Actually, most speed limits on major highways and interstates are there for no other reason than to generate revenue for the state. Check out my post on Page 4. When speed limits were remvoed in Montana, fatality rates on their highways dropped to the lowest in their history. Then it doubled when they brought back speed enforcement.

Also, a cop CAN pace you, but it must be with a special device. It is called a VASCAR. That stands for Visual Average Speed Computer and Recorder. What this device does (after being properly caliberated) is mark the amount of time it takes for a vehicle to pass one "point of reference" (a white line or marker on the road) to another point of reference (another marker on the road). This is usually accomplished within .2 tenths of a mile. The cop is usually at a stop when clocking in this fashion, so I doubt he was using it.

If this cop wasn't using VASCAR or a radar/laser gun, YOU CANNOT BE PROSECUTED FOR A SPEEDING VIOLATION. Don't listen to other people posting here, because a cop CANNOT ticket you based on his own observations. He must have EVIDENCE that you were speeding. A cop can't walk up to you and say: "Hmmm... you looked like you were going 80... here's a ticket." They MUST have hard, accurate evidence from a certified and properly caliberated device to prosecute you.

Here's a link to a VASCAR site for more information about it:

VASCAR - How It Works

 

I guess you didn't read the part of the Maryland vehicle and traffic law that states "Pacing" CAN be used as a way to gauge speed. Go bck to page 6 i believe. Someone posted the Maryland V&T.

Just out of curiosity. Are you a traffic cop, a court judge, or a lawyer who specializes in Vehicle and traffic law? (<---------- serious question not meant as a flame)

 

Well, "pacing" is the basically the definition of VASCAR. You can pace someone, but it must be with a VASCAR device, especially when we are talking about such a small margin of error as 5 to 8 MPH over the limit. Most speedos are around 1% - 5% off.

Nope, I'm not a traffic lawyer or anything like that, though I'm flattered you even thought I was.

I'm just a 21 year old kid who likes to read up on subjects that interest him.

 

....yeah, i thought you looked young in your sig, lol

 

They have to be certified to do it but at least in NC they CAN ticket you for speeding on an observation. My co-workers spouse is a cop and he had to go through some tests/exams which included "sighting" a vehicle and determing the speed. Basically, a calibrated radar detector would list the actual speed of a vehicle passing and you had to be within a certain range (like within 2mph +or-) of that. They did it from mulitple angles and speeds and you had to have a very high score to get certified. I'm sure other states do this, too.

But if they can't touch you without a "certified and properly calibrated device" then I challenge you to do 80 in a 55 and blow the doors off a cop who doesn't have his radar gun out and see how far you get.

 

According to the cut and paste of MD Vehicle and Traffic Law, there is a clear difference between Pacing and VASCAR. While it may not be a usable method of determining speed in all states or may be synonymous with VASCAR in some states, Maryland certainly believes that matching speeds with a car is admissable in court.

 

Back in October, I got a speeding ticket from a NYC cop. I was definitely speeding, but he clocked me high. To top it off, the cop was kind of a jerk.

I was mad and was going to fight it until I thought about the following things:

1. I was speeding and whether the cop was off by 5-10 mph was splitting hairs
2. NYC traffic cops have a lot to worry about during every stop, so I could have made his life a little easier
3. Ever since 9/11, I've given cops a LOT more of the benefit of the doubt for everything that they do.

And I wasn't BAITING the cop like you were. It seems like the only thing that didn't do was this:

It's tough, but pay the fine and remember that it's generally a bad idea to race State Troopers.

 

OK...I have seen a lot of very ignorant statements here. I lived in Maryland up until 3 years ago...just to state my qualifications with that state . I have MANY good friends who are LEOs and I here stories all the time....I can't believe some of the BS that people try to pull and do.

Anyway...First...those of you who are NOT in Law Enforcement....take a minute and think about what these guys face on a DAILY basis....never knowing if the guy you are pulling over has a gun and intends to use it or whatever. I think a professional courtesy of an occasional "look the other way for speeding while off duty" is the LEAST we can do considering how underpaid most officers are. YOU don't have to worry about facing a guy with a gun when you go to work...do you? enough said there.


Now, Bobby....you stated that you had just been at the OC Cruise(My brother was there and I used to go all the time so I know exactly what it's like and what goes on). You stated you had been street racing and doing burnouts....yet you got no ticket. Count yourself lucky because they DO ticket for that...you just didn't get caught. Sure it's fun and I have done it myself but in reality it is not safe behavior as anything can happen.

Now...living in Maryland I knew full well NEVER to exceed 55 with a cop around on the Eastern shore....they never really have been lenient over there in regard to speed. I got nailed in my SVO by laser...had a great car talk with the officer for a good half hour...I STILL got a ticket. I broke the law and paid....he was doing his job and I didn't hold it against him. Fact is that often times it's not the trooper that dictates how lenient they will be....with the amount of traffic and types of cars there may have been an order sent down from the top to show no mercy....you knew better(or should have) than to even break 55 with a marked car next to you...let alone pass him up and leave him behind regardless of the speed. It is VERY likely your speedo is off 3mph...his is certified and correct in a court of law...sucks for you but doing that in front of others was just at him.

