Advocacy & Safety - Pedestrian Rights

Interesting story today...I was walking down the sidewalk, and saw a car doing at least 50-60mph+ in a 30mph zone...I grabbed my 3W LED flashlight out of my holster and shined the beam at the driver. The driver slowed down, executed an illegal U-turn across a double double yellow line, and pulled left into a driveway right in front of me and stopped. The driver happened to be a police officer. He asked me why I shined my flashlight at him. I told him he was driving too fast and he needed to slow down (he was not running code 3 and didn't have any flashing lights/siren running). He asked me what I would think if he was responding to an important call? I said if you were responding to an important call why did you pull a U-turn and talk to me? He looked at me with a dumbass look and didn't say anything. I asked if he was detaining me and if I was free to go, he said no so I continued walking north on the sidewalk.

Interesting situation...definitely a stupid move on the cops part though, heh. BTW I was pretty drunk...I'd had about 84 ozs of beer and 4 white russians at that point, but I was walking and there's no legal limit on how much you can drink and walk. I was walking straight and just heading towards my house. No drinking and driving for me anymore...if I'm drinking I'm walking home or getting a sober ride :).

I think it's a bad idea to intentionally distract motorists who are traveling faster than they ought to.

And no, a police officer doesn't need his lights on to justify traveling at a higher speed.


I said if you were responding to an important call why did you pull a U-turn and talk to me? He looked at me with a dumbass look and didn't say anything.

That's a non-sequitur. You didn't know he was going to pull over before you shined your light at him. Maybe he looked at you with a "dumbass look" because you were drunk and being a dumbass!

Not certain what this has to do with pedestrian rights (also not certain why you posted this topic in a bike safety/advocacy forum). But I would agree that any citizen has the right to question the actions of a cop - just because they are in uniform and on duty doesn't mean they are above the law, and I agree that if he had been responding to a call, lights or not lights, he would not have bothered with you. He's probably pretty ticked that some 'normal' person had the audacity to call him on his illegal operation.

As for your sobriety, there are laws that allow you to be arrested for public intoxication, however, they would likely only be invoked if, while under the influence, you posed some sort of danger to yourself or nuisance to others in public.

I can't imagine a cop arresting you if you are making steady progress down the sidewalk on foot.

Caruso



Interesting story today...I was walking down the sidewalk, and saw a car doing at least 50-60mph+ in a 30mph zone...I grabbed my 3W LED flashlight out of my holster and shined the beam at the driver. The driver slowed down, executed an illegal U-turn across a double double yellow line, and pulled left into a driveway right in front of me and stopped. The driver happened to be a police officer. He asked me why I shined my flashlight at him. I told him he was driving too fast and he needed to slow down (he was not running code 3 and didn't have any flashing lights/siren running). He asked me what I would think if he was responding to an important call? I said if you were responding to an important call why did you pull a U-turn and talk to me? He looked at me with a dumbass look and didn't say anything. I asked if he was detaining me and if I was free to go, he said no so I continued walking north on the sidewalk.

Interesting situation...definitely a stupid move on the cops part though, heh. BTW I was pretty drunk...I'd had about 84 ozs of beer and 4 white russians at that point, but I was walking and there's no legal limit on how much you can drink and walk. I was walking straight and just heading towards my house. No drinking and driving for me anymore...if I'm drinking I'm walking home or getting a sober ride :).

I think it's a bad idea to intentionally distract motorists who are traveling faster than they ought to.

And no, a police officer doesn't need his lights on to justify traveling at a higher speed.



That's a non-sequitur. You didn't know he was going to pull over before you shined your light at him. Maybe he looked at you with a "dumbass look" because you were drunk and being a dumbass!
really cause i dont think that should ever be the case

http://www.topix.com/forum/chicago/TQI9P5PMHULRFKI21

The California Penal Code 647 f statute reads:

“Every person who commits any of the following acts is guilty of disorderly conduct, a misdemeanor…Who is found in any public place under the influence of intoxicating liquor, any drug, controlled substance, toluene, or any combination of any intoxicating liquor, drug, controlled substance, or toluene, in a condition that he or she is unable to exercise care for his or her own safety or the safety of others, or by reason of his or her being under the influence of intoxicating liquor, any drug, controlled substance, toluene, or any combination of any intoxicating liquor, drug, or toluene, interferes with or obstructs or prevents the free use of any street, sidewalk, or other public way.”

