Radar Detectors (1 Viewer)

[JimEverett]

They should call speeding tickets speeding "taxes."

Just another government sham to gain revenue from the general public under the auspices of public safety.

I agree when it comes to interstates and even two-lane state highways.
But I wish there was more enforcement to catch thse fools driving 40+ in residential areas.

 

[staphory]

LOOK IT UP IT YA DONT BELIEVE ME. i should know . why would i lie

more than 7 year ago the federal gov. passed law banning ticket quotas. however, to say a officer must right 1 citation a day is not considered a quota but doing your job. if a city , state, county, or any other level of agencies is discovered having quotas the gov. imposes a rather large fine. here in ga. due to the quotas from the past the state gov. keeps a very good watch on the depts. within the state. every now and again you will see or here of some dept that received this fine.

Whether it's 1 or 100 there is a de facto quota.
If an officer's duty performance is measured by the number of tickets he writes then that is a quota. The numbers may change but it is still a quota.
I won't register to view your link so I'll have to take your word on it.
Many police departments are nothing but a new generation of revenuers.
For the record, I consider speeding in a residential area, or inappropriate conditions, something that should definately be stopped.
80 mph on an open interstate in perfect conditions should not be a problem. In VA that's reckless driving no matter when and where.
FWIW I know quite a few cops in several jurisdictions.

 

[Det. Brees]

well i can honestly say that here our performance is not measured by how many tickets are written. As a matter of fact new york was just involved in something with the gov. im not sure what the fine or if there was a fine but they had to rework there evaluation process because it could be perceived that the number of tickets one wrote could effect the evaluation

 

[HouDat]

There are no quotas; they're cleverly disguised in city and municipality budgets as "other" income. If the police departments don't hit their budgets, cuts are made.

So don't think of it as a quota; think of it as job security.

 

[Det. Brees]

i am unable to locate this on the net but there is a breakdown of how the citation is distributed . because most laws we enforce are state laws the state receives most if not all of the fine. i really believe its like 90%.
now if i write a citation on a city law then the city receives all of the fine. in my career i believe i may have written less than a dozen city citations. in an entire month i may write between 15 and 25 citations. and that is all that is required of me... that wouldn't even pay my salary.

 

[skymike]

I dont know how much each of these little kangaroo court towns get for each ticket, but obviously it's worth something to them, or they wouldnt sit around lying in wait all day writing tickets. And then when you appear in court, they've overbooked it, just like hauling in their little harvest.

We have this little chicken crap place in Houston (why does it need to be its own city?) called SPRING VALLEY. Its nothing but a bunch of old people, and no real crime, anywhere, but the cops sit there day and night writing tickets to unsuspecting people. If these guys ever got a real criminal, they wouldnt know how to handle them, but they can sure sit there and harass every poor soul trying to get to work or do their business. Not to mention the expense, the time it takes for me to go to their little armpit town, and what it does to my insurance.

This is not what we pay taxes for. It is actually more dangerous to walk the streets of any major city than it is in Baghdad, but where are the police? Sitting in their little duck blinds raising revenue. Sure we dont want maniacs doing 60 down residential streets, and drunks weaving in & out of the freeway, but you'll never convince me that speed alone kills. I've average 2 or 3 tickets each year, usually for no more than 60. (Who decides how fast is "dangerous" on a feeder road with no houses, businesses, or intersections anyway?) Yet I've never had a wreck in 25 years of driving. speed doesnt kill, ignorance does.

My other issue with ticketing is I think it alienates the average person from the police officers. We need to be helping you, we need to cooperate, we need to do what we can to help and encourage you as you face the scumbags on the street, and have to do it under the watchful eye of the news, who wants you to do it with "sensitivity". I couldnt do it.

We need to work with the officers, and understand that you are people like us, but with this speed trap business, we view you as the "enemy," when we're on the road.

HOUSTON people--------dont spend any of your money in SPRING VALLEY or JERSEY VILLIAGE.

 

[mean machine]

I'm gonna have to agree with Southland. My cousin is Mississippi Hwy. Patrol. I've ridden with him a few times, and it's obvious he is not trying to meet a quota.

However, he is all over DUI's, and will profile drivers to get them. If it's after midnight, and you are in the vicinity of a bar, he will pull you over for anything possible (i.e, busted license plate light) just so he can get a closer look at you.

One time he pulled over a guy for an expired inspection sticker. I still don't know how he saw that. We met each other going at least 50 MPH each. Anyway, he was drinking beer while he fished all day and was DUI.

