What Would You Do If Pulled Over?

Mclesh said:

Yes, because they're armed.

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They're armed here too. And I think where Teinz is as well.

I'd flash my white male privilege badge and be on my way. Naturally.

I've been pulled over a bunch of times. How it has ended has depended on a variety of stuff. Most of the time I'm able to get out of a ticket and let away with a 'don't do it again' but once of twice my mouth gets the better of me.

Things I have learned when pulled over - especially for random checks - never ask a police officer if it wouldn't be a better use of their time to be out chasing real criminals.

shaldna said:

Things I have learned when pulled over - especially for random checks - never ask a police officer if it wouldn't be a better use of their time to be out chasing real criminals.

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My father used to do that, more or less. I think he used to say something like, "You're giving me a ticket when you should be out looking for an axe murderer."

I do think being a smiling, sober white female has helped in my interactions with police. Local ones, at least.

I was driving my mother's car for one registration sticker stop, and it had a gun in the glove compartment, which is a concealed weapon in my area. I still just told the cop after he finished talking. I explained that I don't get her gun out while driving, because I don't think it's safe. After his eyes popped back into his head from hearing 'gun in the car', he nodded nicely and called for backup before he checked the weapon.

I didn't get charged for a concealed weapon. It did cause a big commotion in the little convenience store parking lot, with 3 cop cars and officers pulling a gun out of my car, lol. They let me go in and buy a juice on my own while they were busy, though. No problem.

But with a sticker that belonged on a different car (my mom switched our two stickers on our Hondas), which the officer said often meant a stolen car, and a concealed weapon in the car, you know that could have gone differently! I was a young, white female college student, and I'm sure that mattered. I'm sure that my demeanor mattered too, though.

When I was young, stupid and broke, I drove without insurance for about two years. A no insurance ticket, at that time in my life, would have been 100% unpayable, which then equals jail time. So, I was terrified every time I saw a cop car. I knew life as I knew it would effectively end if I got pulled over.

It has been over 20 years since I got my act together. I've got great insurance and a spotless driving record, and still my heart skips a beat when I see a cop pull in behind me. If they do pull me over, my hands shake uncontrollably and it's all I can do to keep from crying. I'm a mess, and there's no rational reason for it.

Luckily, I've only been pulled over once in the last decade and that was because someone stole the registration sticker off my license plate. The officer took my license and registration, but didn't even ask for insurance, then gave me the website to request a new sticker.

Jhaewyrmend said:

You know, we live an oddly hard yet overly easy period in time, but one thing I have a hard time stomaching is the disrespect shown to those who serve to protect us. That's just me though. I served in the military for 8 years and actually would have been in law enforcement if not for my color-blindness.

I won't argue that things don't cross a line, but if it were me being pulled over or whatever, I'd be respectful and do what they ask.

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In those moments when we assert our rights, it's not the citizen being disrespectful. It's the officer.

When an officer tells me to put my cell phone camera away, and I'm not a participant in the scene, he or she is taking a dump on the first amendment. When an officer holds me until a K-9 unit can show up to give him/her the probable cause that the officer currently lacks, that officer is spitting on the fourth amendment. When police take personal property under civil forfeiture, they are defaming several different sections of The Constitution all at once. When agents (federal, state, local, I don't really care) take an arab-american into custody for years on end without counsel or charge, they dishonor themselves and everything they swore to uphold upon being commissioned.

And there are so many others. I take offense at every last one of those moments. An officer that honestly catches me (so to speak) speeding, or stealing, or killing, that officer deserves the highest of praise. And that officer should be just as pissed off at the others I mention above as I am.

I haven't read through the thread yet, but since it's a pretty direct question, I've been pulled over exactly four times.

The first time, I DEFINITELY deserved it. I was lost, trying to follow my phone GPS, stressed beyond belief, angry, and I damn near caused a wreck. A police officer pulled me over, and as he sat in his car running my plates or whatever and then approached my vehicle, I got on the phone with my husband and started bitching about what was going on.

Police officer arrived at my window. I held up a finger like, "wait," and finished my story with my husband by saying, "And now a fucking police officer has pulled me over for damned good reason. I'm going to let you go." The cop actually looked a little amused. He said, "A little early in the morning for a wreck, isn't it?"

I said it was, and then, "Look, before you give me a ticket, can you at least give me directions so I won't be having to try to follow this damned GPS anymore? I'm lost, I'm stressed, and I've just fucking had it."

The guy actually laughed. And gave me directions. And a warning. I think that must have been a once-in-a-lifetime way to get out of a ticket.

The next two times were both BS stops. I was driving a suburban with tinted windows in an area where a lot of human trafficking takes place, and the cops wanted an excuse to look in my vehicle. I got pulled over for "failure to yield right of way" even though I had plenty of time to pull out and get completely up to speed before any approaching cars got near me - no one had to slow down for me or anything like that, and I didn't have to jam on the gas. The other time it was for "tailgating;" the officer said I got too close behind the car I was about to pass before changing lanes. In both of those instances, I kept my hand on the wheel and just acted friendly and completely puzzled. Warnings.

The final time, I was pulled over for a sticker that had just gone out and I had some friends in the car. I kept my hands on the wheel and was friendly and puzzled (I really hadn't realized the sticker was out,) and the officer seemed fine with me, but he demanded to see a friend of mine's ID. Just this one guy. I guess the cop didn't like the look of him. I objected and said, "Officer, he's not driving the car, he hasn't done anything wrong - what's going on here?" The cop acted belligerent and said he had a right to ask for identification of anyone in the car during a traffic stop. My friend, very smiley and friendly, said, "Sorry, officer. I'm riding with someone else, so I left my wallet at home." The officer persisted, asking for my friend's full name and date of birth. I muttered at him that this was ridiculous. My friend gave his info, though, the cop checked it out, and then, I guess feeling like a bit of an ass, he gave me a warning and went his own way.