Don't you have enough business of your own that you feel you have to handle the police's as well?

You were probably lucky it was a policeman that you flashed. Other folks might've given you more than just a 'dumbass look'.

Interesting story today...

[snip] ...I was pretty drunk...I'd had about 84 ozs of beer and 4 white russians at that point...[snip]

[snip] ...I was walking down the sidewalk, and saw a car doing at least 50-60mph+ in a 30mph zone...[snip]


The snipped highlights are mine, for clarity only and change none of the OP's words or facts.

I want to understand, you had an excessive amount of alcohol but were still able to evaluate a vehicle's speed, take corrective action against it, and out-debate the vehicle's operator? Was this in the dark as well? It sounds as if it may have been.

Fascinating and impressive.

Where/by what agency were you trained in independent speed estimation? A technique unaffected by impairment or environmental factors is one I would be interested in learning. Clearly if one can master that, there'd be little limit (vehicle operation, etc.) to activities one could safely perform, regardless of impairment level. This is breakthrough tacticool stuff.

hindsight:

I was walking down the road and saw a speeding vehicle coming torward me, I feared for my safety and used my little itty bitty flashlight here to let you know I was walking, boy am I glad to see your a police occifer.

You shined a light in a police officer's face. It's probably reasonable to expect him to stop. He would stop because: a) you might be signaling for help; b) you might be a troublemaker.

Once he determined that: a) you did not need help; b) you weren't making enough trouble to bother about, he let you go. Did he also suggest that you not shine lights in people's eyes?

It sounds to me like the officer was acting reasonably.

If you believe an officer to be speeding, there are better and more responsible ways to deal with that problem.

Interesting story today...I was walking down the sidewalk, and saw a car doing at least 50-60mph+ in a 30mph zone...I grabbed my 3W LED flashlight out of my holster and shined the beam at the driver. The driver slowed down, executed an illegal U-turn across a double double yellow line, and pulled left into a driveway right in front of me and stopped. The driver happened to be a police officer. He asked me why I shined my flashlight at him. I told him he was driving too fast and he needed to slow down (he was not running code 3 and didn't have any flashing lights/siren running). He asked me what I would think if he was responding to an important call? I said if you were responding to an important call why did you pull a U-turn and talk to me? He looked at me with a dumbass look and didn't say anything. I asked if he was detaining me and if I was free to go, he said no so I continued walking north on the sidewalk.

Interesting situation...definitely a stupid move on the cops part though, heh. BTW I was pretty drunk...I'd had about 84 ozs of beer and 4 white russians at that point, but I was walking and there's no legal limit on how much you can drink and walk. I was walking straight and just heading towards my house. No drinking and driving for me anymore...if I'm drinking I'm walking home or getting a sober ride :).

Sounds like a drunken busybody to me. You're lucky he wasn't a civilian who got pissed and punched you out.

The California Penal Code 647 f statute reads:

“Every person who commits any of the following acts is guilty of disorderly conduct, a misdemeanor…Who is found in any public place under the influence of intoxicating liquor, any drug, controlled substance, toluene, or any combination of any intoxicating liquor, drug, controlled substance, or toluene, in a condition that he or she is unable to exercise care for his or her own safety or the safety of others, or by reason of his or her being under the influence of intoxicating liquor, any drug, controlled substance, toluene, or any combination of any intoxicating liquor, drug, or toluene, interferes with or obstructs or prevents the free use of any street, sidewalk, or other public way.”


. . . and?
Obviously, the OP was not thusly under the influence. He/she (according to him/her) was still quite capable of exercising care for his/her own safety, and, there is no indication that others were under his/her care., nor does the story related include prevention of free use of the street, sidewalk, or other public way.

