Ever get a Warning instead of a Ticket?

[MBAtarga]

Quite a few times actually - the first time - 26 yrs ago - in my first sports car - a sharp looking orange 240z. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was taking the girlfriend (now wife) from Atlanta to Athens (GA) for a college final one Saturday AM. We were running a little late so I was driving a bit over the speed limit. I crested a hill and saw the LEO in the grass median looking straight at me. I backed off the throttle super quick and coasted, he hit the lights and pulled out behind me. I pulled to the side of the road and waited for him to pull up. He got out and walked around the car and came to the my window. He asked for my license and registration - asked if I knew how fast I was going - and where the radar detector was - and why the hurry. I told him I didn't have a detector - I just crested the hill, saw him and coasted - thought I was doing about 72 (in a 55) when I saw him - and we were running late for the gf's final. He admitted he clocked me at 70. He glanced in the car and saw the gf with her textbook out reviewing - asked about the car, how long I'd owned it, etc. He told me to take it easy from there on and good luck...

[azasadny]

George,

You know I would NEVER exceed the legally posted speed limit!

[JavaBrewer]

Never got a warning. Lots of tickets though...

[HardDrive]

Originally Posted by Oh Haha

HD--Where is that girl today?

Did she really get into trouble from her folks once they got home?

No idea where she is today. She did not get in trouble. He parents sort of ignored her. She was a coke addict at age 16. I hope she is well, but......

[hardflex]

A few times years ago, not so much lately. The most memorable time I was driving a 73 VW Squareback thru Weatherford, TX on I20. It was raining a little and visibility was not good, but I had either dim or burnt out tailights, can't remember which. I knew it but decided to go ahead and try to get the final 20 miles home. I got pulled over and was resigned to getting the ticket.

we're sitting in the cop car, he's got his shotgun in a holster between us. I wanted to fill the silence so I said ' that's a nice gun' or something like that. He warms up and starts talking about it warmly. I ask him if he was involved in capturing the fugitive a few days ago in Parker County (where we are) and he says yes he was, proudly. I commend him for the good work. He thinks for a few moments and then changes his mind and says, I'm gonna let you off with a warning. I wasn't going to argue with that.

[dzls rok]

i was driving up in oregon, heading back to california. i had just passed a car on hwy 97 doing about 85. in a group of oncoming cars, there was a patrol car. he whipped around and followed me for a couple of miles. then pulled me over. after running a check and writing someting down( i thought he was writing a ticket) he came back to me and said slow down and have a safe trip home. i was so happy i could have hugged him...but that would have landed me in jail for sure!

[Laneco]

I am normally a very conservative driver and have been fortunate enough to get only warnings when I've done a real or perceived mis-deed.

The most memorable one was in Paso Robles a couple of years ago... I was driving the spyder which has pretty healthy power to weight ratio. In fact, it's about 10 gallons o'whupass in a five gallon bucket.

Found an open spot and hopped on it pretty hard, just in 2nd gear. Just to, you know, sort of clear things out! Turned a few corners and went into a car wash.

As I'm washing the car a police officer pulls up and strikes up a conversation. It ended with him telling me - "I don't know what you did, but I DO know it was you..."

The spyder and I were very, very well mannered the rest of the week we were there.

angela

[slakjaw]

I have never gotten a warning.

[tangerine911S]

Never got a warning. My sister got caught doing 83 in a 35 when she was late for practice and got out of a ticket by crying. I doubt I could pull that off.

[Mike Gehl]

Originally Posted by kach22i

I'm told by someone who had to go to traffic ticket class, that the detection equipment can pick the fastest car out of a pack, and now the equipment tells them which one that is, and they don't have to guess, or look for "PORSCHE" on the rear reflector.

"Someone" was telling you bull**** - they cannot tell which target was going the fastest; the guns can be designed to lock/select the fastest or the strongest return, but cannot indicate which target was which - that is purely the officer's judgment, and unfortunately is frequently wrong. Radar units have a pretty wide beam, and reflections complicate the matter further.

