Jump to content
IGNORED

What are cops for - public safety, or tax collection


beagle

Recommended Posts

Interesting seeing that in Michigan we have changed the work zone enforcement to only occur when workers are present and unprotected. If a jersey wall seperates them from traffic or guardrails they aren't reducing the speed limit to 45 mph.

Link to comment
GoGo Gadget
Write down his tag, car number, location and identify the driver and yes YOU CAN write him a ticket. Go to the local PD where it happened and they will explain how to do it.

 

Maybe in NJ, in VA, LEO and various other occupations are exempt.

Link to comment
blitzkreig

Here in Calgary it is all about the money. There is an inherent conflict of interest as the fines end up as gravy in the Police Department budget.

 

All officers but those in Homicide (and perhaps a few other exceptions) have a ticket "quota". Yes the "desk jockey" has a ticket quota. So you have the odd phenomena of the inexperienced (in traffic enforcement) police person running out in traffic to hail down some minor offender at the end of the month as they are behind their "quota".

 

It's scary out there as some nitwit (but well meaning) big belly (nearing retirement) jumps off the curb and points to someone in 3 or 4 lane traffic. The cars all swerve and hammer on their brakes in response to trying to figure out if it is them which have been "fingered".

 

Who ever drempt this turkey policy up hates motorcycles as the cars when swerving out of the way do so without a lot of notice whether or not they are cutting the guy on the bike off his lane ...

 

dopeslap.gif

Link to comment
blitzkreig

Actually, drunk driving in the area is a problem. Normally these stops are publicized in advance on TV, radio, and newspaper. Obviously the word got out to the alcohol abusing folks. Makes one wonder why anyone is caught.

We have a problem of drunk off duty cops. Recently there have been a couple multi-death car accidents when it turns out that the cause was some drunk off duty cop returning from some police BBQ or something.

 

One (which killed a young couple and the officer in question) had this jerk driving the wrong way down a divided 4 lane highway.

 

The host of this police social event should have been jailed for allowing the turd to drive.

Link to comment

I read somewhere about this doctor who operated on the wrong part of someone and caused serious injury, and this prosecutor who improperly prosecuted his case and nearly wrecked people's lives and an airline pilot who nearly few a plane full of people drunk!

 

My vague point is the officer(s) who kill people because they drive drunk should go to jail. Other officer's who help them should go to jail. The ones who actually do these sorts of things compared the whole a few.

 

Please watch that brush those broad strokes are getting paint everywhere.

Link to comment

The ones who actually do these sorts of things compared to the whole are few.

 

Sorry, I was drunk when I typed it the first time. wink.gif

Link to comment
GoGo Gadget
Please watch that brush those broad strokes are getting paint everywhere.

 

Brush? Most cop bashers prefer a sprayer, you get more coverage that way.

Link to comment
steve.foote
Please watch that brush those broad strokes are getting paint everywhere.

 

Brush? Most cop bashers prefer a sprayer, you get more coverage that way.

 

Cop bashers? confused.gif I think you're mistaking the point most of the participants here are making as personal attacks against you. These threads have all been about the role of revenue collection vs. punishment, and, in my opinion, the MISUSE of law enforcement to accomplish it.

 

I would think you guys would be even more angry about this then we are.

Link to comment
The host of this police social event should have been jailed for allowing the turd to drive

You should have been jailed for allowing the police social event to happen at all (or for that matter, allowing alcohol to be consumed at all!). You bear just as much responsibility as the host of the event.

 

After all, we all know it couldn't possibly be the responsibility of the person getting drunk to not drive.

 

 

R.I.P.

personal responsibility

bncry.gif

Link to comment
GoGo Gadget
Please watch that brush those broad strokes are getting paint everywhere.

 

Brush? Most cop bashers prefer a sprayer, you get more coverage that way.

 

Cop bashers? confused.gif I think you're mistaking the point most of the participants here are making as personal attacks against you. These threads have all been about the role of revenue collection vs. punishment, and, in my opinion, the MISUSE of law enforcement to accomplish it.

 

I would think you guys would be even more angry about this then we are.

 

Nope, I am not taking anything personal. As far as Cop Bashers, I was mostly refering to the broad brush comment and stating that cop bashers are worse than that. Similar to the "I heard about a cop who got drunk" post, insinuating that all cops are drunken miscreants who brake the law they are sworn to uphold.

