Arrogant Cop

Discussion in 'Anything Goes' started by plasma, Sep 23, 2008.

  1. plasma

    plasma New Member

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    Hi everbody, I was just wondering what your police are like regarding motorcycles. I was out for a ride on Sunday with my wife (on two bikes) when we came to a police road block, this is in the area of North Wales which is a popular riding area, when I asked the cop why he had stopped me he arrogantly said because I am a police officer and I can, as you can imagine this got my back up and I had a really good go at him, he said he wanted to do a safety check, but in actual fact he did nothing, he just wanted to cause hassle to motorcyclists, by now there was about a dozen bikers all been stopped for no reason what ever. This local police force is led by a man who is a complete head case and hates motor bikes, some of the things he has done you would'nt believe, to give you an example, he published pictures of an accident showing a motorcyclist with his head parted from his body. I am all for the police stopping people breaking the law, but the hassle from his force is beyond a joke.

    Plasma
     
  2. gtcompscientist

    gtcompscientist New Member

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    The cops here in Atlanta are actually kinda divided when it comes to bikes, most just ignore them because they can't catch them anyway, and the others are always breaking up meets and such because there have been problems with biker gangs here.
     
  3. derstuka

    derstuka Lord of the Wankers Staff Member

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    Sounds like you should have got his badge number, and filed a complaint. Sometimes these things (increased MC enforcement) happens because of a batch of hooligans are tearing around, and frightening the folks that live around there. They go ripping past grandma and grandpa doing 120, scare the bejesus out of them, and get negative feedback because of it. In short, what you do, can affect us all (well, at least your fellow countrymen).
     
  4. masonv45

    masonv45 New Member

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    I believe an officer has to have probable cause to stop you.

    Of course, he could always make something up if he really wanted to.
     
  5. steven113

    steven113 New Member

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    I just moved back to pensacola Fl from tampa. The police here in the panhandle give no breaks to sportbikes however in tampa were very leiniant. The deciding difference that I can see is that the area here is much more full of sqiuds between the ages 18-40. The bottom line is the street is not a track and the law gets tired of dealing with jacka$$es. dont get me wrong, none of us own these bikes because they are slow or handle like crap but you have to pick your times to ride hard or ruin the image to the law for all of us
     
  6. KC-10 FE

    KC-10 FE New Member

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    In my neck of the woods, it really depends on the town in question. The cops in the actual town I live in are acceptable & I've never had a traffic related issue with them. I've had other issues with them but it had nothing to do with a motorcycle. The single only motorcycle issue I've had with my actual township was a case of mistaken identity.

    Two towns over, the cops will pull a bike over if you have mud on your riding boots. It's a matter of intimidation really. I've been pulled over by this township a few times & the cops simply try to intimidate you into accepting a ticket. That doesn't fly with me. I've met their officers in court twice & won both times.

    NJ State Police have a pretty bad reputation, but I really can't say I have any issues with them. Considering that most NJ high ways are more like raceways, they are only there to clean up wrecks.

    PA State Police on the other hand, are not very tolerant of sport bikes but seem to let HD get away with just about anything short of homicide. At a well known motorcycle hang out, I watched a state trooper witness a burnout contest between several HD's & they did nothing. Not 5 minutes later, the same car pulled over 4 sport bikes for speeding. Funny part is, the sport bikes were coasting down to a red light. Speeding my ass.

    KC-10 FE out...
    :plane: :usa2:
     
  7. VFRstar

    VFRstar New Member

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    I think their all pricks... :)


    True, but the poster resides across the pond. :) Different rules. In the US, a police officer can not hold a roadblock to perform a "saftey check" without a formal request submitted and signed by a judge, and yes, there must be probable cause to ask for the safety check. In Utah we used to perform them quite often, until someone sued for unlawful detainment and won. Now the only ones we do are DUI checks, and those are rare.
     
  8. Molsan

    Molsan New Member

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    Cops are like most people.
    They stereotype like most people.

    What do you see when you see a guy on gsxr 1000?
    no what if you had no clue about bikes and couln't tell a gsxr from a vfr.

    So you lump all sport bikes together and we do have a bad rep due to squids.

    I hate it because as a good safe rider people always role there eyes when they find out I ride a sport bike.
     
  9. Joey_Dude

    Joey_Dude Member

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    In north georgia it varies from city to city. Dahlonega and Dawsonville are the worst for motorcycles but then again a lot of squids go through those towns for the mountains.