Caruso

Not certain what this has to do with pedestrian rights (also not certain why you posted this topic in a bike safety/advocacy forum). But I would agree that any citizen has the right to question the actions of a cop - just because they are in uniform and on duty doesn't mean they are above the law, and I agree that if he had been responding to a call, lights or not lights, he would not have bothered with you. He's probably pretty ticked that some 'normal' person had the audacity to call him on his illegal operation.

As for your sobriety, there are laws that allow you to be arrested for public intoxication, however, they would likely only be invoked if, while under the influence, you posed some sort of danger to yourself or nuisance to others in public.

I can't imagine a cop arresting you if you are making steady progress down the sidewalk on foot.

Caruso

Sorry for not making the connection in the op...I was thinking it but forgot to type out my thoughts :). I ride my bike on that road frequently (when I'm sober) and I think a vehicle traveling at that speed on that road is a safety hazard to anybody on or near the roadway, including pedestrians crossing the street and cyclists. Sometimes when they're coming up behind a car in the left lane they'll swing around and pass them on the right...very easy to nail a cyclist riding in the right lane while doing that, especially considering they're usually distracted by the laptop computer in the passenger's seat trying to read information on the call and/or using their radio. I've also seen motorists in the left lane realize the police car is coming up on them very fast and either start changing to the right lane as the cop is passing on the right and then abort their lane change by swerving back to the left, or continue changing lanes forcing the officer to brake hard and swerve back into the left lane. The officers have training in operating their vehicles at high speeds, but other people on the road can be very unpredictable, especially when they see that it is a police car. A cyclist directly in front of a collision involving a 55mph car rear ending or sideswiping a 30mph car would probably not be very happy. A collision like that could even injure or kill a pedestrian if the vehicles went up onto the sidewalk or if the collision occurred at an intersection. A while ago I came across an accident where 2 police cars had crashed into each other in an intersection (one obviously had to have run a red light) with no other vehicles involved, so they obviously aren't perfect.

I estimated his speed based on past experience with their normal "going fast/non code 3" (LAPD would call it "code 2 high" speed on that road (a couple of times they've passed me on that road while I was driving my truck and I've sped up to their speed and it was around 55mph both times...one of those times the officer was weaving back and forth across the dotted white line and I could see him leaning over towards his computer), the amount of noise coming from his tires (I had just walked on a little pedestrian walkway next to a 65mph freeway and his tires were making a similar amount of noise to those of the cars on the freeway...I figure since they run Z-rated tires they're probably a bit louder than regular passenger tires), and how fast he was moving relative to all of the normal road users that had passed me. I also ride my bike on a regular basis on a 55mph speed limit road and he seemed to be closing the distance to me about as fast as the cars do on that road. I guess instead of saying 50-60+ I could have just said "at or near freeway speed"...

It was nighttime with moderate LP sodium street lighting. Motor vehicles and other pedestrians were present but vehicle/foot traffic was minimal. Pedestrians frequently cross the street at the location I was at. The officer was traveling in the left lane on a 5 lane roadway (2 thru lanes each way and a center turn lane). There are 3 residential 25mph cross streets in a row with unmarked crosswalks in the area the officer was speeding through. It's dangerous enough for people crossing at those streets when cars are doing 30. If somebody was drunk enough for a 647F they would probably have a hard time telling if an approaching vehicle was doing 30 or 55, and a drunken miscalculation could lead to a very bad night for the drunk pedestrian and for the speeder.

I've read PC 647F before and I think the fact that I was concerned about a car traveling at near twice the speed limit shows that I was concerned about my safety and the safety of others. I was prepared to mention that if the officer wanted to press the issue, however his main concern seemed to be that I didn't think he was operating his vehicle in a safe manner and from the attitude he gave me it seemed like he was more concerned with arguing/looking for a fight than lecturing me on shining my flashlight at cars. He also didn't ask if I was flagging him down or if I needed any help (not that I remember at least). I think his first words as he quickly got out of his car were an argumentative "why did you shine your flashlight at me?" or something to that effect. His actions/body language reminded me of an experience I had a while ago with a road rager that wanted to fight with me after I touched the passenger's side window of his Saturn with my left hand when he passed me with maybe 6" of clearance on a bike route.