Link to comment

I have no problem with the spirited debate regarding public safety or revenue collection, but pointing out a few tragic events caused by cops vs. the thousands and thousands of cops seems a little off topic.

 

I'm trying to make the connection between the drunk driving cops killing people vs. getting tickets for revenue collection?

Link to comment
messenger13

I think cops should be broken up into two distinctly different groups. A) Policemen and women (the REAL LEOs) and B) Ticket Writers.

 

Let's face it. Ticket Writers aren't making the roads safer for anybody! They're simply tax collectors.

 

I have the utmost respect for LEOs. But for Ticket Writers?...gimme a break!

Link to comment

Normally dont respond to posts like this, but food for thought. Every state and jurisdiction has its own laws as far as if the local PD's get any money from traffic enforcement. I know in my city the money goes into the general fund, the PD does not get it and the amount is minute. A cop that issues tickets and has not discovered other crimes is not looking. From traffic stops an enormous amount can be done. I have taken drugs and guns off of the street due to stops for simple violations. I have discovered freshly stolen vehicles and had them secure before the owner even knew it was gone. Burglars have been caught and stolen property returned. Most importantly, the guy I stopped for running a red light that was on his way to his estranged wife's house to kill her, gun with silencer between the seats. So do I value traffic stops. Yes. Do good cops make stops? Yes they do. And do stops make people safer? Next time you see a speeder or someone that runs a red, think about how you would feel if your family had been hit by that person. I dont care what my governing body does with the money. I was hired to enforce the law and that is what I do. And do I have a quota. No. I get to write as many as I want.

Link to comment
steve.foote

I dont care what my governing body does with the money.

 

I do. And, that's the point.

Link to comment

And that's why I try to refrain from these discussions. Take a small quote out of a larger paragraph and the point is lost. I do care what the government does with my money. The point is, traffic stops have a value to keeping people safe.

Link to comment
I think cops should be broken up into two distinctly different groups. A) Policemen and women (the REAL LEOs) and B) Ticket Writers.

 

Let's face it. Ticket Writers aren't making the roads safer for anybody! They're simply tax collectors.

 

I have the utmost respect for LEOs. But for Ticket Writers?...gimme a break!

 

If you want to see what society looks like without the dreaded Ticket Writers, take a trip to Mexico City. I have a feeling that after you see what a world with no Ticket Writers looks like, you'd change your tune. Or at least after you get plowed into the ground by the little guy with no license, driving the big P.O.S. 1979 GMC pickup truck... eek.gif

 

P.S. insurance??? Bwaa-ha-ha-ha...

Link to comment
Here in Calgary it is all about the money. There is an inherent conflict of interest as the fines end up as gravy in the Police Department budget.

 

All officers but those in Homicide (and perhaps a few other exceptions) have a ticket "quota". Yes the "desk jockey" has a ticket quota. So you have the odd phenomena of the inexperienced (in traffic enforcement) police person running out in traffic to hail down some minor offender at the end of the month as they are behind their "quota".

 

It's scary out there as some nitwit (but well meaning) big belly (nearing retirement) jumps off the curb and points to someone in 3 or 4 lane traffic. The cars all swerve and hammer on their brakes in response to trying to figure out if it is them which have been "fingered".

 

Who ever drempt this turkey policy up hates motorcycles as the cars when swerving out of the way do so without a lot of notice whether or not they are cutting the guy on the bike off his lane ...

 

dopeslap.gif

 

 

I think that you need to check your facts before you post. In Calgary traffic tickets are issued under the Alberta Highway Traffic Act. It is a provincial act and all fines levied go to the provincial treasury not the City. As per the Quota issue again you are mistaken. All officers do not have a quota! The traffic section is the only section of the Calgary Police service who's prime responsability is traffic enforcment. They also deal with the fatal accidents. THey are also the only section to ride motors.

 

As for the officer that was involved in the head on collision that happened to occur over seven years ago, (June 1999) so please get your facts straight before you type a post and if you are not going to be accurate in your posts then don't post. And NO I am not an LEO.

