A little background so you know I'm not a Rook.   25 years LEO, 8 years Narcotics/Gangs Detective, Sex Offender Detective, Burglary Detective, Property Crimes Detective, Patrol Deputy, and all that jazz.

What the heck is the deal with cops writing BS tickets to honest hardworking tax paying citizens???   It frustrates me and makes us all look like jerks when cops are out there focusing on the wrong tagets.  Granted, I work in high crime areas and only deal with mostly felonies, but in my whole career, I never got ANY job satisfaction out of writing tickets or spending time dealing with peddly BS.

I do agree if someone commits a traffic offense that is TRULY a safety hazard or blatently stupid, they should be cited.  OR if the traffic offender has a rotten attitude and disrespectful, they should be cited.  BUT if you as a COP approach someone pleasantly and professionally, without being a dick, and they are cool, WHY THE HELL SITE THEM?????

Citations are simply revenue and another form of government TAX.

Most of the Deputy Sheriff's I work with would never waste anyone time screwing with the Tax payer.  We stop people if we have probable cause adn if they have warrants, on parole, on probation, they still are treated fairly, but they get dealt with appropriately.  If they are clean, we cut them loose.

Cops that make idle threats that they won't or can't carry out are also loosers in my book.

Ok, my rant is done.  I got messed with off duty by some small city PD cops who had nothing better to do and they wrongly profiled me because of my tattoo's and hard looks.  The jackhole wrote me a ticket even after finding out I was a cop.  HE WAS AN EGO MANIAC bad cop.

These cops that are BLACK and WHite with nothing in between are irritating and imbarrasing!

As he should.



I've known  a few cops who love to tell stories of badging their way through being stopped while being  shitfaced. Fuck that.

I have never used my ID's, Badge or commission card to try to get out of any kind of citation.  I don't go out of the way to have it be seen on the few times I've been stopped.  
If by chance they see it and I'm asked what I do, I will gladly answer the officer.  
I don't expect to get out of a citation, but I won't argue if I get off.  
I did something wrong and accept the consequences for what I did wrong.

There's your answer.

And I do find it humorously ironic that even after you flashed your badge you got cited.  Were you perhaps expecting special treatment?  Do you perhaps think you deserve special treatment just because you're a cop?  Can you understand the utter frustration and disrespect non-LEOs feels for cops who think they deserve special treatment?

I can agree with some of your statement... however I think you may have lost most your support from even the cop bashers on here with this. Out of the near two paragraphs you wrote, that's going to be about the only sentence anyone sees. Not talking shit, just an observation.

cash bond, mr big shot

<––––-Not LEO.

Yeah....when I was a MP, if I got pulled over, they saw the CAC while I was digging for the DL and asked me what my job was....it got me off once.



I didn't agree with that - I made sure that my CAC was seperated from the DL after that.



If I speed, and get pulled over, I expect to be cited, just like anyone else. I rolled the dice.



Because, I would do the same thing if I was on duty. Oh, your a cop? Cool. What department/agency? Cool. Here's your ticket, sign here, its not an admission of guilt, just a promise to appear sir/ma'am.



Have a good day!

I don't see this thread as a "professional courtesy" topic, but rather a small town cop problem. I, too, worked in the ghetto and rushed from felony to felony. In my 10 years I probably didn't write 100 tickets, but I'll put the number of felony arrests up against anyone's.

Where I live in Florida there are several small towns with their own PD, not much bigger than our squads. If these guys get a false alarm once a day they are excited. They make car stop after car stop for the smallest infraction...because they have the time and they're bored. Most of the ones I know are nice guys, but really unprepared when something big goes down. I like to think of them as misdemeanor police, when it's a felony they rely on the sheriff and FDLE to handle it.

Probably the two worst jobs in law enforcement are small town cops and tourist town cops...for different reasons.

YMMV

I call bullshit.

From a non-LEO (that wants to be LEO) standpoint, I agreed with you up until you complained about him not letting you go because you were a cop.

Professional courtesy is a wonderful thing, but just like a thank you for a gift, if you demand it, the whole experience is soured and usually goes the other way. The guy I do ride alongs with almost never writes people tickets unless they are a complete asshole or do something really stupid. Last night we did a couple stops and both were verbal warnings. Personally, that's the way I think I'd do things as well; verbal or written for most people, let those who are barely drunk go home if they can find a ride (haven't seen enough DUI stops in person to make my own judgment on where the "line" is, but I'm sure I will soon) and generally try to cut people who made a mistake a break. I wouldn't have a problem letting another LEO/FF/EMT/doctor go anymore than I'd have a problem letting Joe Citizen I don't know and have never met go for the same thing, given their attitudes.