The drinking started at about 3pm and ended at about 11pm...3 20 oz. beers (one 8% "eye of the hawk", the other 2 closer to 5%), then an hour break (6-7pm) of riding the bus/walking, followed by 2 12 oz. beers and the white russians, so I was feeling good but I could still walk straight and tell when somebody in my general area was doing something that could be a threat to my safety.

For more background, earlier that day I had seen a pedestrian almost run over by a left turning motorist while she was legally in a crosswalk with the white "walking man" symbol. If the pedestrian hadn't stopped and stepped back she probably would have been hit. I don't think the old lady in the Lexus SUV ever saw her. I had done about 7 miles of walking for the day at the point I had my interaction with the officer and had seen multiple dumb moves by drivers that could have killed pedestrians (including me) if the pedestrian was paying less attention. I usually don't walk that much...I mostly ride my bike or drive my truck so it was kind of a new point of view for me.

Tortoise: I LOL'd at "tacticool"...I think I'll have to start using that one when appropriate :).

Harry: I like that one...I can totally picture early the squid saying something like that too :).

Hmmm white Russians.
So what is the way to go about doing something regarding a police officer breaking road rules?

If the OP was sober, do you think he would have been out of line?

. . . if you were THAT drunk, how do you not know this was all a dream or an illusion perhaps . . . .

:-d

Interesting situation...definitely a stupid move on the cops part though, heh. BTW I was pretty drunk...I'd had about 84 ozs of beer and 4 white russians at that point, but I was walking and there's no legal limit on how much you can drink and walk. I was walking straight and just heading towards my house. No drinking and driving for me anymore...if I'm drinking I'm walking home or getting a sober ride :).

Definitely a stupid move on your part. Mind your own business.

Hmmm white Russians.
So what is the way to go about doing something regarding a police officer breaking road rules?

If the OP was sober, do you think he would have been out of line? Probably call and complain to a supervisor if you can get a unit number or license plate number. With the ambient lighting, the way their unit #s are, and the speed of the vehicle I probably would've had to have shined my flashlight at the vehicle anyway in order to get either piece of information (unit #s on the cars here are usually 4 digits, non-reflective gold, fairly small font, on black sections of the car...one on the hood/front fender and one on the rear near the left taillight). There is a very large black unit # on the white roof for helicopters to read but I wasn't at an angle to see that one. License plates are reflective white with 7 dark blue numbers (no letters) for CA exempt vehicles..

Definitely a stupid move on your part. Mind your own business.Police officers represent the will of the people of the state of California. I am a person of the state of California. The actions of public officials are everybody's business.

. . . if you were THAT drunk, how do you not know this was all a dream or an illusion perhaps . . . .

:-dlol I wasn't that drunk...I have been that drunk before and it's not a fun place to be.

Police officers represent the will of the people of the state of California. I am a person of the state of California. The actions of public officials are everybody's business.

Except that you didn't know it was a police car until it pulled over.

Interesting story today...I was walking down the sidewalk, and saw a car doing at least 50-60mph+ in a 30mph zone...I grabbed my 3W LED flashlight out of my holster and shined the beam at the driver. ................................ but I was walking and there's no legal limit on how much you can drink and walk. I was walking straight and just heading towards my house. No drinking and driving for me anymore...if I'm drinking I'm walking home or getting a sober ride :).

I know the Mod Squad will come out and give me a stern finger waggling but........

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/6366/retarded8oi5.jpg

Seriously, if that light had been shined in my face, you'd be missing a flashlight and walking funny.

And you can be arrested for public intoxication.

dobber...would you seriously be driving as fast as that officer was? If not then you don't ever have to worry about me shining a flashlight at you when I'm walking home from the bar, lol.

