Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Common Interests Cops and "blue light pass"

I don't think it's so cut and dry... The officers my wife works with on the midnight shift will respond to a scene with the lights off. In the middle of the night when drivers are tired/wasted, it's safer to fly by them with the flashers off before they have a chance to react. A lot of accidents are caused by a "freaked out" motorist seeing the flashing lights at the last second and makes a sudden move as the officers car is right on them.

Well, the issue isnt the need to respond with lights off,,,its given that sometimes they need the surprise element,....BUT WHY THE MUCK do they need the needless tailgate? You can still speed up and pass like a normal person,,,I dont think that there are that many "freaked out" accidents due to police lights...That sounds like a made up argument by the police to justify their actions.

My only additional comment, which I somewhat stated but not plainly, is that the cop, if he was any sort of competent driver at all, could have seen that I was going slower than he wanted to go, put his blue lights on while he was (say) 100 feet behind me, crossed over into the oncoming lane, and be done with it.

The tailgating before doing this is what I didn't like, and what makes me question his motives.

While I realize that some may want to whine, piss and moan about the "cop bashing", none of those same people ever seem to want to acknowledge the fact that cops are and should be held to a higher standard by the general public.

And the "if you don't know how to do their job you have no right to criticize it" argument is also horsedung.

By that argument all of you Clinton/Bush/etc. bashers all ought to shut the hell up since you're not Presidential material.

Brian

wow redhawk, your ability to completely misread a post surprises even me.

I never said I thought any cop was out to get me, I said I merely think they should be held to the rules the rest of us must follow...unless responding to a call. Allowing them to ignore the rules only feeds into reckless driving...and yes there are cops out there that drive recklessly. I've almost been it by them. It's got nothing to do with a conspiracy theorey :rolleyes:

Abuse of power? Nothing new here, I think Sandman would be helpfull on this thread but maybe he has gotten enough anti-cop statements this week :p

Anywho, I am one of the 1st people who religiously pulls to the right when seeing any emergency vehicle aproaching from either direction (it's the law unless it's a divided road, that on the other side you should yield the right of way), when other motorists do not, but I am very annoyed at when cops throw on their flashers to sail through a light that's red, or tailgaiting people on the highway. As many other people have said they should set the example if we are suppsosed to follow, I believe this holds true for speeding, but of course, who's going to ticket them, hmmm, NOBODY

-Pete

He hit the nail in the head. I'm not saying all cops are like this but crap like this happens.

Yeah, well, here I am....

anyway... How do you know that that officer wasn't looking for a vehicle that matched your description? Perhaps he was tailgating you to get your plate correctly. Some states are very hard to read, depending on what vehicle they are on, and I have excellent eyesight.

Do some officers break the law without cause? Sure, and they should be reprimanded for it. I, too, think that officers should be held to a higher standard than the general public. But consider this:

If an officer merely goes with the flow of traffic, his opportunity to spot violators of traffic or other laws is diminished, since he will remain with virtually the same group of vehicles for a period of time (highway patrol). If he moves through traffic, his opportunity to observe a greater number of cars, have them observe him (which is a great deterrant), is increased. He could drive slower than traffic, but as we all know that usually results in a large traffic jam of motorists afraid to pass the squad. So he is left, as a matter of practicality, to drive faster than the rest of traffic. Most officers have also received EVOC training, and so they know how to handle their vehicle properly at those elevated speeds. Now, before you waive your SCCA racing license in the air, think of this: How does an officer know that you have received this special training over and above other motorists? He has no way to tell, and thus you are relegated to obeying the same laws as the rest of the public.

Officers are not required to use lights/siren when responding to calls. Officers are also not bound by traffic laws when responding, so long as they exercise due care and do not behave in a willful/wanton reckless manner, disregarding the safety of other motorists.

I don't know that any officer would tailgate someone in order to cause them to speed and then pull them over and ticket for same. That is just paranoid, but I think someone already told you that.... :rolleyes:

Good answers Sandman, I was about to bring up the Code 3 response (lights and sirens), but you made your point well. An officer is not bound to respond with L&S, but care is a BIG issue! One bad cop ruins it for all. This goes for all groups (military, school kids, politicians).

And your ability to add absolutely nothing to a discussion surprises everyone.

I think an officer being paid $15 and hour to stand between a scared store clerk and a loaded shotgun lives a higher standard.

Nothing like a good blanket statement to illustrate a solid grasp of the ignorant.

So because you see a cop roll through a stop light, you automatically assume that same cop is likely to go beat up an old lady or something? Geesh!

I think that is a fair request assuming there wasn't a legitimate reason for him tailgating you.