And to those making the ignorant statement about "All cops are bad"....you have much to learn. EVERY time I have ever been pulled over...it has been my fault...despite what you might think they don't pick on you because they have nothing better to do!

I got pulled over in Downtown Baltimore...I ran a red light and coincidentally right in front of the Police Station on Light Street...he came up and asked if I knew why I got pulled over...I told him yes, I went through the red light....he took my info, went to his car and came back and said "I only give tickets to those who deny what they did, be careful" ....this was in a fairly loud '88 5.0 LX with street slicks/welds a tag frame that read "Caution Frequently Sideways" and a personalized tag that read RADRLUV(Radar Love).

Got pulled over in Davidsonville late one night in the same car.....for no front tag. I had 3 VERY drunk friends in the car and I was Designated Driver....told him that and he let me go, no tests, no problems

Pulled over in Pasadena, MD by a state Trooper who happend to come up behind me as I street raced a Dodge in a Mark VII LSC...I was winning so I got pulled over....let go with a verbal warning.

After crossing the key bridge in my F150, my detector went off and I knew I was caught...I pulled over before he could put his lights on came around the back side on the shoulder and up in front of him...Polite...he was not friendly and mentioned no front tag and the speeding...gave me a ticket for speeding. He wasn't nice...he was actually a *****...but I WAS speeding so I deserved it.

Many other times I have been pulled over....many of them I wished the officer had been more friendly or nice and he wasn't.....But you know what, he is not pulling me over to be my friend or make small talk, he is doing his job!

Pacing.....It IS allowed no matter what any of the "unaware" people may think....fact is that an officer must first pass Visual speed assessement test and pacing with a car before he/she can be certified to run radar....and it is often used in conjunction with radar.

Report the officer? Yeah, that'll work Happens all the time and has no merit or consequence to the officer...they know you are upset because you got a ticket...this is a waste of time and you can bet that the officer WILL remember you AND your car if you do so....care to be remembered that way by the officer? Not smart....save reporting for LEGITIMATE complaints.

And to those saying they should be working on REAL crimes....That is the most ignorant statement made and really shows just how uninformed you really are! Drunk Drivers kill people...is that not murder?!?...how are they often caught? by a simple traffic violation! Drug interdiction....traffic stops often nab those guys! Often there are felons or those police ARE looking for who committed more serious crimes who are caught by guess what?....Right, a simple traffic stop!

Bobby, you got pulled over and he wasn't acting like your buddy....so be it. Naturally you are upset that you even got pulled over....especially after a weekend of street racing, burnouts and technically "reckless driving" so to get popped for something minor is frustrating....but you really have no right to post information about or get pissed at a cop for doing his job. If you have lived in MD any length of time then you should know that the Eastern Shore is not very lenient.

 

I think the time has come for some levity brutha's. Here's a little ditty that's been floating around this interthingy for awhile now, makes one realize what a bunch of cackling dolts we ALL are!

How many forum posters does it take to change a light bulb?

1 to change the light bulb and to post that the light bulb has been changed

14 to share similar experiences of changing light bulbs and how the light bulb could have been changed differently

7 to caution about the dangers of changing light bulbs

27 to point out spelling/grammar errors in posts about changing light bulbs

53 to flame the spell checkers

41 to correct spelling/grammar flames

6 to argue over whether it's "lightbulb" or "light bulb" ...

another 6 to condemn those 6 as ****-retentive

2 industry professionals to inform the group that the proper term is "lamp"

15 know-it-alls who claim *they* were in the industry, and that "light bulb" is perfectly correct

156 to email the participant's ISPs complaining that they are in violation of their "acceptable use policy"

109 to post that this group is not about light bulbs and to please take this discussion to a lightbulb group

203 to demand that cross posting to hardware forum, off-topic forum, and lightbulb group about changing light bulbs be stopped

111 to defend the posting to this group saying that we all use light bulbs and therefore the posts *are* relevant to this group

306 to debate which method of changing light bulbs is superior, where to buy the best light bulbs, what brand of light bulbs work best for this technique and what brands are faulty

27 to post URL's where one can see examples of different light bulbs

14 to post that the URL's were posted incorrectly and then post the corrected URL's

3 to post about links they found from the URL's that are relevant to this group which makes light bulbs relevant to this group

33 to link all posts to date, quote them in their entirety including all headers and signatures, and add "Me too"

12 to post to the group that they will no longer post because they cannot handle the light bulb controversy

19 to quote the "Me too's" to say "Me three"

4 to suggest that posters request the light bulb FAQ

44 to ask what is a "FAQ"

4 to say "didn't we go through this already a short time ago?"

143 to say "do a Google search on light bulbs before posting questions about light bulbs"

1 forum lurker to respond to the original post 6 months from now and start it all over again...