    But generally in gwinnett county (suwanee, lawrenceville) the cops are pretty good.

    Basically, the cops are worse in proportion to the squid density. I can't say I blame them because for all they know almost all the bikers they deal with are the rossi wannabees scaring the old ladies.
     
  10. Marley Davidson

    Marley Davidson New Member

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    There are good and bad cops everywhere...as there are good and bad common people...here in Portugal they dont pull you over unless your bike isn't road legal, or if they are performing a stop operation (its directly translated from portuguese) to control licence and registration and alcohol...
    But probably I'm not the right person to answer because I've never had problems whit the law enforcement agents...

    Just one last thing, it seems that VFRWorld has a number of cops as users and owners of VFR, as you can see they are normal people or above normal (in the case of owning a VFR)...
     
  11. Vlad Impaler

    Vlad Impaler New Member

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    My run ins with the police have been a mixed bag. Latley, ahem, when I have removed my helmet showing graying hair age, and not giving anyone a line of crap, I have gotten breaks. Yes, two warnings last season for fairly ugly speeds. One was just outright fast on an empty county road (I was enjoying myself and didn't deny it) and the other quickly passing a Suburban whos driver flicked a cigarette butt out the window in my general direction just before a speed trap.
    Had I been my former young self, I might have conveyed some attitude and likely would have been on the wrong side of a fine.
    Worst experience was a campus cop a couple decades ago. Just an outright d!ck l!cker. Said I didn't stop for a stop sign when I know I did and then spent FOREVER looking over my bike for proper registration, parking pass, back and forth to the car etc. He finally laid off when another campus cop pulled up and started taking to him about what was going on. Guess he didn't want to look like the asshat he was in front of his peer.
    The fines I have actually paid......all deserved by the letter of the law. I used to bitch about those, but I'm smarter than that now.
     
  12. sussi

    sussi New Member

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    Report this to his superior... This officer has no right to do this.
     
  13. Lgn001

    Lgn001 Member

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    I know the feeling... it does seem to relieve some of the tension. What hair I have left is graying.

    It's funny. There have been times that younger officers have been just plain rude and condescending from the time that they started talking to the time that I pulled away. I can only hope that they are having a bad day, and that it is not representative of the person that they are most of the time. For the most part, older guys have been great. We agree that I was pulled over for violating whatever it was I was violating, chat a bit about whatever, do the required paperwork, and go our separate ways with no hard feelings.
     
  14. seattle86vf500f

    seattle86vf500f New Member

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    happened a couple years ago

    Hi all,

    I was coming back from elping a friend and it was about 11:30pm, very dark highway in the mountains. I had not realized that my tail light had gone out. Office noticed the light out, and followed me about 15 miles until the next town. He pulled me over just into the town, explained he noticed my light out and that he wanted to make sure i got to a safe spot before telling me. At this point he asked e for my lic. . I gave him my lic. and told him it was just re-instated and tat I had not gone down and got my new one yet. He went back to the car, and came back 15 mins later. He informed me that I didn't have a lic. , but it as no longer uspended....which is what he had though, and that if it had been he woud have taken my bike then and there. He asked me if I had an endorsement, and I told him no that i have never had one, he said fair enough i'll have to give you a ticket for that i said ok, I understand. He held a light for me as i found the caause of my light malfunction, and once fixed he said "I can see you have all the propper gear, and from following you you obvoiusly know how to handle a bike....take your bike raight home...and get your lic. fixed in the morning". I thanked him, shook his hand, and went on my way home. The next day i went and got my endorsement and paid to re-instate my lic. All in all, was a very pleasant stop. It occured to me that he knew all the answers to the questions he was asking, and if i had lied i would have been screwed, but was straight up with him and he was a pretty cool customer because of it and my attitude.



    Will R. Seattle, WA.
     
  15. 34468 Randy

    34468 Randy Secret Insider

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    Yes and retired ones are the worst. Lg. I think you were neglected as a child. You probably have difficulty with all person's in authority.