 

[Det. Brees]

Motor vehicles accidents account for more deaths than all natural disasters combined. In fact in the United States your chances of being injured in an motor vehicle accident is better than one in a thousand, in any one year. If you are a male, than you are twice as likely to die in a motor vehicle accident than if you are a female. Yet, if you are a female you are slightly more likely to be injured. The ages of 16 and 24 are the most dangerous for both sexes. Between the ages of 16 and 64 alcohol figures into over 20% of all fatal accidents, and between the ages of 21 and 44 almost 50% of all fatalities. Between the ages of 16 and 44 the fatality rate has declined since 1975. The most significant decline being in the 16 - 20 age group. About half of all property damage accidents result in injuries or fatalities. Since 1966 the rate of fatalities by population has fallen around 40%, by numbers of drivers over 50%, and by numbers of miles driven by almost 70%. We are driving allot more miles and driving is still safer. As we are get older we are more likely to die as a pedestrian, but we are more likely to be injured the younger we are. Approximately 15% of people who die because of motor vehicle accidents are pedestrians, bicyclists or other wise not in motor vehicles. Over 2/3 rd's of people who die in vehicles are not properly wearing safety restraints. Your risk of dying in a motor vehicle accident is almost five times more likely in Mississippi than in Massachusetts. You are ten times more likely to die driving a motor cycle than if you are driving any other motor vehicle
http://www.disastercenter.com/traffic/

i can bring proof all day long but you will never be able to justify speeding , running red lights or any other traffic violation when you kill someone.
the fact of the mater is to many people dont think and end up killing someone. i bet if someone plowed through a red light and killed you mom you would be the first one screaming ......
driving is still a very safe form of travel but what would happen if the law was not enforced. i know you know better than that.

 

[Det. Brees]

http://www.disastercenter.com/traffic/State.htm
in 1996 a lil over 42,000 people were killed in the U.S. in a motor vehicle accident.
in 1990 there were almost 23,00 murders in the U.S.
http://christianparty.net/murdrateworld.htm
there is a lil bit of a difference ....

 

[VVextreme]

http://www.disastercenter.com/traffic/State.htm
in 1996 a lil over 42,000 people were killed in the U.S. in a motor vehicle accident.
in 1990 there were almost 23,00 murders in the U.S.
http://christianparty.net/murdrateworld.htm
there is a lil bit of a difference ....

southland, you made some good posts. however, I don't think anyone is saying "all" taffic enforcement is evil. However, I think the points they are making is to bring the focus of traffic enforcement back to actual safety and not revenue generation.

Examples: Obvious speed traps when they suddenly and with very little notice reduce the speed of major highways for absolutely no logical reason, other than to have a speed trap.

Red lights in the middle of nowhere, and without traffic, especially during the later hours of nights. Traffic lights should be turned to yellow flashing lights on major roads when the traffic is not there to support it at night. I've seen this happen in numerous areas, so I know it's possible.

Another case that I've read about online but don't have a link for, is that increasing speed limits on interstates actually reduces crashes. Why? Because it reduces the disparity in speeds between drivers. There are still tons of roads with speed limits of 60, 65, or 70, that could easily be higher and would be safer for the general public.

The bottom line is that there could easily be done more to improve safety and allow for a more efficient travel, and reducing traffic, but unfortunately that is not what is always happening. And it is those small percentage of obvious abuses of power that have alienated the civilian population against the very people who were hired to "serve and protect" them.

____________________________________________________________-

By the way, the radar detector that was first presented in this thread is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. I strongly suggest buying the radar detector if you feel you have a need. However, you must know the limitations of the radar detector and what the beeps mean. Anytime you speed, you are taking a gamble.

I've heard that there are the airborn traffic patrols that time how fast it takes for you to travel a certain distance, and then they will coordinate with either ground patrol to issue you the ticket or send you a ticket in the mail.

Also, it helps to have people in front of you traveling at the same speed, that way you can use them as a radar shield. The cop will hopefully turn on his detector to target them, thus alerting you to their presence. Traveling alone down a dark road, you are pretty much screwed if speeding.

Also, ALWAYS watch your back, as cops can easily drop in behind you and follow you to determine your speed, without ever turning on their radar.

The way the device beeps can also alert you as to the location of the cop.

Beware of false beeps. Every detector will have the occassional false beeps. Learn the difference between the different types of bands, and what are possible causes. Ex: strong power lines and automatic doors to gas stations, etc. It helps to learn when and where certain beeps occur, and how much they beep. (Hope a cop with the same x band type of gun isn't sitting right next to that door though if you choose to ignore it!)

etc. etc. etc. Please read the instruction book for more information.

Oh, and radar detectors are also illegal in California.

Any detector for under 100 bucks, you might as well just light a 100 dollar bill on fire and light a cigar that is the price of your future ticket and then use the check for the increased insurance premiums to wipe your bum, you'll be much happier that way. However, the one posted on the front of this thread is very good. I strongly suggest it to those who are intelligent enough to know how to use it properly, otherwise just don't speed.