What I meant by "no legal limit" for public intoxication is there is not a standard BAC that, if exceeded, is a "presumed guilty" level like there is for driving. Obviously I didn't mean to imply that it's impossible to get arrested for being extremely drunk in a public place. In the condition I was in the elements for public intoxication as it is defined by California were not satisfied.

dobber...would you seriously be driving as fast as that officer was? If not then you don't ever have to worry about me shining a flashlight at you when I'm walking home from the bar, lol.

What I meant by "no legal limit" for public intoxication is there is not a standard BAC that, if exceeded, is a "presumed guilty" level like there is for driving. Obviously I didn't mean to imply that it's impossible to get arrested for being extremely drunk in a public place. In the condition I was in the elements for public intoxication as it is defined by California were not satisfied.

Who anointed you judge and jury? And what would your excuse be when the end result of shining the light in somebody's eyes resulted in a traffic accident?

You stupidity is amazing. Even more amazing is that you seem to think your actions are justified.

Who anointed you judge and jury? And what would your excuse be when the end result of shining the light in somebody's eyes resulted in a traffic accident?

You stupidity is amazing. Even more amazing is that you seem to think your actions are justified.
Moral of the Story:
You can take a Self Righteous, Arrogant Safety Nanny/BusyBody off his Bicycle, but you can't ever take him off his High Horse.

a cop deserves what he gets when he drives like a dick
http://gallery.east-harlem.com/data/35/1t_cop_car.jpg

Dobber the personal attacks are lame. At least I can disagree with you without calling you ******** and stupid. I'm not offended, I just feel sorry for people that have to resort to name calling.

Where did I ever claim to be a "judge or jury"...just because I take action when I see a blatant violation of the law taking place I'm stupid? Speaking of juries...isn't there something in there about the regular guys interpreting evidence and deciding if a crime was committed or not? Isn't that one of the most American things out there? Aren't we all (at least the registered voters among us) jurors at some point?

I see police shining their vehicle mounted spotlights (which are much brighter than a little LED flashlight) at moving vehicles every now and then...what's their excuse if those cars crash? Probably "they were breaking the law and I was warning them." Usually the officer shines the spotlight at a car with no headlights on or something like that. One time I got spotlighted by a sheriff as I was doing 65 on the freeway...I think it's because my old car's seat belt warning light was constantly illuminated due to that automatic seat belt thingy being stuck and he was checking to see if I was wearing my seat belt (I was of course). I didn't crash or even come close. I've been spotlighted by passing police while riding my bike on the road near where I flashlighted the officer actually. If somebody crashes from having a light shined at them they probably shouldn't be operating a vehicle in the first place.

Please don't get me wrong...I appreciate my local police and the job they do. I don't hate the police. I even took some criminal justice classes in college (one with a retired LAPD Sgt. and the other with a LA Co. Sheriff reserve Captain). I really enjoyed those classes and those were a couple of the best teachers I've ever had. I don't like seeing people driving at twice the speed limit and getting into the misdemeanor range of the vehicle code, especially the ones that are supposed to be setting an example.

In California it is illegal for a police officer to speed (any amount over the limit) unless they are engaged in certain actions (such as responding to an emergency call) and displaying a forward facing red light. California vehicle code section 21052 explains that government employees (including state, local, etc. and those operating authorized emergency vehicles) are subject to all provisions of the vehicle code, except as exempted. Section 21055 is the law that exempts an officer from most sections of the vehicle code but with the limitations noted above. Some states write exceptions into their equivalent code (Michigan for example says officers do not have to use flashing light/siren if the officer determines it would not be a good idea to alert suspected law breakers). The California law has no such exception.

lol ILTB I liked that phrase so much I had to make it my title...I hope you don't mind :)

Dobber the personal attacks are lame. At least I can disagree with you without calling you ******** and stupid. I'm not offended, I just feel sorry for people that have to resort to name calling.