The grandma who was doing 12-13 over through town on her way home from work? I'd most likely let her slide. The same zone and speed, but a guy who's already been ticketed twice already for similar stuff? He's probably gonna be on number three now. Some people don't learn, and others just make a mistake. Depends on time since the last offense, where, who (could've been a real hard ass guy who pulled him both times that does nothing but write tickets). It's hard to give an answer without having a set of details for the situation laid out in front of me.

I was given a break at age 17 (I threw paintballs off a balcony and accidentally hit a guy's SUV) by a female police officer who saw I was an honest kid who made an honest mistake and so did the guy who owned the SUV I hit, and she didn't do anything but make a report. I think it would be a little hypocritical if I was in her position and took the most extreme path for someone who also made an honest mistake, especially considering that break I got is what kept me from being unable to do the academy last year and hopefully this year again due to my injury.

Again, not a cop... but hopefully will be in the next year or two.

Agency's that track "Stats" or supervisors that otherwise "Grade" their employees performance based on the numbers they turn in are what cause BS tickets to be written!!  I have written a few tickets that really made me feel good....but the large percentage of the ones I write are me thinking in the back of my head, gotta get my stats up.  I also RARELY write more than one ticket to someone....multiple violators get one ticket for one violation and warnings for the rest.

Cite..... And Summons are issued to alter/correct behavior.. So what were you doing that drew this officer's attention.. Not to mention, if you're on the job, then you know, you shouldn't put another brother on the spot if he stops you.. take your summons and STFU. Seriously... just my .02cents

Thought I was in GD for a moment.

I've given PLENTY of honest hard working citizens breaks because I felt they didn't need a citation.  I've also given a few tickets to hard working people who either really earned it or decided to be a jerk.  I've written PLENTY of citations to shitheads and enjoyed each one of them.  

Tickets aren't a tax.  They are a way of keeping citizens driving by the laws.  In my city's budget, less than 3% of the budget comes from tickets.  If you or anyone else thinks that tickets are a tax, then if we get rid of the "tax" that you so hate, then how should we enforce certain laws?  What would be a proper punishment if people break society's laws?

On another thought, as civil liability has risen, the need to write citations to cover your butt from BS lawsuits rises.  I hate it but thanks to the endless lawsuits, you can expect to have more and more citations because cops aren't going to want to assume liability for "officer discretion".  

Suck it the fuck up OP.  You broke a traffic law of some sort.  You got a ticket.  Big fucking deal.  Deal with it.  Was the cop a dick?  That's a whole nother issue that has nothing to do with the fact that YOU BROKE THE LAW.  

Personally, I have my doubts that you are a cop.  July 2010 join date and 10 posts so far.  Hmmmmm.  Sounds like stiring the pot to me.  

+1

I had to double check I was in BOTS.

OP, what traffic law did you feel was beneath you to follow? I always try to follow the traffic laws because people know who I am and because it reinforces good habits.

You should know better about fines; tickets are meant to modify behaviors, not simply raise taxes. If every ticket resulted in nothing more than a stern warning, no one would have an incentive to follow the traffic laws.

That's a piss poor attitude to have toward the men and women that are working hard on behalf of their citizens in 'small towns' all over the country.

This one won't go over so well with the cop bashers, either.

I see that OP is not getting much love from either camp on this topic. I wonder who has the wrong attitude, ARFCOM or OP? The OP is so full of fail that I don't know if I could break it down without violating the COC.

Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile

I do not stroke a ticket on a good driver for a minor infraction. I write more warnings than tickets in an average month. The asshats and known criminals will get multiple tickets however. The largest amount of tickets I wrote on one person was 9 on a shitbag DUI that sent two people to the E.R.. After I dropped him off at the jail, a tallied up the amount. $1800.00+ not including the $5000.00 it would cost him after the DUI. It was his third DUI. I hate traffic Ops to begin with.

It may be piss poor, but it's common around here. There's a PD within 20 minutes of me that has six people working there including the chief. The city refuses to let the S.O. swallow them for some reason. All they do is traffic and minor stuff, and although the guys working there now are pretty decent, they've got a long-standing history of being complete dicks to everybody. It was common in the 1990s and early 2000s to get a ticket for 2mph over anywhere in town. When they had a barricaded escaped prisoner who took hostages, the SO and FDLE was all over it. They basically had a perimeter around the perimeter. Only one of them has a rifle (friend of mine) and he thinks they should have a K9, marine patrol (there are two rivers in their jurisdiction, so that isn't a TERRIBLE idea if they've got the money... but they don't), etc.