Any situation in which there is any, or better yet, a reasonable doubt as to the exact target should be vigorously defended against in court. If you have a witness in/on your vehicle, all the better. The officer cannot definitively judge which object his equipment is recording as a target *except* in a clear one-on-one situation.

Many moons ago, I used to design the equipment in question and the variation in return strength, just from moment to moment, is pretty wild and can be affected by local conditions such as obstructions, buildings, guardrails, trees, etc. Go to court, politely tell the judge/arbitrator/etc. that there was doubt as to the exact target, describe the situation accurately and clearly, and more often than not you'll win.

Mike

[mcuozzo]

I'm 50/50.

Here are the warning stories...

First new car (eagle Talon AWD) driving on a newly paved 4 lane road in town. The speed limit is 35. Must have benn going 80-90 ish. I was so far ahead of the cop, I had to wait for him! By the time the cop got to me I had all the info out for him. I hand it to him without looking. He asks if I was in a hurry. Turns out it was a good buddy from High School. Hadn't seen him in years. Got a warning.

Just got home from a 7 day 3500+ day motorcycle road trip. I got home and was anxious to get to my girlfriends house, wink, wink. I literally got off the bike and hopped in my Audi (a 2001 S4). The Audi seemed so slow/comfortable compared to my bike I was driving like a maniac. Got pulled over 2 blocks form my gf's house. I just told the cop my story ( i had my helmet, gloves and jacket on the passengar seat. Still had my riding boots on) and he told me to slow down. He said if he saw me again, he'd throw the book at me.

Driving from Vegas to Phoenix in my 993. Again the road was striaght, flat and empty. Going 75 felt like standing still. I got up to around 110, then realized I shouldn't temp fate. As I was slowing down, I get nailed. Since I still had a NJ drivers license and an AZ registered car. I got a nice tour of the rear seat of the police cruiser. When all my info checked out, the cop hands me a piece of paper tells me nice car - my uncle had a red 930. Hard to drive 'em slow huh? Turns out the paper was a warning. That was the good news. Bad news was the call went out over the AZ troopers radio and every cop would be looking to catch me again. That was a looooong trip home.

Plus numerous other times. It seems if you have no incidents on your record, you are more likely to get out of a ticket. So any time I have a ticket, I hire a lawyer to knock it down. So I've got nothing on my record for about 10 years.

Be careful out there...

[kach22i]

Originally Posted by Mike Gehl

"Someone" was telling you bull**** - they cannot tell which target was going the fastest; the guns can be designed to lock/select the fastest or the strongest return, but cannot indicate which target was which - that is purely the officer's judgment, and unfortunately is frequently wrong. Radar units have a pretty wide beam, and reflections complicate the matter further.

Any situation in which there is any, or better yet, a reasonable doubt as to the exact target should be vigorously defended against in court. If you have a witness in/on your vehicle, all the better. The officer cannot definitively judge which object his equipment is recording as a target *except* in a clear one-on-one situation.

Many moons ago, I used to design the equipment in question and the variation in return strength, just from moment to moment, is pretty wild and can be affected by local conditions such as obstructions, buildings, guardrails, trees, etc. Go to court, politely tell the judge/arbitrator/etc. that there was doubt as to the exact target, describe the situation accurately and clearly, and more often than not you'll win.

Mike

Thank you, I wish I knew this four years ago. This was before the huge spike in fines, I would fight it today for sure.

[Schumi]

hmm. Seems I have just been lucky. 3/4ths of all my stops by police have ended in warnings. Including a powerslide out of a stoplight right in front of a cop I did not notice. I am not sure if he actually believed it was because my foot slipped off the clutch because of my wet sandals or not, but he gave me a warning and had a good laugh about it none the less.

[Math]

most of the time i end up with warnings.
I get pull over once in the middle of the night, the cop says:
"I started following you as you were speeding on the highway, you took the exit then burned a stop, then turned without your flasher on, so I decided to pull you over before you do more. can I see your registration/ assurances?"
-i open the glove box, tons of garbage comes out and I say" yeah, i don't think i have that on me" he goes in his car for 20 minutes with my driver's license, come back and tell me to go bed/sleep. my friend could not believe it.
driving down main street, i see a cop following me from a distance. i try to buckle my safety belt in a discrete way, but shortly after the cop makes me sign to pull over. tells me i was not wearing my belt. I says thats right, ask me if i normally wear it, I say not really. tells me I should take the habit, its a 240$ ticket. then send me on my way with a warning.
I say 3 times on 4 I get a warning. then when i get a ticket it does not bother me too much...