    Most provinces if not all in Canada the police have the authority to pull any vehicle over for the simple reason to determine if the driver has a valid driver's license. While I was assigned to freeway patrol duties I frequently set up on the freeway off ramps watching for seat belts which were a favorite tag for me. I likened seatbelt use to helmet use. But seatbelt usage is another thread. In the spring I guarantee that if a bike, regardless of style, came off the freeway, I waved it over. And regardless of hair colour, I checked the license for proper endorsements. Here, at that time, you could not drive a motorcycle of a scheduled highway, which all our freeways are, without a full endorsement. Learner's permits did not allow this. And in the spring, after people got their bikes out after a long winter, I was assured to find about 20% did not have full endorsements. Mostly because they could not be bothered to follow through with getting their full endorsements. So who is at fault here. But none the less, I dealt with everyone the same, and I can honestly say, it was always with respect towards the person. That included some HA's that I checked as well. And if it was a sport type bike, the check was usually a bit longer due to the fact that once business was taken care of, the conversation then focused on the bike. I always complimented the guys on their bikes...that is if the rider was not an argumentative ass. And this just about always led to the parting of ways to be more on an up note. And I think the rider was pretty much always very receptive to a cop showing that kind of interest in his pride and joy. Most got the ticket if the law was broken, some did not. My ticket to waring ratio was usually about 10% warnings.

    Now not all cops looked at things the same way I did. We were a representation of the mosaic of the society. Look around you on your street, at work, at church or where ever. How many assholes are around. You should expect to find a similar percentage in the local law enforcement world. I don't say that is what it should be but lets be realistic here.

    Joey, I am still watching for you. Oh shit, I'm retired now. That's too bad Joey.

    Yes folks. Randy's rant again.:soapbox:
     
  16. PUSkunk

    PUSkunk New Member

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    Except that instead of the same percentage of assholes as the general population, there are MORE assholes who are cops because they are attracted to the job.

    Oh, and I almost never speed. Seriously.
     
  17. Bubba Zanetti

    Bubba Zanetti Member

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  18. C111

    C111 New Member

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    WOW! Sounds like some of you guys really hate cops. I just wonder what your initial attitude is when encountering a law enforcement officer based on your obvious prejudice. I won't say that all cops are warm and fuzzy, but alot of it is simply a reflection of having to deal with jerks who assume we're all assholes. That's right, I'm a turd/asshole/whatever creative adjective to can conjur. You would probably hate me even more and assume I'm an even bigger jerk because I'm a narcotics detective. I have dealt with all types, and I am as nice to people as they allow me to be. I AM ALWAYS PROFESSIONAL. I also fall into the former military category, having served in the U.S. Marines from 89-93. Some cops are jerks and that is a fact, but most of us are doing a dangerous,thankless job for low pay and having to deal with morons like some of you on a regular basis. I try my best to treat everyone equally, but I do not tolerate idiocy and attitude well. I have stopped all kinds of motorcycles for various violations. If they were flying low on a sport bike and actually stopped for me, they usually leave with a warning and a thank you for stopping. I know my crown vic can't catch a sport bike, and showing at least a modicum of respect for the law and the offficer by stopping usually gets them off. I wonder what some of you have done to cause officers to treat you so badly. If you were breaking the law and got caught, man up and take what you get, don't run your mouth and tell me my radar doesn't work. If you are honest and not disrespectful you might not get a ticket.
    So to sum it up, some cops are assholes by nature, just like some motorists(you know who you are). Mutual respect goes a long way during a traffic stop.
    My rant has ended and you may return fire if you so desire.
    Ride safe(even the jerks)
     
    Last edited: Sep 24, 2008
  19. seattle86vf500f

    seattle86vf500f New Member

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    hey now...

    Ok, how many riders here hate being stereo typed as , idiots/assholes/speeders/reckless drivers/careless/accident causing/squidy motorcycle riders? Now the question is....how many of us actually are? Point is, like motorcycle riders , there are decent cops....and asshole cops.....and everywhere in between. Somewhere right now there is a cop posting about the asshole he had to deal with on a motorcycle today.... I agree with you C111 , when your civil with the officer...the stop goes well most of the time, then off we go on our own ways. I have had and voiced my disagreements with a couple officers in my time....but remained civil and settled it with a judge. On the road with the officer is not the place or way to do it. I would think the reason so many who are upset, thei anger leveel toward officers could be inversely proportional to the number of times they have gotten themselves into interactions with cops.


    Will R. Seattle, WA.
     
  20. Joey_Dude

    Joey_Dude Member

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    you poor guy, how about playing a little game?

    [​IMG]

    :lol:
     
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