Pulled Over By Police For Riding In The Road
05-08-09, 10:42 AM
#26
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There are ignorant cops everywhere. I had a similar experience just a few weeks ago with the Portland (Maine) PD for riding "too far to the left".
More info here: https://www.meetup.com/Portland-Bike-...thread/6690874
More info here: https://www.meetup.com/Portland-Bike-...thread/6690874
05-08-09, 10:00 PM
#27
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You can't just expect someone who is enforcing the law to, say.... I don't know, KNOW the laws which they are enforcing. Don't be ridiculous.
Last edited by MyWar; 05-08-09 at 10:03 PM.
05-09-09, 11:17 AM
#28
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Enigmaniac, I did have a light.
Pscyclepath, it is a parish ordinace that bikes are not allowed on the sidewalk. Here is a summary of the bike laws in NOLA: https://bike.tulane.edu/Laws_no.pdf
rwp, when I say 6 drinks I mean a 6 drink equivalent. I actually had 3 drinks but they were as strong as 6. The website provided says my probably BAC was .06.
jgrant75, you are right that drinking and driving is mostly overlooked here. This isn't because the cops are teddy bears, but rather because most of their time is spent dealing with violence, theft and drug related crime. Also enforcing drinking laws would hurt tourism. We in fact have drive-thru daquiri shops where it's not an open container until you put the straw in!
Daily Commute, as I've explained above, even if I had been tested, I wouldn't have had a high enough BAC to have been cited for anything. You are right that any amount of alcohol in a person's system is likely to make a cop ignore their arguments. (though this cop basically did that anyway because I was a cyclist) That does not mean that I forfeit my right to operate a vehicle safely and legally on the roadway, or to expect that a police officer know and uphold the law. If I am being descriminated against because of my vehicle choice by law enforcement, I will most definitely not stand by.
Pscyclepath, it is a parish ordinace that bikes are not allowed on the sidewalk. Here is a summary of the bike laws in NOLA: https://bike.tulane.edu/Laws_no.pdf
rwp, when I say 6 drinks I mean a 6 drink equivalent. I actually had 3 drinks but they were as strong as 6. The website provided says my probably BAC was .06.
jgrant75, you are right that drinking and driving is mostly overlooked here. This isn't because the cops are teddy bears, but rather because most of their time is spent dealing with violence, theft and drug related crime. Also enforcing drinking laws would hurt tourism. We in fact have drive-thru daquiri shops where it's not an open container until you put the straw in!
Daily Commute, as I've explained above, even if I had been tested, I wouldn't have had a high enough BAC to have been cited for anything. You are right that any amount of alcohol in a person's system is likely to make a cop ignore their arguments. (though this cop basically did that anyway because I was a cyclist) That does not mean that I forfeit my right to operate a vehicle safely and legally on the roadway, or to expect that a police officer know and uphold the law. If I am being descriminated against because of my vehicle choice by law enforcement, I will most definitely not stand by.
05-09-09, 01:47 PM
#29
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I love how those buzzing distances are always 6"
__________________
This is Africa, 1943. War spits out its violence overhead and the sandy graveyard swallows it up. Her name is King Nine, B-25, medium bomber, Twelfth Air Force. On a hot, still morning she took off from Tunisia to bomb the southern tip of Italy. An errant piece of flak tore a hole in a wing tank and, like a wounded bird, this is where she landed, not to return on this day, or any other day.
This is Africa, 1943. War spits out its violence overhead and the sandy graveyard swallows it up. Her name is King Nine, B-25, medium bomber, Twelfth Air Force. On a hot, still morning she took off from Tunisia to bomb the southern tip of Italy. An errant piece of flak tore a hole in a wing tank and, like a wounded bird, this is where she landed, not to return on this day, or any other day.
05-10-09, 04:27 PM
#30
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05-10-09, 06:57 PM
#31
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The plan is to have break-away rulers sticking out from my handlebars
Many years ago in college, a ride partner and I considered mounting yard sticks to our rear touring racks with a spring mount to prevent gtting spun or breaking the stick - and mounting a fat black sharpie to the end...
Instant racing stripes :-)
Many years ago in college, a ride partner and I considered mounting yard sticks to our rear touring racks with a spring mount to prevent gtting spun or breaking the stick - and mounting a fat black sharpie to the end...
Instant racing stripes :-)
05-10-09, 11:47 PM
#32
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^ok i never heard of the sharpie at the end!!! thats grrreat!
enthusiast: yeah, over here we have all that violence and crime but the cops are lazy so they just kinda harass the poor and protect the rich....yay lost angeles!
enthusiast: yeah, over here we have all that violence and crime but the cops are lazy so they just kinda harass the poor and protect the rich....yay lost angeles!
05-10-09, 11:54 PM
#33
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in regular life isn't knowing when to admit you are wrong a virtue? how can we look to them as heroes if they act like infallible monsters?
/rant
05-11-09, 05:24 AM
#34
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Here's the Louisiana statute.
.08 is automatic, but you can still be convicted with less than that or with no test. I didn't look much for lower offenses like driving while impaired. Maybe Louisiana doesn't have a ban on impaired driving, maybe I couldn't find it in the short time I had.
§98. Operating a vehicle while intoxicated
A.(1) The crime of operating a vehicle while intoxicated is the operating of any motor vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, vessel, or other means of conveyance when:
(a) The operator is under the influence of alcoholic beverages; or
(b) The operator's blood alcohol concentration is 0.08 percent or more by weight based on grams of alcohol per one hundred cubic centimeters of blood; or . . . .