[legion]

Never gotten a warning. I always seem to get pulled over by the rookies with a chip on their shoulder and something to prove.

[Danimal16]

In my younger days I got a lot of warnings. Two tickets from 16 up to 27. My first wife, Sue, used to get so peeved about me getting a warning when she would get a ticket. She was good about it but after having been with me on at least three occasions where I got a warning, she would just look at me in contempt (it was a joke between us). She was one that I should not have let get away. Those were the young and stupid days!

Last January I was home prior to deployment. I took the 911 out for an evening spin up the coast from Moorpark to Montecito where there is an old Starbucks. Neat little shop. Was a drive for a short Latie. Well it was a beautiful night out and I was just cruising along enjoying the evening. I don't like to sneak up or do rapid movements in traffic (it was very light traffic) as it seems to upset the other drivers when it is a 911, so it was just a very nice spin. I also keep an eye to the rear to make sure I don't get any unwelcome visitors, its just a habit. So I am tootling along and wow, there was a set of lights coming up on me very fast that I did not see before. I checked the speedo and sure enough, 80. So I slowed it down to 70 and up cruses the sheriff. He takes his search light and just grazes my car low so as not to blind or do harm. He gives me the look, smiles and takes off. I ran into him at the starbucks! Nice guy he told me that he noticed the speed but that I was careful and considerate. He said it looked like I was just out having a good time. He wanted to take a look at my 71. It was a nice night. Does that count as a warning???

[daepp]

Last Sunday I hopped on the Interstate headed to a water polo game with my daughter. We were late, and I was driving too fast. I was not setting a good example to my daughter either. She did get to witness me being very polite and respectful to an authority figure.

However, it was 7:00 am and there were practically no cars on the freeway. I was driving a 2008 high performance, well handling automobile. I was safe, but nevertheless I was speeding.

When the cop pulled me over he claimed I was doing 84. I claimed it was 79 but really hadn't been looking at the speedo when he got me with radar. I really couldn't argue with 84.

He took his time writing me up - it seemed like forever. He came up to the car and said, "Sir, would you please step out of the car." I guess he didn't want my daughter to hear him say the following:

"Are you going to slow down?" Yes sir!
"Were you in a hurry?" Yes sir, I was, and it is because my family and I are always trying to do too much in too little time. We need to slow our lives down!
"Are you going to slow down?" Again, I say Yes sir.
"Have you ever gone to court on a ticket?" No sir.
"You might want to go to court on this ticket. I wrote you up for 80, but you might want to go to court on this one."
I say, "I'm sorry, I don't understand." (OK - I'm a little slow)
He says, "After I began writing your ticket I noticed that today is your birthday. I appreciate it that you didn't mention that to me. I won't be at court on your appearance date. Happy Birthday - and slow down."

[Danimal16]

Now that is a tale worth telling. Seems like a very good middle ground. Respect for authority with acceptance of accountability and in return compassion. Very good lesson for your daughter and what a cop, very good mentor!!!!!!!

Maybe that cop should run for president, he seems to have the wisdom thing down??

[daepp]

Originally Posted by Danimal16

Maybe that cop should run for president, he seems to have the wisdom thing down??

He'd probably be much better than the two candidates facing us now. He was a good guy I have to say.

[GothingNC]

My wife got a warning just south of DC near Manasas with a Dodge Neon rental 11 years ago.

I warned her to watch her speed many times but she wanted to reach NY in 7 hours.

St Patricks night, 12:30 AM a little over 90 in a 55 and Isee a car suddenly gaining speed in the rear view and then the flashing lights appeared

After the cop finished chewing her out, he noticed our little girl in the back smiling and had a change of heart.

Mentioned something about how folks in NC need to be careful about being North of the border since the speed limits are lower etc.

I was planning on leaving her in jail and picking her up on the way home...