My Crime? Riding A Bicycle On A Public Street.
 

Haven't been here in a while, but I thought A&S would get a kick out of this:

http://www.averyjenkins.com/?p=701

I only wish there were video available. Keep up the good work.

Classic. It is for situations like this that one might consider carrying their own copy of the vehicle code as it applies to bicycles.

I started doing this a few weeks ago. I printed out all of the Missouri bicycle statues and keep them in a ziploc baggie in my seat pack. If I'm ever in a similar situation, I'll be able to reference the exactl laws by number. The laws only weigh a few grams - I'd recommend everyone carry them.

In spite of the cop being wrong on all counts; if the trike in the photo that accompanies the article is the trike Dr. Jenkins was riding, it does not appear in the photo to be a street legal vehicle in FL. Now I don't know how Connecticut law defines a bicycle, but if it's the same it's a good thing Lt. Chowderhead didn't know that.

I'm inclined to think, based on the writer's demeanor, that he was likely less polite with the officer than he claims. His mistake was calling his attorney wife, nothing pisses a cop off more than a citizen on a power trip, ironically. Obviously it appears the cop was in the wrong, but if the guy would have just apologized without admitting fault the cop probably would have let him be on his way. The key with cops on a power trip is to just agree, apologize, and try and make the stop as quick as possible. If they pull you over frivolously, they likely know they are doing so and are only looking for a reason to give you a ticket. The longer you stay there, the more likely they are to come up with something ticket-worthy.

Oh the effrontery!
How dare you sir!?!
Don't you know roads were built for cars?

Can someone post a link to the second page of that article... For some reason, I can't get to it.

Can you expand on that statement a little bit? Like explain why?

CR,

Uh, why are you saying that 'Bent tyrkes aren't street legal here in Florida? What makes it illegal to ride on the streets in Florida?

You are aware that here in The States that we are protected from self incrimination, and that we all have the right to an attorney, right?

Hahahaha! It's a stealth campaign for RoadID... ;-)

No need to be patronizing... there is no need to call an attorney for a simple traffic stop. It does nothing but slow the process and make you look like you're trying to assert your rights, which pisses cops off, and makes them think you have more to hide. and apologizing for what a cop thinks he saw is not self-incrimination. All you need to say is, "I truly don't think I did anything wrong, but if I did I'm sorry." It makes them think they're in control, which makes it much less likely that you'll get a ticket. Generally cops are like children in that sense.

Careful - when you reach inside your bag to pull the documents out, the cop might use that as an excuse to use deadly force. "I saw him reach for a weapon." Seems to happen on a nearly daily basis in this country - I'd swear they're doing it for sport.

Indeed - treat them like the dangerous animals and terrorists that they are. Don't answer any questions though. Never.

Not sure about FL or CT, but in Texas law, a bicycle is defined as having two wheels.

wut?

It's so stealthy, I missed it.



As for the incident, I bet he will get convicted on the ticket. The ticket was for "Unsafe Operation of a Vehicle" and if the cop tells the judge that the bike was difficult to see without the magic flag, he can argue that the cyclist is putting himself and others in danger by not being visible enough. Among drivers, that's enough to convict a cyclist.

And if we do not stand up for our rights then do we really have them? And if you read the entire article you'd see that the cop who stopped the OP had escalated things by calling for backup. Why the bloody hell does a cop need to have three more patrol cars show up for a "simple" traffic stop? And from the way that I read it, it sounded as if the OP had a reasonable fear for his safety and/or continued freedom.

The bottom line is that standing up for one's rights is a good thing.

Of course standing up for your rights is a good thing... when it helps. It's usually beneficial to only assert your rights when you actually need to. For instance, if you use your right not to have a cop search your car when he asks, he is most likely going to assume you have something to hide. Calling for backup is standard procedure in most locales, I'm guessing it was just a slow day.. In most places it's the law that you must have proper identification on you at all times, so that in itself is reason enough for a cop to call for backup in their mind.

I'm just stating my opinions based on extensive experience with law enforcement... I'm not saying it's right or anything... but the fact is that being assertive towards police officers will often do more harm than good, and you're usually best off just having them do what they'll do, and take care of it in court later.

{bold mine]

I may be off from the perspective of the photograph. But it doesn't look to me like that seat is even close to being 25" off the ground; unless he's running 45" wheels on the front. And if that is so; that is one really tall backrest.

Can someone post a link to that second page of that article?

There is no second page.... all on one page.
http://www.averyjenkins.com/?p=701

The section of "25 inches", is referring to a "MOTORIZED" bike, not a "regular" bicycle...

The appropriate section of that statute is, "every vehicle propelled solely by human power".

It could be contested, a motor/engine propelled recumbent, would then not be considered a bicycle.

And in most cases he would be wrong. There is already one or more threads dedicated to our rights both as a cyclist and as an ordinary citizen. And one of the points brought up repeatedly is that if the cop has to ask for permission to search one's car/bicycle then they do not have probable cause to do so on their own otherwise why would they be asking? And that standing behind one's Fourth Amendment right in such a situation should not be construed as to mean that one has something to hide.

Even for a "simple" traffic stop? What did the cop think was going to happen that he needed to call for backup? Or did you miss where the OP said that when he turned around there were already three squad cars (presumably not counting the original) as well as a fourth pulling up behind him totally blocking the street.

I think that except for a few places that again in other threads that that myth has been dispelled. Yes it is wise to carry ID with one. But I think that as has been mentioned in other threads that in reality and unless one is a resident alien that a US citizen is not required to carry ID with them.

Yes, if one refuses to ID themselves they can be held while the cops try to ascertain their ID, but does that really require calling in the "cavalry" as it were?

A small minority of the cops that I've met the only way to deal with them is to be assertive. And if I'm stopped and the cop asks for permission to search my bags, my answer will be no. And if he really wants to search them he can get a warrant as I will not give him permission to search them.

I'm sorry, but I don't see anything in there that says that either regular 'bent or a 'bent trike isn't allowed on the road. Or did I miss something?

And while not bicycles, I am sure that you have seen plenty of motor vehicles that have seats that are less than 25" to the ground.