A.(1) The crime of operating a vehicle while intoxicated is the operating of any motor vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, vessel, or other means of conveyance when:
(a) The operator is under the influence of alcoholic beverages; or
(b) The operator's blood alcohol concentration is 0.08 percent or more by weight based on grams of alcohol per one hundred cubic centimeters of blood; or . . . .
05-11-09, 02:03 PM
#35
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I have had a couple of such situations with leo's.
One morning I played tag and dodge the SUV, slapped a passenger mirror to get by and then got assaulted by the passenger (attempted assault, threat caught on tape) all while getting to work. They called the leo's who asked questions, said that they weren't going to do anything and to "be careful out there."
About 14 years ago I was riding, at night, lit up (my bike more than me), the leo wrote 2 pages of lies about falling into a ditch (20' off the road), cars having to swerve to avoid my erratic travel (leo only car I'd seen since hitting that road). I was arrested for dissorderly intox (and a few other things too), the prosecuter wanted to add DUI, and the judge said no, too late.
I no longer drink out of the house, and thusly there is little chance of cycling after drinking. And when I'm commuting, I usually carry this https://www.floridabicycle.org/resour...7-31-08web.pdf around, maybe I'll get to correct someone in the future.
One morning I played tag and dodge the SUV, slapped a passenger mirror to get by and then got assaulted by the passenger (attempted assault, threat caught on tape) all while getting to work. They called the leo's who asked questions, said that they weren't going to do anything and to "be careful out there."
About 14 years ago I was riding, at night, lit up (my bike more than me), the leo wrote 2 pages of lies about falling into a ditch (20' off the road), cars having to swerve to avoid my erratic travel (leo only car I'd seen since hitting that road). I was arrested for dissorderly intox (and a few other things too), the prosecuter wanted to add DUI, and the judge said no, too late.
I no longer drink out of the house, and thusly there is little chance of cycling after drinking. And when I'm commuting, I usually carry this https://www.floridabicycle.org/resour...7-31-08web.pdf around, maybe I'll get to correct someone in the future.
05-12-09, 05:17 AM
#36
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If I have even one beer after work, I put the bike on the front of the bus and and let the bus driver take me home. If that's not an option, I just don't drink at all. Cycling isn't rocket science, but you do need your wits. I don't want to be in the position of having to convince a cop, judge or jury that I wasn't too impaired to be on the road.
05-12-09, 07:13 AM
#37
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If I have even one beer after work, I put the bike on the front of the bus and and let the bus driver take me home. If that's not an option, I just don't drink at all. Cycling isn't rocket science, but you do need your wits. I don't want to be in the position of having to convince a cop, judge or jury that I wasn't too impaired to be on the road.
05-12-09, 09:53 AM
#38
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Even if that's legal in your jurisdiction, it may not be safer.
https://www.vcbike.org/bikelaw/bikelaw.htm#_ednref29
Where I ride, there usually isn't a sidewalk, but even where there is one, the law says a bike can't use it.
Kevin
https://www.vcbike.org/bikelaw/bikelaw.htm#_ednref29
Where I ride, there usually isn't a sidewalk, but even where there is one, the law says a bike can't use it.
Kevin
Last edited by Kevrob; 05-12-09 at 09:54 AM. Reason: edited link
05-12-09, 11:55 AM
#39
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05-12-09, 12:02 PM
#40
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If I have even one beer after work, I put the bike on the front of the bus and and let the bus driver take me home. If that's not an option, I just don't drink at all. Cycling isn't rocket science, but you do need your wits. I don't want to be in the position of having to convince a cop, judge or jury that I wasn't too impaired to be on the road.
I get that in a court of law a judge could decide that I was under the influence. Sadly, the reasoning would have been that no sober person would stand up to a cop. Maybe it's just this city, but that's a ridiculously small chance that I'm willing to take. And in terms of safety, well, I answered that earlier in the thread.
05-12-09, 12:29 PM
#41
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The plan is to have break-away rulers sticking out from my handlebars
Many years ago in college, a ride partner and I considered mounting yard sticks to our rear touring racks with a spring mount to prevent gtting spun or breaking the stick - and mounting a fat black sharpie to the end...
Instant racing stripes :-)
Many years ago in college, a ride partner and I considered mounting yard sticks to our rear touring racks with a spring mount to prevent gtting spun or breaking the stick - and mounting a fat black sharpie to the end...
Instant racing stripes :-)
But a SHARPIE? Why not make it interesting:
05-12-09, 03:55 PM
#42
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All this discussion of Louisiana cycling law and I just found the thread. I should visit A&S more often. I am a Louisiana Lawyer and regularly research cycling laws for local advocacy. In State v. Carr, 761 So.2d 1271 (LA, 2000) our Supreme Court actually held you cannot get a DWI for riding a bicycle. Also, there's no lesser offense of impaired driving here. Public intoxication is the closest thing.
05-12-09, 09:13 PM
#44
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Mauriceloridans,
I stand corrected on Louisiana law. I stick by my point that if you know you have to ride to get someplace, you shouldn't have anything to drink. Period.
I stand corrected on Louisiana law. I stick by my point that if you know you have to ride to get someplace, you shouldn't have anything to drink. Period.