Where did I ever claim to be a "judge or jury"...just because I take action when I see a blatant violation of the law taking place I'm stupid? Speaking of juries...isn't there something in there about the regular guys interpreting evidence and deciding if a crime was committed or not? Isn't that one of the most American things out there? Aren't we all (at least the registered voters among us) jurors at some point?

I see police shining their vehicle mounted spotlights (which are much brighter than a little LED flashlight) at moving vehicles every now and then...what's their excuse if those cars crash? Probably "they were breaking the law and I was warning them." Usually the officer shines the spotlight at a car with no headlights on or something like that. One time I got spotlighted by a sheriff as I was doing 65 on the freeway...I think it's because my old car's seat belt warning light was constantly illuminated due to that automatic seat belt thingy being stuck and he was checking to see if I was wearing my seat belt (I was of course). I didn't crash or even come close. I've been spotlighted by passing police while riding my bike on the road near where I flashlighted the officer actually. If somebody crashes from having a light shined at them they probably shouldn't be operating a vehicle in the first place.

Please don't get me wrong...I appreciate my local police and the job they do. I don't hate the police. I even took some criminal justice classes in college (one with a retired LAPD Sgt. and the other with a LA Co. Sheriff reserve Captain). I really enjoyed those classes and those were a couple of the best teachers I've ever had. I don't like seeing people driving at twice the speed limit and getting into the misdemeanor range of the vehicle code, especially the ones that are supposed to be setting an example.

In California it is illegal for a police officer to speed (any amount over the limit) unless they are engaged in certain actions (such as responding to an emergency call) and displaying a forward facing red light. California vehicle code section 21052 explains that government employees (including state, local, etc. and those operating authorized emergency vehicles) are subject to all provisions of the vehicle code, except as exempted. Section 21055 is the law that exempts an officer from most sections of the vehicle code but with the limitations noted above. Some states write exceptions into their equivalent code (Michigan for example says officers do not have to use flashing light/siren if the officer determines it would not be a good idea to alert suspected law breakers). The California law has no such exception.

Methinks thou doth protest too much.

greetings,

from patrick in oxnard a way south of santa maria

jeff, it was interesting to read about the vehicle code exemptions will keep that
in mind.

I have always wondered why there seems to be a knee jerk reaction to defend
official misbehavior. Either we are all equal or we are not. No one should
receive special treatment in the courts. What is wrong with the system is that
the wealthy, politicians, corporations, and public safety are treated
differently from the rest of us.

Where did I ever claim to be a "judge or jury"...just because I take action when I see a blatant violation of the law taking place I'm stupid? Speaking of juries...isn't there something in there about the regular guys interpreting evidence and deciding if a crime was committed or not? Isn't that one of the most American things out there? Aren't we all (at least the registered voters among us) jurors at some point?
Since you want to play policeman, why not carry a gun and arrest all the blatant violators of the law and lawbreakers you think see on your intoxicated strolls?

And tell us all again how you knew that this was a policeman lawbreaker before you confronted/accosted him with your flashlight? If you did not know it was a policeman beforehand, why don't you cut out all the huffing and puffing about your actions being driven by your concern for making the police toe the line.

lol ILTB I liked that phrase so much I had to make it my title...I hope you don't mind :)

Not at all; you earned it! :thumb:

"what if the OP caused an accident?"

Right. What if he prevented one?

"if you did that to me you'd be walking funny"

Or maybe you wouldn't be walking.

Sounds like a lot of assuming of outcomes doesn't it?

Vehicle operators that speed excessively are putting other people at risk, yet many here seem to think that no one is allowed to say or do anything about it. Just how do you justify that?

i live on a high density residential block with tons of families and kids all over. the street is a narrow one way lane with parked cars on both sides of the road. every day and night drivers speed through easily doing 20+ over the limit.

my fantasy is to get a mannequin and push it in front of a speeding car. i want them to feel (even if just a minute) that they killed someone. i want them to acknowledge that they have little to no control if a kid happens to chase a ball into the street and that they are taking people's lives in their hands when they drive like that. the only reason i don't do this is fear that they would crash and make the situation much worse.

greetings,

from patrick in oxnard a way south of santa maria

jeff, it was interesting to read about the vehicle code exemptions will keep that
in mind.

