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Post by guest on Oct 11, 2006 23:54:46 GMT -5
I was pulled over today by a police car who had NO lights on what so ever while he was parked on the side of the street. It was at night so I could not see in the car to identify if someone was inside, so i assumed the car was parked in front of its own house *it was residential*, and it was brought to my attention that police officers are not allowed to write tickets or pull people over if no lights are on, and it is parked, and it apears to be empty, and off duty. Is this piece of information correct?
( I was pulled over on the one 20MPH street in the neighborhood, i was doing 29, i had only been to this place once before and I was not aware of the speed limit so i was going the normal residential speed)
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Post by Shuftin on Oct 12, 2006 14:28:36 GMT -5
My general understanding of the law is that the speed limit on any given city street is always 25 mph unless otherwise posted. This is a tried and true assumption that keeps us citizens safe. It seems that you were driving in good conscience. Most times when an officer pulls someone over for speeding they know the proper speed limit on that road and many times can point to a speed limit sign within eyesight of the stop. This leaves the driver without the argument “I didn’t know”. 20 mph sounds like a school zone and I am unaware of any schools being open after nightfall.
As far as a police car being parked in the dark. Again my general understanding of the law is that police cars must have some sort of light on. Be it headlights, parking lights, break lights, dome lights, anything lights. Police cars parked in total darkness are a safety hazard and pose a traffic hazard of being rear ended and thus pose a needless accident waiting to happen. This is the very reason that cars are towed after an arrest.
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Post by WaTcHeR on Nov 6, 2006 14:11:36 GMT -5
In my state police are not allowed to "hide," they have to be in plain site in public. The cop car can be off the road a ways and still be in plain site, but you may not see the cop till you pass him, sometimes you don't spot them at all. No they don't have to have lights on the car. They can be "unmarked."
Cops are not allowed to sit on a busy road or the highway "blacked out." Blacked out means no lights on at all. Just sitting on the shoulder in the dark with no lights on like a dumbass, working radar. It took a few cops being rear ended and killed for them to stop that practice.
They do have to have flashing lights if they want to pull you over. If someone is trying to pull you over with no flashing lights or you have doubts it's a real cop, don't pull over! Call 911.
I know of cops that will be on the highway in a unmarked car traveling with radar and clocking motorist. If the unmarked car gets a "speeder" they radio a trooper, who's maybe 2-3 miles behind the unmarked car. The trooper will then pull over the motorist and ticket them.
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