he was a car guy too, exchanged business cards, shook hands, and let me off.

alcheng · 02-16-2014, 02:46 PM

I'm gonna slowly brake to a dead stop and turn on the emergency signal and sit in the car.

If he comes up and ask why am I doing that, I will just simply tell him 1) he was following too closely and freak me out 2) because he's following too closely thus his lights blind my eyes and I couldn't drive.

If he wants to called EMS, I'll let him and when the medics come I gonna tell the medics the same thing and have them file a report for me.

scope22 · 02-16-2014, 05:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by axmea?

This is unheard of. It seemed like the officer was trying to get you to do something stupid. Good that you held your composure. If that were me, I'd do a brake check first to get him to stay back. If that does not work, downshift and stay away. Probably get stopped at that point. There was a time when I was stopped by an officer for my exhaust and he complimented me, asked where I got it from, said he was a car guy too, exchanged business cards, shook hands, and let me off.

I'm pretty sure this is common, they will follow you closely at night to see if you'll take off or break the law some other way, blinding on purpose so you can't see that its a cop.

ZeroZeta · 02-16-2014, 04:24 PM

So I am assuming that Super Werty was driving in AZ (per his sig.)

According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety - the officer was about to site him for "aggressive driving" which in AZ is:

defined as a progression of unlawful driving actions such as:
speeding -- exceeding the posted limit or driving too fast for conditions; improper or excessive lane changing: failing to signal intent, failing to see that movement can be made safely, or improper passing -- failing to signal intent, using an emergency lane to pass, or passing on the shoulder.

So they first list "excessive lane changing" under aggressive driving.

They later go into a little more detail about it:

"Making Frequent Lane Changes - If you whip in and out of lanes to advance ahead, you can be a danger to other motorists."

So if Super Werty were changing lanes from side to side - while maintaining his original constant speed and "not changing lanes to advance ahead." That shouldn't even count as "frequent/excessive" lane changing.

Now the officer in question was instigating Super's need to change lanes. Per the original post he was "right on my bumper"

Which makes the officer guilty of:

Tailgating - "This is a major cause of crashes that can result in serious injury or death." - (I am glad nothing bad occurred to anyone. )

This makes the officer in question the "aggressive driver."

So What to Do if Confronted by an Aggressive Driver?

Get Out of the Way - First and foremost, make every attempt to get out of their way.
Put Your Pride Aside - Do not challenge them by speeding up or attempting to hold-your-own in your travel lane.
Avoid Eye Contact - Eye contact can sometimes enrage an aggressive driver.
Ignore gestures and refuse to return them.
Report Serious Aggressive Driving - You or a passenger may call the police. But, if you use a cell phone, pull over to a safe location.

So we all know that SW would have won if this had been challenged in court.

1325 - Thank you for your input regarding the challenge of reading the plate numbers. (I never considered this before.) I don't think anyone is making a judgement call against people in uniform. I have met a number of good and bad apples. i don't assume that all Z owners are the best humans on the planet simply because I made the same purchasing decision they did.

I think much of what this comes down to is the inherent "grey area" of the law and the fact that in many instances the interpretation of these laws are subject to many factors including: the person tasked with enforcing it as well as any jurisdictional differences/mandates.

So my understanding is if there was no probable cause to run Super's plates in the first place, the office wouldn't need to get closer/follow to read the plates and run them through the system etc.

Therefore, unless Super was throwing bags of crack out the window, speeding, or doing something else to attract the officer's attention, the whole scenario shouldn't have happened.

But this was that officer's judgement call - and not representative of how anyone else would have handled the situation.

I think most people likely have some assumptions regarding sports car drivers. This was just one instance where it was not warranted.

If the OP had been going all "fast and furious" with his NOS tank causing his exhaust to spew fire like a flamethrower - Then he would deserve to be pulled over.

Ha Ha.

Leadfoot · 02-19-2014, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZeroZeta

So I am assuming that Super Werty was driving in AZ (per his sig.)

According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety - the officer was about to site him for "aggressive driving" which in AZ is:

defined as a progression of unlawful driving actions such as:
speeding -- exceeding the posted limit or driving too fast for conditions; improper or excessive lane changing: failing to signal intent, failing to see that movement can be made safely, or improper passing -- failing to signal intent, using an emergency lane to pass, or passing on the shoulder.

So they first list "excessive lane changing" under aggressive driving.

They later go into a little more detail about it:

"Making Frequent Lane Changes - If you whip in and out of lanes to advance ahead, you can be a danger to other motorists."

So if Super Werty were changing lanes from side to side - while maintaining his original constant speed and "not changing lanes to advance ahead." That shouldn't even count as "frequent/excessive" lane changing.

Now the officer in question was instigating Super's need to change lanes. Per the original post he was "right on my bumper"

Which makes the officer guilty of:

Tailgating - "This is a major cause of crashes that can result in serious injury or death." - (I am glad nothing bad occurred to anyone. )

This makes the officer in question the "aggressive driver."

