I wonder if there is a State Trooper Enthusiasts message board ("STE" perhaps) somewheres, with Trooper So-and-so complaining about triplethreat?

 

I gotta admit, you made me laugh with that one.

 

Not here in Maryland. If you stayed to the right, you'd get nowhere.
Bumper to bumper. . . going into and out of Washington, DC. TERRIBLE.
Five mile back-ups are NOT unusual. Fridays, even worse! Especially Rte. 50, heading East, toward Ocean City, in the summer months!!!!

Back to the cops and tailgating. . . a good majority of police near my location have "The Wyatt Earp Syndrome." (Hey, I AM the Law. If you don't like it, leave town) frame of mind.

As for the complaints to the depts. . . Retalliation is illegal.
When I filed the complaint, I made it clear that I was pro-police, but, I won't tolerate either my wife or my kids, or me, being harassed by the State Police because I filed the complaint.
(I was 'assured' that I wouldn't receive retalliation.)

Oh well. . . . keep an eye turned toward the rear-view mirror. Paranoid. . . NO. Cautious. . . yes.

Police work-- 90% boredom. . . 5% excitement. . .2-1/2% adrenalin. . . 2-1/2% sheer terror.

 

i would rather have a officer or a big rig driver tail gating due to their training,and driving schools, for the tail gating ricer's i use a bumper sticker that states driver chews tabaco , most stay far to the left or back.

 

the reason is they are running your plate number. i believe some one mentioned it before but this is the reason. they run your number to see if you have warrants out, and to see if your registration is valid

 

I would say he got on your butt to check your plates...

One time I was driving in the left lane goin' faster than everyone else until I realised there was a cop ahead (traveling too), so I slowed down and moved to the right to sort of blend in. He moved over to the right some more, slowed down, then moved to the left behind me (somewhat casually). He followed me for a little bit (probably ran my plates). I ditched the highway and got off, he followed me, but after the off ramp I went north (knowing he wouldn't want to go north if he didn't have to), he went south and didn't follow.

Sometimes cops have to do stuff like that....so I don't blame him for tailgating you for a little bit, if the road is clear ahead there is no reason for you to slam on your brakes so he would be safe in tailgating you for a little bit. He was probably just trying to get the plate #.

I will admit I'm an aggressive driver, I don't drive recklessly, I drive with common sense and just am not super cautious cuz I don't need to be. Some people drive overcautiously...they drive like they have a cup of coffee on their dashboard and any sudden movements will spill it. I take hard turns, I accelerate hard sometimes...i freakin' drive like people should, with a little pep.

Some people just don't care about others around them, they just care about themselves getting from point A to point B without concern of other drivers. If someone is tailgating you, GET OUT OF THE WAY! They are probably tailgating you because you're probably going too slow. (this is not directed at any sole person here, just in general). Slowing down doesn't help the situation, just pull over if you have to, otherwise, go with the flow and speed up.

I will tailgate if the person infront of me is going too slow, and I try to be reasonable in doing so. IMO you should be driving 5 mph over the speed limit (I usually drive 10+, or whatever I feel comfortable at), if you're driving at the speed limit, you're alright but damn speed up I aint got all day....I've seen way too many people going 30 in a 40.

I love driving, but I hate driving around other people. My biggest peeves are...

Going too slow

Driving in the left lane and not moving out of my way if I'm trying to go faster than you

improper yielding (ya it doesn't mean stop, but it also doesn't mean go anytime you want)

Going too slow

People who come to a stop sign to a main street, and then pull 1/2 way out to cut someone off when they've only waited about 2 seconds (I don't mind if it's been awhile but give it a chance people)

Going too slow

End of rant.

 

How long does it take to call in a plate number last i herd it only took about ten seconds at most (had one run my plate as I was standing right beside him). After he called it in he should've backed off until dispatch responds, to just sit there for a long period of time is a dangerous situation "waiting to find out if there's warrents" is not a justified reason by any standard

Also, the last time I prepaired for a turn I was quite a ways away from that turn, you get those idiots that'll run right along side wheather you slow or you go making it impossible to get into the lane you actually need

As for the retaliation I've had it happen, i used to drive my moms 94 Jeep, the cop stopped me for drag racing (in rush hour) I was avoiding a van that had just pulled in front of me, anyway I gave him my military ID instead of my license and he knew my mom and her car that I was driving (she got a 00' V8 X) they'd been in the same unit of the National Guard and this unit had a thing against ladies, anyway he told me he saw me D.Racing when he was writing another ticket, those are his exact words, it took him about a half mile to catch up to me befor he stopped me.