I have always wondered why there seems to be a knee jerk reaction to defend
official misbehavior. Either we are all equal or we are not. No one should
receive special treatment in the courts. What is wrong with the system is that
the wealthy, politicians, corporations, and public safety are treated
differently from the rest of us.

what's even worse is that we don't do anything about it. we just read a little snippet in a newspaper, get angry, and then collectively shrug our shoulders. over and over again.

Dobber the personal attacks are lame. At least I can disagree with you without calling you ******** and stupid. I'm not offended, I just feel sorry for people that have to resort to name calling.

Sometimes you gotta call em as you see em. If he hadn't, I would have.




Where did I ever claim to be a "judge or jury"...just because I take action when I see a blatant violation of the law taking place I'm stupid?

Since we playing ******, I'll help. You just answered your own stupid question.



I see police shining their vehicle mounted spotlights (which are much brighter than a little LED flashlight) at moving vehicles every now and then...what's their excuse if those cars crash?

Ah, maybe they have a reason? Like checking to see what the occupants are doing? And most of the time, the cop is behind the vehicle in question.



One time I got spotlighted by a sheriff as I was doing 65 on the freeway...I think it's because my old car's seat belt warning light was constantly illuminated due to that automatic seat belt thingy being stuck and he was checking to see if I was wearing my seat belt (I was of course). I didn't crash or even come close. I've been spotlighted by passing police while riding my bike on the road near where I flashlighted the officer actually.

Good for you. We're collectively very proud of you.



Please don't get me wrong...I appreciate my local police and the job they do. I don't hate the police. I even took some criminal justice classes in college (one with a retired LAPD Sgt. and the other with a LA Co. Sheriff reserve Captain). I really enjoyed those classes and those were a couple of the best teachers I've ever had. I don't like seeing people driving at twice the speed limit and getting into the misdemeanor range of the vehicle code, especially the ones that are supposed to be setting an example.

That explains a lot, frustrated wanna be LEO. I'm betting you work security at the mall.

And no, a police officer doesn't need his lights on to justify traveling at a higher speed.


I guess lights and sirens would scare off the donuts.

Dobber the personal attacks are lame. At least I can disagree with you without calling you ******** and stupid. I'm not offended, I just feel sorry for people that have to resort to name calling.


Sorry, in retrospect I may have maligned the mentally handicapped. Surely they wouldn't be stupid enough to shine a light in a drivers eyes.

i live on a high density residential block with tons of families and kids all over. the street is a narrow one way lane with parked cars on both sides of the road. every day and night drivers speed through easily doing 20+ over the limit.

If it's a regular occurence, inform the police and ask that they post an officer there with a speed gun. Multiple times if necessary. If someone does get injured by the speeder, it'll at least be on record.


my fantasy is to get a mannequin and push it in front of a speeding car. i want them to feel (even if just a minute) that they killed someone. i want them to acknowledge that they have little to no control if a kid happens to chase a ball into the street and that they are taking people's lives in their hands when they drive like that. the only reason i don't do this is fear that they would crash and make the situation much worse.

I think we all probably entertain fantasies like that at one time or another, but thankfully our conditioning prevents all but the most deranged of us from acting on it and doing something we may regret later.

Vehicle operators that speed excessively are putting other people at risk, yet many here seem to think that no one is allowed to say or do anything about it. Just how do you justify that?

If you start acting as a volunteer policeman for that kind of person, you'll never do anything else, and end up having a miserable life. It's not worth it.

People's actions are their own responsibility, as are the consequences of them, not your's or mine. It's all a matter of picking your battles, and the wise man only enters a battle that he is sure of winning. Generally, people tend to resent instruction from strangers in the steet, and shining a light in a speeder's eyes just seems so arbitrary and ambiguous that it's unlikely to bring about any modification of behaviour, and will more likely just irritate them. It's therefore really kind of pointless. I can only assume that the booze affected the OP's judgement.