Concur. What I'm taking from this is some "big city thinking", coupled with anger over unsuccessfully trying to badge out of a ticket.

I went from working in a 350+ sworn metropolitan agency, to living in an area where a copper's patrol area is measured in square miles, not square blocks. They don't make half of what I made, do most of their work with backup either nonexistent or a long ways off, and they do a hell of a job - in fact, they do several jobs.

I work a second job part-time at a small village PD. The locals want someone local they can call that'll respond fairly quickly, not in an hour or two if the village  agency was absorbed into the County agency.
Six guys isn't a lot, even if all six are full time and the agency provides 24 hour coverage. My part time agency has 12 guys and we only provide 18 hours of coverage a day. I see that as changing someday because DSS has been moving a lot of section 8 into the village because of its low rents, and the influx has been a shocker to the locals.

Yes, if we have a barricaded subject, the multi-agency SWAT teamis called in and essentially  takes over. The whole point of equipping SWAT guys is to minimize hazards for everyone involved.

I call shenanigans.

bots

bwahahahahah, that's  so cute tc.

bots


TXL

Amazing how a thread can get so sidetracked due to the utter disdain for LEO's on this site.

This whole professional courtesy thing gets old. The argument is never settled and everyone has an opinion. You really want to hear some crying?

Go to copswritingcops.yuku.com it never stops. Sorry, I don't know how to make it hot.

Edit: I tried to go there and it didn't work...so much for my computer skills.

Cops Writing Cops

Thanks.
It is true.

Yeah.  While most folks go into police work to protect and serve, the city/county governments do seem to enjoy using the police and courts as revenue generation.  Some don't even make any attempt to hide it.

Once, I was even informed by a highway patrolman that he didn't care at all if I broke the speed limit, as long as I wasn't in the city limits of the town that contracted to have him sit and write lucrative tickets.  He would have rather been doing something productive, but the higher-ups told him to be the hall monitor that day.

Then again, there are some cops who, like you say, just seem to like to write BS tickets.  I found out that informing them, no matter how politely, that they were a tax collector with a sidearm can make them pretty upset.  

+1 Calling Bullshit

I hope we cross paths someday.

re: Professional Courtesy

There's nothing Professional about breaking the law, while maintaining expectations of never getting cited by a Cop, just because you are a cop.

It is even less professional when afterward, you bitch about it in a public forum.

Jay

This.

Professional courtesy:   I have NEVER written another officer, that being said, I have called their commands, or their ICO if they were a total ass hat. I have also given civilians warnings and written military members. It all depends on the infraction and the violators attitude .

Now, I have been stopped and given warnings, Never damanded it and never badged my way through a stop. Ive paid parking tickets and never once bitched.. It seems the OP thinks he's entitlted to a break and when he didnt get one decided to vent.
Now we only know one side of the story..

I would have signed you up on the program in a heart beat. Just because you think you're some big city hot shot doesnt mean you're above the law. Slow down next time turbo.
ETA:  I doubt this is even a true story to begin with so 10-22.

Just remember who called bullshit first. Let us examine why.

1. I am no spelling and grammar Nazi, but a guy that claims to be a 25 year detective should have a better eye for detail. There are a number of spelling errors, and misused words in the OP.  That makes a sloppy report. A sloppy report makes a sloppy case, and a sloppy case lets a perp walk.

2. How is it that the OP deals " mostly with felonies" while very other police officer in the world deals with a boatload of BS calls, with a major case thrown in every now and then?

3. OP does not have time for "peddly" contacts. Every good cop knows that contacts for minor violations often yield major violations. Timothy Mcveigh was stopped for a "peddly" tag violation, and Eric Robert Rudolph was caught dumpster diving. Neither of these were the "felonies" that the OP seems so proud to deal with.

4."Citations are a form of tax"  OK, how else would a ticket change a persons behavior? I guess we could eliminate this whole argument if we started caning people, or throwing them in jail for a few days. A real police officer would know the function of a fine.

5."We stop people if we have probable cause"  A real cop would know that PC is not the threshold for a stop.

6.OP got profiled for "tattoos (with an apostrophe) and hard looks." This is probably the most idiotic statement in the whole post. I would love to hear which profile that describes. Hard Looks? Please, tell us what an internet badass you are.

7. Finally, the whole badge flashing thing. No real police officer would come on the Internet and tell that story. I'm sure that a lot of officers would mention it during a stop, to try and get a favorable outcome, but no police officer with any integrity at all would fault the officer that wrote a well deserved ticket.


