Posted: 5/8/2009 8:40:45 AM EDT
| I saw a van today that had a blue strobe in the front window. What do you guys do/say to someone you pull over who has strobes on their personal vehicles? I realize as long as they are not used on the roadways they could be legal but it looks like trouble to me. |
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Blue in my state is strictly le. My questions would be,
1- Are you a leo and is this a government vehicle. 2- Lets see the paperwork/credentials. 3- If there was any doubt, I would call the agency to verify. In the county I live in it seems everyone has a "COURTESY COMMISSION" issued by the previous sheriff. If they flash it or are doing something stupid, I seize it and return it to the current sheriffs office. With all of the imposter police out there doing crimes and just giving us all a bad name, it's worth checking out. |
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Here blue is restricted to LE (though FD and EMS use them to the rear for better visibility––mix the colors and all that,) and it is illegal to posses them in or on a vehicle unless you are LE (same goes for red, except the restriction there is LE, EMS, FD, volunteer fire, or U.S.A. MDs assigned to Fort Polk––-or of course to authorized emergency vehicles, which for some reason our DOT thinks includes highway trucks.) Of course, now that I think about it, my dept. puts blue lightbars on some city tow trucks and the idiots drive around with 'em on all the time. Of course, it is considered a valid crime-fighting tool to have the patrol guys drive around with theirs on all the damn time half of the time anyway, but still obeying all traffic regulations........so yeah, no one here pays any real attention to emergency lights anyway.
On topic: I would likely ticket and seize. |
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In IL blue is FD personnel (except for Chicago, which insists on doing things their own way). Only got a hassle when out of state from the first non-SWAT BDU wearing cop (K9) in MN back when I worked for FedGov. He asked me about them after stopping me (I forget if his PC was speeding or if he "noticed" the unlit and paritally concealed lights) and was starting to read me the "controlled item" speech until I tinned him. Then he asked if I was on official business; when I replied no, he gave me the "LE only in this state" spiel and made me dismount them and stash them in the trunk on the side of 694 in rush hour. I'd had them up in my vehicles for over a dozen years and 18 or so trips to the twin cities. <shrug> |
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I have a white CVPI with lights all over that thing. You can see it from SPACE! Yet....I have never, and will never conduct a traffic stop using it. Not because of departmental policy, I think they would be ok with it actually, but because Policing off duty in your POV is one of the stupidest things you can do.
My CVPI is used for extrajobs, usually on private property. |