I went to fight it and it cost me about a grand, come to find out he never even filed a reoprt or even turned the ticket into the county, I was a little on the mad side. So I know how cops can be jurks.

 

Well as far as using the left lane for cruising in on the interstate - I do it all the time.
When I do I'm going about 5 MPH over the speed limit. Traffic on I-75 in most states is 70 MPH and I will only typically use the passing lane for cruising if I'm going about 5 MPH over the speed limit. In areas where the road uses 3 lanes in the same direction I will sometimes use the middle lane to cruise if it's moving at a good pace (70 MPH). The lane most to the right in either case is usually filled with too many people who like cruising a good 5 - 15 MPH BELOW the speed limit. I havent got the patience for this on a long run.

The way I figure it is - if I'm blocking the passing lane and backing up traffic because I'm cruising below the speed limit - you got good cause to gripe. But if I'm going 5-6 MPH OVER the limit, and your only frustration is not being able to pass me at 80 MPH - your problem. I should'int have to sit behind 55-60 MPH traffic just because you want to break the limit by 10-15 MPH.

Occasionally when I see a good stretch of clear highway in the right lane where my 75 MPH speed won't be hindered by slower traffic - I'll move over for the speed demons.
Then usually all the fast and furious have passed me by the time I start coming up to slower moving cars in the right lane again - now I switch back. Beauty in this;

1.) I'm almost always a minimum of 12 car lengths behind any other vehicle.(even doing 75-76 MPH) - plenty of reaction time.

2.) I'm able to move at a good pace consistently and even though I'm going over the limit most police officers arent going to begrudge you 5 MPH (though they would certainly be within their rights if they did pull me over)

3.) I may be using the passing lane for cruising, but it's kinda tough for anyone who may hit me in the rear to argue against my logic. Example someone says "You->(me) blocked off the passing lane, causing me to tailgate you. You were preventing me
from breaking the speed limit by a wider margin than you already were."

Keep in mind also that while I may be blocking the passing lane - I'm also passing a huge packs of slower moving traffic. Sometimes theres a 200 ft gap between these packs - that's not enough to allow me to move over for the speed demons. I'd end up stuck doing ridiculously slow speeds till whenever the long line of Mario Andredes runs out.

4.) I'm usually at the front of a line of traffic - all but the most zealous highway trooper is'int going to bother fighting his way through all that just to write me up for 5 MPH. I'ts usually the guy at the end of a pack of speeding cars doing 80+ MPH in a 70 MPH zone who takes the first ticket.

 

i was going down 77 a few months ago and a trooper passed ,y at about 100 . no lights siren or anything. i called star hp and told em about it. who knows of anything was done about it.

 

I see cops pull all sorts of BS in my town, and don't give me that "thy're on the way to a crime, what if it was your sister blah blah blah'... theres a dunkin donuts between the lanes of a highway that cops go to all the time, and then, so they don't have to go down to the jug handle, they leave the dunkin donuts, they cross the highway to a place that has another exit next to it on a side street so the can go back to the station. that side street also has a divider for the last 100 feet before it meets the highway, and the cops go up it, the wrong way, all the freakin time, i see them almost come head on with unsuspecting motorists a few times. I'd report it but its all the way across the highway, and can't see who it is. And if a cops wants to get around you, he'll flash his lights, they do it all the time here. That reminds me, next time one tailgates me for a long time, I might brake check him.
And another thing i can't stand is when family members of cops get out a tickets, thats such BS. A guy of my high school football team had a father who was a cop, and i've ridden with him a few times and gotten pulled over, and when the cops see's he's a cop's son, "oh sorry sir, have a nice day", and if it was me, I'd be gettin a ticket and 4 points on my license. And I can't count the number of times i've been pulled over and stopped for 20 minutes for nothing, have 3 ccars show up and shine the lights through my windows cause they're 'just lookin'.... freakin BS, I have no respect for cops and the 'traffic court system' because of these types of things. Sure, some cops are great Johnny Do Goods, but some a just as bad as the crimals they arrest.

 

yeah i know what ya mean. i was on my way to the beach this summer and i was pulled for speeding in a 45. on my return from the trip i went though the same area. guess what there isnt a 45mph zone where i was pulled or even before that. man i was ticked

 

But I'm that brave.

I don't care who you are. If you're on my bumper and STAYING there, you're either going to be cruising at 35mph when I get ticked, or brake checked. It's painful for my eyes at night, horribly painful. I hate driving at night because of the jokers who don't turn of brights when coming up on, or going by the other way. My eyes just don't like the surface of the sun coming at them, you know. One reason I plan on having a pair of 130 watt lights front AND rear.