OP, I am calling you out. I can't call you names like liar, or troll, but  I don't believe that a police officer wrote this post. If OP wants to verify his employment with me, a moderator, or member of the site staff, I'll revise that to say that I don't believe a good  police officer wrote it.

 or      ETA:  Join date of July 2010 and a whole 10 posts.   IP Check please....





He dropped this turd yesterday and hasn't posted since?  
 

Iiiiiii'm gonna call BS on this one... just don't pass the smell test.

One of the reasons why there aren't more "Verbal" warnings given is the scrutiny Officers are subjected to reference traffic stops. "Most" of us now have video cameras in our cars that record everything that the Officer sees and hears on the stop.

Those videos are reviewed by the LEO management.

It started as a way to track racial profiling. Now it has morphed into a tool management uses to base our performance evaluations.
Officer discretion is becoming extinct.

When I walk up to your window and go into the seven step contact, I reveal the reason you were stopped. "Your speed was check by radar as 86 in a 65".
From that point, I have to come up with a really good reason to let you go with a warning. It's a righteous, valid stop. Management will want to know why I didn't issue a cite, per written policy.

The GD crowd wants "Accountability". Well...you've got it. "Sign here, press hard."
Sorry, but I'm not gonna fall on my sword, because YOU screwed up. ( Cop, Doctor, The Pope, whoever)
The other side of that coin is I don't write much traffic. To get my attention, you were really showing your ass. I've got bigger fish to fry.

If you get tagged, take your lumps.
Behave yourself, and you wont have to worry about it.

Just curious...do all those stars by your name give you some kind of special privilege to come shit in our house?

Buzz off.

 What is your point



 

He doesn't have one...............he is trolling.

He needs to get back into section 8 GD.

Sooooo, you are SuperCop thanks.

It seems that on occasion illiterate, special needs children from GD wander into BOTS and spew filth on our walls.

Take it as you will, I am being honest!  I am not posting to tell people what they want to hear, just the truth.  Funny how people pick out the little parts they don't like and bash them, yet do not address nearly the whole topic!

Most cops I know and work with are great people with the right value systems in place.  Most cops are conservative types who beleive in traditional family values and have had a good morale upbringing.

Problem with many cops (small jurisdictions) is they are bored and loose focus on what is really important.  Small town cops should be considerate of the community stakeholders and should act as an advocate to the community.  Cops should be a part of the small government role in the sense that we do not intrude in peoples business or lives unless they commit a crime that drastically effects another person and presents a true concern to the community.  Writing meaningless traffic tickets out of ego rage and anger, or to show your authority, is simply wrong.  Not to mention that most traffic citations are simply another form of Governement Tax and revenue.  Cops are not revenue collectors!!!

A Cop should be held in high regard in the community and be well respected.  When a cop is respected, that means he is perfroming his job properly, not being intrusive where he/she does not belong, and is leading by a good example (for the community and other officers).  Respect is earned and not just given.   An officer who is an AHole and over reacts with emotional outburst is WEAK and deserves little respect if any.

HERE IS WHAT YOU ENJOY FOCUSING ATTENTION ON::::   Should a working cop cite an off duty cop?  Yeah if it is something real bad, then the off duty cop should be reported (if it is something bad).  But a traffic ticket???   If you guys don't know that it is wrong for an egomaniac on duty cop to cite another off cuty cop, they you are messed up in the head!    If you are a cop that cites other cops, knowing they are a cop,  Fine, that is your business.  I think it to be wrong for many reasons.   IF AN OFF DUTY COP IS FLAUNTING AUTHORITY AND BEING A JERK WITH AN ATTITUDE, BY ALL MEANS ISSUE THE CITE.

A traffic infraction is not so much a 'CRIME'  as you think.  Committing a crime is more serious and should not be tolerated.  I'm not talking about cutting breaks to cops who commit crimes.

So if the government restricts ammunition sales in your state and does not allow you to purchase more than one box of ammunition at a time, and requires fingerprints,  then what you are saying is you will not find a way around this which may be considered BREAKING THE LAW?????

Governement can turn and honest man into a criminal really easy by restricting your freedom to keep and bear arms!  And you will roll over for this?

I pull people over (non cops) for traffic violations (if blatent), but I do not cite them, I am nice to them and I simply request they be more aware!  I cut breaks to average citizens ALL THE TIME.  So shy shouldn't cops cut breaks to other cops???????????

If you are a cop that does not cut breaks and warns people without issueing a cite, then you are a crappy officer!   And if you think the same courtesy should not be extended to other cops as it would be a regular citizen, your head is twisted!