I hope that helps bring things into perspective for y'all

Peace Brutha's

 

Best and most accurate advice in this thread. :yes:

 

SVOPAUL:

Game, Set, Match

 

How long have you lived in MD? And have YOU yourself ever been down to OC? Probably not, because if you ever had, you would know that there are OCPD designated areas that they allow burnouts and light street racing for like a block. They close off a section of the street and let you have some fun. THAT's what I did. AND AGAIN, I never said ALL cops are bad, I said THIS ONE IS. And that he is giving cops a bad rap. I don't want him to be my buddy, but at least he could be civil. And LASTLY, "I was nothing but completely polite to this guy all the way through to the end." Upset, YES, but I was keeping it to myself.

I do not know why I am constantly defending myself on this issue. Some of you all may feel that a cop is allowed to "pad" your speed a bit and give you a ticket for going a few over the speed limit, that's cool. I and some others on here, don't.

 

If you had read the post thoroughly you would have seen it....so to answer your "probably not" remark.....Fact is that I lived in MARYLAND for 32(THIRTY TWO) years of my life!!!

Have I ever been to OC.....Hmmm, YES...in fact I OWN A TIMESHARE on FIRST STREET AND BOARDWALK...so YES, I have been there, lived there, etc, etc...which is why I stated so in my original post to qualify myself....So yes, I AM bonafide.

WHEN I visited OC, they did NOT have areas designated for such...I stood at Hooters with the assistant to the Mayor and discussed with her that there should be a place....Guess she listened and bent his ear, huh? BUT you mean to tell me that you NEVER ONCE jumped a light with someone else?...right

You may have been civil....I am willing to bet that he was being "strictly business" but you DID accelerate faster than he was by your own admission and DID exceed the maximum posted speed...also by your own admission. Even if he was being a "*****" to you....you did the same thing to him by accelerating faster than him and picking up 5-8 mph over the limit right in front of him so if he was irritated I can't say I blame him.

You are constantly defending yourself because of the manner in which you made your post....not to mention I would like you to tell me how it is that YOU feel YOUR mass produced speedometer which has a built in error factor of probably 1-4mph is more accurate than the specifically "Certified calibration" speedometer that is in the Police cruiser? That is a losing arguement there....and you will be laughed at for using it...I promise.


OH, and here is a picture of MY car on the BOARDWALK in OCEAN CITY, MD with my buddies Camaro behind me...taken in 1998. Next time read before making Ignorant assumptions...you'll look better in the end

 

Dude The Mod Squad.... I'm loving it!



Awesome post

 

Thats great. I lived there for 5 years myself and own a beach house in Fenwick Island, so I to am quite familar with the OCPD and events such as Hot Rod Weekend. Don't assume just because you lived down there for X amount of years makes you an authority on ALL subjects concerning OC. And secondly, THIS DIDN'T EVEN HAPPEN IN OC, SO GET OVER YOURSELF.

 

 

Isn't this thread locked yet?

Dude - you did something moronic, then did something just as moronic by "wishing the worst" upon the cop.

Do you really wonder why you aren't getting much sympathy here? If I had to guess, I'd say there are many on this board who would LOVE to get pulled over in their 05 - it would mean they've actually taken delivery of it!

My advice - get over it, pay the fine, and get back on the road and drive!!

 

Amen.

And do us all a favor - next time you're driving side-by-side with a cop, let him win.

 

ok, i want to make a public apology to the cop who i, in my wreckless actions, caused him to crash into another vehicle. Years ago i was making a sharp left hand turn with the tires squealing and all. Cop was coming up the street i just turned onto. He was so busy watching me, he forgot all about the car stopped at the light. He bumped into the hiney end of it (not hard) but hard enough where he had to exit his patrol car to see if everyone in the other car was ok. Sorry about that guy, hope you're still not looking for me.

About 2 weeks ago, i got stopped for the 1st time for speeding. (been driving for 20 years). Cop wasn't too happy with my excessive speed down a dark deserted highway but let me go none the less. Perhaps it had something to do with my demeanor. He checked my license and let me go because it came back clean. I aplogized, thanked him, and wished him a safe tour before i went on my way. I guess my mouth didn't write myself a ticket that time. Remember, a cop is a regular guy just like you and me. Only difference is, his job is to protect and serve. Treat him with the utmost respect and perhaps he'll let you go with a verbal.

 

I'd love to be that cop and find this thread. I'd bring you a cup of coffee into court and make sure you were there all day and make sure everything stuck. Stop whining and man up. There is no freakin gray area. That's why they call it a speed LIMIT. Look up the definition of limit. That's why our society has guidelines. How the cops choose to enforce it is another thing. If you pull away from a cop at a light, don't act surprised when you get pulled over.
Everyone here would be just as ticked as you are. I think some would share this story here to express how ridiculous the cop was to pull you over. I don't think they would be looking for much sympathy and in search of something that you think you could take to court. Forget it and could someone please lock this thread.