So What to Do if Confronted by an Aggressive Driver?

Get Out of the Way - First and foremost, make every attempt to get out of their way.
Put Your Pride Aside - Do not challenge them by speeding up or attempting to hold-your-own in your travel lane.
Avoid Eye Contact - Eye contact can sometimes enrage an aggressive driver.
Ignore gestures and refuse to return them.
Report Serious Aggressive Driving - You or a passenger may call the police. But, if you use a cell phone, pull over to a safe location.

So we all know that SW would have won if this had been challenged in court.

1325 - Thank you for your input regarding the challenge of reading the plate numbers. (I never considered this before.) I don't think anyone is making a judgement call against people in uniform. I have met a number of good and bad apples. i don't assume that all Z owners are the best humans on the planet simply because I made the same purchasing decision they did.

I think much of what this comes down to is the inherent "grey area" of the law and the fact that in many instances the interpretation of these laws are subject to many factors including: the person tasked with enforcing it as well as any jurisdictional differences/mandates.

So my understanding is if there was no probable cause to run Super's plates in the first place, the office wouldn't need to get closer/follow to read the plates and run them through the system etc.

Therefore, unless Super was throwing bags of crack out the window, speeding, or doing something else to attract the officer's attention, the whole scenario shouldn't have happened.

But this was that officer's judgement call - and not representative of how anyone else would have handled the situation.

I think most people likely have some assumptions regarding sports car drivers. This was just one instance where it was not warranted.

If the OP had been going all "fast and furious" with his NOS tank causing his exhaust to spew fire like a flamethrower - Then he would deserve to be pulled over.

Ha Ha.

THANK YOU!!!

1slow370 · 02-16-2014, 05:16 PM

I was pulled over by the swat team once when i lived in wi in a previous car, it was murican with a blower sticking out the hood(i was 16) and, then kinda walked around the car looking at it, one of comes up and goes so where'd you get the blower, and i told him i machined and welded the manifold and kit myself and it was a highschool shop project, he said right on glad to see kids these days are still into this stuff, and they let me go, didn't even tell me why i got pulled over or anything. now i experience the joy of owning an import...

02-16-2014, 07:50 AM	#2 (permalink)
1325 Enthusiast Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Florida Posts: 287 Drives: 10 370Z BLK 6M Rep Power: 16	Well you've all seem as if you've been exposed to the bad apples which in turn, make the rest look just as bad. I can give insight as to why some (including myself) follow closely for brief (or extended) amount of time especially during night time when it's that much harder to see license plate numbers. 0's look like Q's, D's look like 0's, etc. If I don't have probable cause, I don't have it and I move on. No way I'd ever make something up to jeopardize public trust. As far as changing lanes fast, every state/country is different so I can't speak for all of them, but the way I see it is that if you're doing no harm, I don't foresee an issue. Definitely don't recommended on busy roads, though. Just be careful on the roadways because it doesn't have to be you driving recklessly, but the inattentive, distracted momo beside you. TheGreatOne, Dart, Leadfoot and 1 others like this.

02-16-2014, 09:21 AM	#9 (permalink)
Jasonle A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: St. Louis Posts: 3,509 Drives: 09 370z Rep Power: 26	Total B.S. Leadfoot likes this. __________________ 2009 Nissan 370z/2003 Honda Soccer Van Shineauto Amuse Body Kit/UAM Fenders/Bc Br Coilovers/Topspeed Exhaust/Racing Hart Wheels and More My Sexy Beast

02-16-2014, 12:35 PM	#10 (permalink)
axmea? A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: SoCal Posts: 6,243 Drives: WELL ZED PW 6MT Rep Power: 53242	This is unheard of. It seemed like the officer was trying to get you to do something stupid. Good that you held your composure. If that were me, I'd do a brake check first to get him to stay back. If that does not work, downshift and stay away. Probably get stopped at that point. There was a time when I was stopped by an officer for my exhaust and he complimented me, asked where I got it from, said he was a car guy too, exchanged business cards, shook hands, and let me off. Leadfoot likes this. __________________ >MyZ's Album< NISMO Convert/ECUTEK/Takeda CAI/F.I. HFC NR CB Carbon/F.I. 34 Row Oil Cooler/4.08 Final Drive /Powertrix+Swifts/Hotchkis/SPL/Whiteline/TWM/Zoom Engineering/EVO-R/AeroJacket Vented CF Fenders + CF Spoiler/Avant Garde-WORK/NST/Morimoto Halo/STi Clear Lenses/Carbon Signal Automotive/RJM Performance/ZSpeed Clutch Flywheel CSC delete Last edited by axmea?; 02-16-2014 at 12:43 PM.