And if a cop wants to tailgate me, I'm not going to back down. They're just a 2 year or (sometimes) 4 year program like I'm going through. I don't know, I just find police to be pathetic at times.

 

I agree the cop was harrassing. I also agree tailgating is wrong - like I said earlier, I can live with most of their "perks" without a gripe. Tailgating like it has been described here in NOT one of them. This said, I'd simply tolerate it as best I could and forget it. i'm in a bit of an intellectual mood right now so indulge me if you will - and just a bit...lol.

Confrontation with a police officer is not smart. I also do not agree with alot of things I have seen many of them do. Most of these things are small issues you'd never think twice about if someone else did them, but since a cop does, you suddenly remember it. They are held to higher countability - but not usually made to realise consequences of actions by their political overseers.

It's peoples perceptions which make the actions of some police officers seem so much more deplorable than if the same actions were commited by private citizens. I've noticed I'm affected by this perception as well. I've known
many people who've cheated on their spouses - and while I feel it's wrong, I don't become personally offended by other peoples choices. Then I met a
cop who I later found out regularly cheats on his wife and kids - in my eyes he was total garbage, inspite of how much good he may do everyday.
I simply expected more from him being a police officer.

This just shows that police are people too. No better and no worse than the rest of us for the most part. We should not expect perfection from them.
Just expect them to do their jobs as well as they can. Perception is key to all of it. I no longer personally hold the police to a higher standard than the rest of us. By the same token I don't assume they are perfect or always right simply because of the authority they hold either. I simply respect the authority of the government they serve - though I may not always agree
with it myself.

The main thing to remember is the protect and serve slogan. Police do serve society, but above this they also serve something called "status quo". Every society has had a status quo of some sort - it goes all the way back to the governments of ancient times. Those most interested in preserving the
status quo are those who have the most reason to be satisfied with it.

This has always been true of every civilisation. This is the main reason why direct confrontation with police (even if you are right) is a losing bid.
You would need the support of the patricians to prevail, and since the police are in the services of those who are in authority - they are not going to undermine their own means of enforcing that authority - you lose. This is not in itself good or bad - it has always been and will always be - it's simply inevitable.

Do not force yourself at odds with authority over a bad apple who likes abusing what little power he has - at least not over an issue like tailgating.

This said there does come a point when a man must simply protect his rights.
He must do whats right even if it may cost him his freedom. I have an example of this.

A very close friend of mine and his wife were pulled over one night by a county cop a few years ago. Making a long story short, the officer ordered both of them out of their car and hands on the hood. For whatever reason he began assaulting my friend. Not hard punches or anything, but being insulting-yelling and slapping him. When his wife protested she was slapped as well. My buddy is ex golden gloves - he knocked the officer out with a single punch (said he barely tapped him).

At this point 3 more cars immediately arrived on the scene with lights and sirens blaring. My bud thought he was in for a good beating. Turned out this officer was under investigation for police brutality and they had seen everything. The lead investigator allowed them to go home, and no charges were filed. He still has the letter of apology he recieved from the sherriff's department for the whole affair. But he got lucky.

Keep in mind - this was a one in a million situation. If the investigators had not seen everything for themselves, my bud would probably be doing some serious time right now. I don't believe a judge or jury would take his word over that of the arresting officer in a situation like this - and assault on a police officer is the same as assault on the authority of those he is sworn
to serve. It is not taken lightly. This said, sometimes you are forced to
make a stand that you'd rather not. Tailgating is'int one of them IMO.

That night my buddy met one really bad cop. He also met several upstanding police officers. Don't resent their authority - what little they actually have simply comes with their job. Their just people serving a system that is both good and bad at the same time. Yes there are plenty of bad cops - but they are the ones who were jerks before joining the police - not because of joining. Good luck guys.

 

That's something I can't argue with, although somebody will.

I'd say your friend got lucky, I guess I never thought about cops in that manner they're no different than us we as a sociaty expect it.

Did you head hurt after you got done that

 

The law says slower traffic stay right....simple as that....

If ya don't move, you're disobeying the law as well....

It's one thing if you're in the passing lane on the hwy going 70 and passing the other people in the other lanes....thats fine with me....as long as you're passing people. If you're driving the same speed as everyone else in the other lanes while in the passing lane...then you need to move over.

If you're in the passing lane, you should be passing people...if not...ya gotta move over it's not a cruising lane.

I'm observant...if I see someone coming up behind me on the hwy, I'll even move over before they get to me so I don't interupt their "flow" or movement...