State Police stopped me for driving too SLOW!

[Whitewolf7]

Middle desert, AZ. 8:30am on a Tuesday. Heading to the Walmart. A State Police suv who was parked in the median got behind me after I passed by. He practically tapped my bumper he got so close. I pulled over and my young daughter and I greeted him with a hearty Good Morning. I had Christian children's music playing, he asked me to turn it off. Now he had my attention. I'm wondering if I missed someone rolling off the hood of my car. He stated, "Do you realize you were going 57 in a 65"? I answered, with all honesty, "I'm never in a hurry, especially with a child in the car". Not sure if he appreciated that. He asked 20 minutes worth of questions about what I'm doing here, where, why, and how we camp. Since there was no category in which to cite me on his ticket, he did the walk-around of my van. Like the border patrol would. When he completed that, he came back stating, "Um, your windshield is cracked". I answered.."From the dirt roads, I try to avoid crazy drivers on paved ones". Don't think he appreciated that, either. Escaped with no citation, and wondering...what just happened? So, HURRY UP Y'ALL, or you just may look out of place.

 

[Wabbit]

Surprised they didn't give you a warning or even a ticket for cracked windshield. If not even a warning, I think their spider sense tingled and then they might have felt sheepish so let ya slide. Who knows, but no ticket or warning, I think they liked you.

 

[Annie W]

Sorry you had that experience, too.
Has happened to me over 4 times already, for various reasons including not wanting the already-cracked (from dump-trucks) windshield to end up flying into my face, or kiddos, nor the road. -- Another time drove well-packaged crystal dinnerware etc. from apt. to new house that didn't want broken so drove 35 in a 45 mph, when he stopped me. (as Law-abiding, whenever a LEO approaches me for even the shortest & pleasant encounters, I practically faint ! - so even as I only got a verbal warning, was parked off the road so long trying to collect myself, that he walked up to me yet again with "Why aren't you driving off already?" - so freaked-out twice.)
Then there's "hey, your gas-mileage will Improve the slower you drive": so now I tootle the least busiest roads during the least busiest times. This also has pretty much eliminated others slamming into the van.

I wish you Safe & Happy Travels, Whitewolf.

 

[RVTravel]

harrassment

 

[safarivan]

whats the emergency officer? there usually is none but since flashing lights were used, could it be that a man is acting beyond the scope and regulation of their duty? hmmm..

next question: Officer, has there been or have I breached the peace? he is a peace officer until he is not, if his answer is "no emergency" and "no breach of the peace" then that man is no longer a peace officer, he is a pirate/highwayman, acting under color of law.

any questions he has after answering yours in the negative, ask him could his questions be used in a court of law (yes) and then tell him you require legal counsel before answering anymore questions.

this is the best way to handle these guys but it took me some time to learn how and why these questions are so powerful. Its time now for everybody to start to study the law IMO because the color of it has taken over and the only way to correct these wrongs is to Know The Law.

 

[safarivan]

maybe I should have mentioned these couple of stories that happened to me along the way too.

was riding my motorcycle on Daytona beach one fine day and got pulled over on the beach. cop tells me he just pulled me over to tell me that I didnt need to wear a helmet while riding on the beach. WTF? and my motorbike is a supermoto BTW so there is no where to even carry a helmet except your head.


another time Im going down the interstate at dawn just before sunrise but light enough that I didnt need headlights, a cop coming from the other direction swerved into the median then lost control in the grass and slide into the road infront of me completely out of control in a four wheel tire skidding slide! it was so bad I had to out maneuver his out of control car and just missed it by inches! he ends up on the other side in the grass.

WTF? so I pull over to see if he needed help. he restarts, turns on his lights and pulls up behind me! yeah somethings not right here. so I just stay in the van, he comes to the window and acts like none of that just happned then asks for the usual. at this point I know he is a maniac so I dont say nothing and he says the reason he pulled me over was because I did not hav my headlights on. gave me a warning..


that sunofabitch was trying to do a u-turn in wet grass to pull me over! that is how he lost control! could have killed me and others for no type of emergency situation what so ever. that was one of my final wake up calls and I started studying law.

 

[Annie W]

okay RVtravel, & safarivan
as admitted already those type A aggressive  :exclamation: armed to the teeth swat personalities scare me to death, as I simply try to LIVE right...
so
after "harassed by police", we had best KNOW THE LAW. okay. Can we please have a discussion in here what all that entails... ?

 

[speedhighway46]

Unless you are holding up traffics and are causing a safety concern, I don’t think there is any way to cite you for driving under the speed limit.

 

[wagoneer]

Yes the "speed limit" means just that the fastest you are allowed to go on that stretch of road. I got stopped in Kit Carson Co. for going 67 in a 65 zone, he escorted me to the courthouse and either pay or spend the night. Classic speed trap tactic.

 

[RVTravel]

tell him that 55 saves lives..lol

 

[highdesertranger]

some states have a minimum speed limit. not sure about AZ. highdesertranger

 

[SoulRaven]

http://codes.findlaw.com/az/title-28-transportation/az-rev-st-sect-28-704.html in short, the claim is that a slow driver can impede traffic and make it unsafe, but unless traffic is being impeded, doesn't appear there should be an issue. Seems to be too much of a gray area though. No way of knowing what was going on in the head of the LEO. Having a bad day? Bored?

 

[lenny flank]

To be fair, driving too slow is just as dangerous as driving too fast. It makes people behind you get frustrated and they start doing stupid things.

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

Studies have shown people going 5mph under the speed limit are more dangerous than 5 over. Lots of states are starting to ticket slow drivers in the left lane. The safest speed is to go the speed of the surrounding traffic, I believe in some states once you have a certain amount of cars behind you (4 or 5) you're supposed to pull over and let them pass to alleviate the build up. I just read that the slower car is 3x or 5x more likely to be involved in an accident, I forget the exact statistic and can't find the article I just read a few days ago.

 

[B and C]

Maybe the red flag was a young girl in the van on a weekday? Just wanted to have a chat and making sure nothing nefarious going on? Sometimes you gotta think like the LEO.

 

[cyndi]

My first ticket ever was for obstructing traffic. I was driving from LA and Long Beach, going 55 in a 55 zone. Everyone else was doing 65-70. His was back in the 80s.

 

[Reducto]

I was pulled over once because the state sticker on my license plate was partially obscured. At least that's what he claimed. I saw him begin pulling onto the road before I even reached him, so it was clear that he saw me coming, pulled close, then looked for a justification to stop me and accuse me of being a drug trafficker. Why else would an old van from out of state be driving away from Sturgis around the time it was ending?

Chances are this was something similar. You fit a profile of some sort and he either wanted to get close enough to see/smell evidence of a crime or he wanted to intimidate you into leaving town and not coming back.

If you'd been going 64 in a 65 he'd have pulled you over for the cracked windshield or swerving or something.

 

[Headache]

It's a rare and random occurrence but nowadays pretty much all cruisers have computers that tattle on them. If he hadn't moved in awhile you may have gotten pulled over for that... or sheer boredom.

And YES you can be cited for going too slow but there has got to be a situation going on that is endangering the public to do that. It takes more than being a Sunday driver to get one.

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

...wondering if something happened elsewhere and you just fit a vague description ... and just needed some reason to take a closer look? "Um ... goin' a little slow there aren't you, pal?" ... "Say, is that a crack?" "Um, your break lights are red ... good ... these aren't the droids we're looking for ... go on about your business!"

 

[closeanuf]

Maybe he just needed a hug