I drove thru many towns and saw every sign warning of a slow down coming but never saw one here. I told the cop that and he said "everyone says that". Maybe its out of plain view if nobody sees it? He said he clocked me at 71 in a 50 but Im pretty sure I was down to 60 or so by the time I passed the sign. He was sitting right at the sign so hes obviously shooting radar thats calculating speed before cars get to the sign which is not legal. I didnt discuss any of that with him because that would be like arguing balls and strikes with an ump. He must not be ashamed of stopping the football player whose Mother in Law was dying because he told me who he was when I showed him my ID. He didnt give me a ticket so I was lucky. Just thought it was interesting to get stopped by that particular cop in the middle of nowhere
Caught in a speed trap
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REWahoo
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Not according to Google Street View.
My bet is you were so taken by the scenic beauty in that part of TX that you simply missed it. Been there, done that, got the ticket to prove it...
Bimmerbill
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I have a radar detector. I don't speed, usually going with the flow of traffic. But an advanced warning of radar up ahead can remind me to focus on my speed limit and look around for local speed limit signs.
JPatrick
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Even if he was clocking right at the sign, that is pretty sad policy IMO, regardless of how many warning signs there may have been (or not.)
Glad to hear professional courtesy still exists.
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Not according to Google Street View.
My bet is you were so taken by the scenic beauty in that part of TX that you simply missed it. Been there, done that, got the ticket to prove it...
You know street view is sometimes months old right?
heeyy_joe
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It is my personal policy to always be the second fastest car on the road. If no other cars are around then I am stuck with the speed limit. Being on the ball when one is pulled over can help...sometimes. Have license and insurance ready and offer an apology, admit embarrassment, shut-up and wait. I avoided my last two tickets with this technique, before I adopted my second fastest car strategy.
ERD50
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
If by 'professional courtesy', you mean the double standard that says a cop can get away with speeding but I would get a ticket for the same offence, then I feel strongly that it never should have existed, let alone be glad to see that it still exists.
I hadn't really noticed the handle of the OP, I went right to the content, so it didn't click with me that this was a (former?) LE. It shouldn't make any difference, other than I'd expect him to be even more familiar with the laws. Sure, the signs might have come down since the Google street views were taken, but it seems unlikely. If I had actually got a ticket, I'd be going back to take pics myself.
-ERD50
Rustward
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I am kinda with you on this. There does seem to be a double standard.
And sometimes speeding encourages other drivers to speed -- and potentially break the law.
I dunno.
Rustward
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This doesn't always work. About 30 or so years ago I let my friend drive my 280Z so he could see what it felt like. Very smooth, well balanced, so it generally felt like it was going slower than it actually was. Anyway, he was behind another car and they were both over the speed limit. Texas DPS officer pulls up behind us with his lights on and passes us and signals for us to stop, then he proceeded to stop the other car. They both got tickets.
Edit to add:
Interesting thought: I wonder how it would have turned out if one of the drivers was an off duty law enforcement officer?
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JakeBrake
Full time employment: Posting here.
The best thing to do in that part of Texas is to get off the 4-lane and onto the 2-lane secondary (FM?) roads where you can play the Texas-Pass-On-The-Shoulder game.Not according to Google Street View.
My bet is you were so taken by the scenic beauty in that part of TX that you simply missed it. Been there, done that, got the ticket to prove it...
For those who don't know, In Texas you are allowed to pass on the right shoulder and you are EXPECTED to move to the right shoulder when a vehicle approaches from your rear. Proper Texas etiquette requires you to move to the right shoulder as soon as you see a vehicle in your rear view mirror.
Bestwifeever
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I am kinda with you on this. There does seem to be a double standard.
And sometimes speeding encourages other drivers to speed -- and potentially break the law.
I dunno.
I took JPatrick's comment to be a little sarcastic joke. But I did wonder if it is standard practice for police to reveal their occupation in this situation, and why.
MissMolly
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The best thing to do in that part of Texas is to get off the 4-lane and onto the 2-lane secondary (FM?) roads where you can play the Texas-Pass-On-The-Shoulder game.