02-16-2014, 02:46 PM	#11 (permalink)
alcheng A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Toronto Posts: 28,894 Drives: 2011 ZR PW w/Clutch Rep Power: 418354	I'm gonna slowly brake to a dead stop and turn on the emergency signal and sit in the car. If he comes up and ask why am I doing that, I will just simply tell him 1) he was following too closely and freak me out 2) because he's following too closely thus his lights blind my eyes and I couldn't drive. If he wants to called EMS, I'll let him and when the medics come I gonna tell the medics the same thing and have them file a report for me. LMBmikeZ and gbrettin like this.

02-16-2014, 04:24 PM	#13 (permalink)
ZeroZeta Track Member Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: Austin TX Posts: 543 Drives: 2013 Z Rep Power: 13	So I am assuming that Super Werty was driving in AZ (per his sig.) According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety - the officer was about to site him for "aggressive driving" which in AZ is: defined as a progression of unlawful driving actions such as: speeding -- exceeding the posted limit or driving too fast for conditions; improper or excessive lane changing: failing to signal intent, failing to see that movement can be made safely, or improper passing -- failing to signal intent, using an emergency lane to pass, or passing on the shoulder. So they first list "excessive lane changing" under aggressive driving. They later go into a little more detail about it: "Making Frequent Lane Changes - If you whip in and out of lanes to advance ahead, you can be a danger to other motorists." So if Super Werty were changing lanes from side to side - while maintaining his original constant speed and "not changing lanes to advance ahead." That shouldn't even count as "frequent/excessive" lane changing. Now the officer in question was instigating Super's need to change lanes. Per the original post he was "right on my bumper" Which makes the officer guilty of: Tailgating - "This is a major cause of crashes that can result in serious injury or death." - (I am glad nothing bad occurred to anyone. ) This makes the officer in question the "aggressive driver." So What to Do if Confronted by an Aggressive Driver? Get Out of the Way - First and foremost, make every attempt to get out of their way. Put Your Pride Aside - Do not challenge them by speeding up or attempting to hold-your-own in your travel lane. Avoid Eye Contact - Eye contact can sometimes enrage an aggressive driver. Ignore gestures and refuse to return them. Report Serious Aggressive Driving - You or a passenger may call the police. But, if you use a cell phone, pull over to a safe location. So we all know that SW would have won if this had been challenged in court. 1325 - Thank you for your input regarding the challenge of reading the plate numbers. (I never considered this before.) I don't think anyone is making a judgement call against people in uniform. I have met a number of good and bad apples. i don't assume that all Z owners are the best humans on the planet simply because I made the same purchasing decision they did. I think much of what this comes down to is the inherent "grey area" of the law and the fact that in many instances the interpretation of these laws are subject to many factors including: the person tasked with enforcing it as well as any jurisdictional differences/mandates. So my understanding is if there was no probable cause to run Super's plates in the first place, the office wouldn't need to get closer/follow to read the plates and run them through the system etc. Therefore, unless Super was throwing bags of crack out the window, speeding, or doing something else to attract the officer's attention, the whole scenario shouldn't have happened. But this was that officer's judgement call - and not representative of how anyone else would have handled the situation. I think most people likely have some assumptions regarding sports car drivers. This was just one instance where it was not warranted. If the OP had been going all "fast and furious" with his NOS tank causing his exhaust to spew fire like a flamethrower - Then he would deserve to be pulled over. Ha Ha. gbrettin, Leadfoot, axmea? and 1 others like this. Last edited by ZeroZeta; 02-16-2014 at 04:49 PM.

02-16-2014, 05:16 PM	#15 (permalink)
1slow370 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: In the D Posts: 3,732 Drives: v8 74 260z ;) Rep Power: 7251	I was pulled over by the swat team once when i lived in wi in a previous car, it was murican with a blower sticking out the hood(i was 16) and, then kinda walked around the car looking at it, one of comes up and goes so where'd you get the blower, and i told him i machined and welded the manifold and kit myself and it was a highschool shop project, he said right on glad to see kids these days are still into this stuff, and they let me go, didn't even tell me why i got pulled over or anything. now i experience the joy of owning an import... __________________ ANSWER PRICE LIST Answers - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - $0.75 Answers (requiring thought) - - - - $1.25 Answers (correct) - - - - - - - - - - $12.50

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
First time Pulled over in the Z	2xtreme1	Nissan 370Z General Discussions	60	08-09-2013 11:20 AM
So pulled over for the first time...	Hugoneus	Nissan 370Z General Discussions	28	12-21-2010 02:30 PM
Pulled Over....	DooDooBrown	The Lounge (Off Topic)	30	10-14-2009 09:50 PM
pulled over by chp?	axio	Northern California Region	5	09-15-2009 02:17 AM
I just got pulled over...****!!	leepeen	Nissan 370Z General Discussions	35	06-13-2009 11:58 AM