 

 

regards

 

Ken

Link to comment
... so please get your facts straight before you type a post and if you are not going to be accurate in your posts then don't post. And NO I am not an LEO.

regards

Ken

But Ken, if people actually got their facts straight then how could these "urban legends" survive? lmao.giflmao.giflmao.gif
Link to comment

A lot of you are reading this all wrong. I don't give a fig about the tickets, write as many as you please. My beef is with the cherry picking aspect of it. Go for the easy speeding stuff while you chat on a cell phone and sip a coffee. Meanwhile, some a--hole is tailgating a bike, changing lanes with out a signal, or off in la la land behind the wheel. I don't know where the money from the ticket goes, but I do know the court gets a big slice of court costs when the ticket is lowered or dropped. I have several friends who are cops. The more I talk to them, the more I'm glad someone will do the job. It's thankless. And while there are some bad cops, there are bad everythings in life. I haven't had a ticket in years, but the next time I get one, I won't bitch, I deserve it. Like I've said over and over - enforce all the laws. I'd bet the world would be a better place for bikers if they did.

Link to comment
GoGo Gadget
A lot of you are reading this all wrong. I don't give a fig about the tickets, write as many as you please. My beef is with the cherry picking aspect of it. Go for the easy speeding stuff while you chat on a cell phone and sip a coffee. Meanwhile, some a--hole is tailgating a bike, changing lanes with out a signal, or off in la la land behind the wheel.

 

 

We go for what we see. We see a ton of speeders, not too many people are tailgating and riving like an ass when next to a marked cruiser.

 

A few weeks ago, I saw a guy on an R12RT riding a bit like an ass. I sped up to get next to him to give him the slow down wave. As I got next to him, a car that had been on the shoulder with flashers on, pulled into 60mph+ traffic at about 25mph. The RT made an emergency maneuver to avoid the collision. Tard boy in the cage has a court date, and might go to jail since he nearly killed someone.

 

We write what we see.

Link to comment

off the top of my head numbers:

 

425 speeding tickets issued last year, of a total of nearly 7,000 tickets.

 

I don't understand why people believe speeding is the primary ticket issued?

Link to comment
... so please get your facts straight before you type a post and if you are not going to be accurate in your posts then don't post. And NO I am not an LEO.

regards

Ken

But Ken, if people actually got their facts straight then how could these "urban legends" survive? lmao.giflmao.giflmao.gif

 

 

of course! how silly of me to forget that lmao.gif

never let the facts stand in the way of a good urban legend.

 

Ken

Link to comment
blitzkreig

 

I think that you need to check your facts before you post. In Calgary traffic tickets are issued under the Alberta Highway Traffic Act. It is a provincial act and all fines levied go to the provincial treasury not the City. As per the Quota issue again you are mistaken. All officers do not have a quota!

 

They don't ... ? It is the worst kept secret in all of Cowtown.

 

The City gets the fine money. The Police are then given it. You don't follow city politics very closely do you ... ?

 

Even the department has been told to up the revenue by a million over last year ... and who has upped the budget ... ? The city.

 

http://www.canada.com/calgary/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=0d58b5a1-2d80-42c7-b5a1-9efdd4e077e2

 

What made you think that the city doesn't get the fines? The city isn't doing this for revenue for Stelmack ! ... lmao.gif

 

As for the officer that was involved in the head on collision that happened to occur over seven years ago, (June 1999) so please get your facts straight before you type a post and if you are not going to be accurate in your posts then don't post. And NO I am not an LEO.

 

You must not get out much.

 

The police party scene here still happens ... Here is one rousted for sleeping drunk in his car while still in possession of the keys.

 

http://www.canada.com/calgary/calgaryher...1f1&k=19143

 

 

 

Off only on the basis of a generous judge because if it were a citizen ... there would have been no such leniency shown. tongue.gif

 

That is only a few weeks ago. Fresh enough for you ... ?

 

.

Link to comment

"Off only on the basis of a generous judge because if it were a citizen ... there would have been no such leniency shown."

 

I cannot speak for Canada, but I went to trial on two cases just like this and LOST both of them because the attorney was able to convince the Judge the "occupant" of the car was sleeping it off or had no intentions of driving. My case had the person sitting behind the wheel, engine running. In addition the "occupant/driver" may try and establish they drank AFTER they pulled to the shoulder.

 

These are not new defenses. I have been confronting them for years. Sometimes they work, sometimes they do not. I don't think the decision was based on the driver's occupation, but then again I wasn't there.

 

An experienced police/traffic officer will be able to negate these defenses right out of the box if they've been down this road before.

 

To prove the DWI you have to have:

 

1. Operation (this was probably the problem w/the case you cited)

2. Impairment

3. Impairment due to alcohol and, or drugs

Link to comment

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...