For those who don't know, In Texas you are allowed to pass on the right shoulder and you are EXPECTED to move to the right shoulder when a vehicle approaches from your rear. Proper Texas etiquette requires you to move to the right shoulder as soon as you see a vehicle in your rear view mirror.
It's funny you said this. I am down in south Texas this week and this morning I drove out to the Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge. On the way, I saw a car driving on the shoulder while an 18-wheeler passed him (crossing into my lane in the process). I was thinking how stupid they were and now you tell me it's expected
JPatrick
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Ummm, yes a bit sarcastic, but I'm certain PC is alive and well in some parts. I've never seen or heard of it being applied except in the most minor of situations, and honestly, I can't get worked up about it. Usually officer discretion works fairly well, but there will always be the outliers.
The cop that the OP encountered is clearly, or so it seems, in yet another category, such as incorrectly employed.
I will always remember the last speeding ticket I got, which was about 25 years ago. I was on I-95 in Maryland, about 9 or 10 on a Saturday morning. There were probably a dozen cars in a group, all going about the same speed, about 10 mph above the limit. I was around the back of the pack. When the trooper pulled me over, I (foolishly) asked him why he picked me, since so many other cars were going even faster.
His response was priceless.
Trooper: "Ever go fishing?"
Me: "Sure."
Trooper: "Ever catch 'em all?"
grasshopper
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I once received a speeding ticket in Scottsdale AZ. The officer gave me a 20 mph break on the charge,"because there was no traffic and I was alone on the road". Little did he know that I had left the stoplight in a cloud of burning rubber 1 mile ago, and all the good drivers were slow to catch up. Oh yea I deserved that one big time.
Rustward
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As far as I know, it is standard. A close relative routinely uses his creds to get out of traffic violations.
The main reason cops don't give other cops tickets is because you never know when a cop is going to be conducting a traffic stop and need help from someone. That help might include saving his life. Just about any cop I know is going to stop and help if he sees something like that even if it includes risking his life to do it. Cops belong to a brotherhood and unless you have experienced the things that cops do over a 25 year career, you will never understand.
Don't tell me that the doctors on this board charge other doctors full price for a medical procedure or lawyers charge other lawyers for their services. There are very few fringe benefits of being a cop, but not getting tickets (within reason happens to be one of them). The amount of money saved by getting free medical care or legal services, ect is worth a lot more than the ticket costs.
Don't tell me that the doctors on this board charge other doctors full price for a medical procedure or lawyers charge other lawyers for their services. There are very few fringe benefits of being a cop, but not getting tickets (within reason happens to be one of them). The amount of money saved by getting free medical care or legal services, ect is worth a lot more than the ticket costs.
The best thing to do in that part of Texas is to get off the 4-lane and onto the 2-lane secondary (FM?) roads where you can play the Texas-Pass-On-The-Shoulder game.
For those who don't know, In Texas you are allowed to pass on the right shoulder and you are EXPECTED to move to the right shoulder when a vehicle approaches from your rear. Proper Texas etiquette requires you to move to the right shoulder as soon as you see a vehicle in your rear view mirror.
I dont have every Texas law memorized but Ive never heard of it being legal to pass on the right shoulder. Pretty sure driving on the shoulder for any reason other than an emergency is illegal.
In this case, the date of the pictures is April '09
JPatrick
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Probably legal on designated roads. I remember driving on the two lane to A & M (The University of Texas) and seeing signs advising slow traffic to pull over (or words to that effect.) That piece of road was ideal as it was flat and had very nice shoulders. Worked fine and safe too. More Texas common sense.
REWahoo
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I have no problem with this as long as the traffic violation was not stupidly dangerous.
eytonxav
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
+1 I've never heard of that. However, it is expected/traditional that slower traffic moves to the shoulder on these roads to let the guy behind you go through. We used to see this done all the time on on our drives to visit DS in College Station years ago.
REWahoo
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give
+1
I though it was required. You see signs all over TX warning you of the "Drive Friendly" law.
You must be confusing A University in Texas with The University of Texas. A while back I promised no more Aggie jokes so I'll leave it at that.
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