Stopped By A Stupid Cop For No Reason

[Texas Jim]

Got stopped Friday afternoon in the small town of Hubbard...down SW of Ft. Worth / Dallas.

I had just fixed the computer at the Wells Fargo bank and was driving out of town. (Such as it is)

There is one traffic light in the whole town at the intersection of the main roads in and out of town.

Made the light on green...and was just easing along, when I saw in the mirror...this Highway Patrol car, just SCREAMING up the road three or four blocks behind me.

The road thru town is four lane for a short distance as it actually goes thru town.

The roads coming into town from all four directions are two lane...it is only four lane when you are actually IN TOWN. (such as it is)

Anyway...I pulled over into the right hand lane to let him GO ON...as it was obvious he was in a terrible hurry.

All red lights were on...siren was on...headlights were alternating flashing...left to right..ETC..ETC.

I was doing about 30...the speed limit was 35.

As he was coming up behind me..he was probably running AT LEAST 70 or 80...

As he caught up to me, he slammed on his brakes and pulled in behind "ME".

I was wondering "What did I do?"

I pulled over and stopped...he jumped out of his car with something in his hand...

My first thought was a TASER.

He came up beside the car...craning his neck...looking in the back seat and then got to the front door, where I had the window down...waiting on him.

I asked him "What did I do?"

After standing there for a few seconds...looking all in the car...he answered..."I think your window tint is too dark."

He was pretty belligerent and kind of a SMART A$ and told me to raise the drivers window a few inches...

I did that...he put the thing he had in his hand on the window and checked the tint.

IT WAS LEGAL...But I knew that already.

Then he told me that I could go.

The whole thing was absolutely, totally, pointless and served no purpose what so ever.

Especially the 70/80 mph there in town and the whole siren bit.

That was just STUPID.

I still don't understand why he stopped a gray headed, 65 year old guy, driving properly, (for a change).

It is not like I am a young guy, with 24 inch wheels, playing BOOM BOOM music, and cruising the ghetto selling drugs.

It was kinda strange and TOTALLY PI$ED ME OFF.

Especially his attitude.

Took me about an hour before I wasn't mad anymore.

[Bruce Nunnally]

Good that it worked out well in the end. Could be he just got the gadget to use to check tint and needed another test case; I know when I get a new gadget I am dying to try it out.

Glad it ended well anyway.

[Texas Jim]

Good that it worked out well in the end. Could be he just got the gadget to use to check tint and needed another test case; I know when I get a new gadget I am dying to try it out.

Glad it ended well anyway.

We need to try out "YOUR" new gadgets on your CTS and on the DTS.

[BodybyFisher]

I would write a letter to his precinct explaining just what you did here. 70 or 80 mph in town screaming with siren and lights to me is over the top.. and they should be aware of it, new gadget not withstanding

[BodybyFisher]

Maybe they were looking for someone and your car fit the bill, but with the tint checker that does not appear to be the case

[jackc]

Lets see - Rural Texas, Cadillac with tinted windows and shiny wheels - Could have been checking you for DWB (driving while black). It happens......

[Cadillac Jim]

I saw a DWB arrest in Utah on IH 15 in 1975. I was towing a big trailer at about 50 mph, there was no traffic, and no one had passed me for quite a while. Suddenly a highway patrol car coming the other way did a U-turn over the median and went full tilt ahead of me. About a half mile ahead I saw that they had pulled over a two-tone pink and black Rambler with a well-dressed elderly black couple in it. But I would be amazed if that sort of thing happened in North Texas in 2009. But, who knows?

I think that the new gadget syndrome sounds better, along with the bored hot-dog County Mountie. If so, the guy could have tried out his new gadget in the impound lot or used car lot or whatever. Maybe his mother-in-law's truck.

In about 1970 I was on a commute drive in a 50 mph zone divided highway and saw a County Mountie in a very high-powered patrol car darting up behind a series of cars in moderate traffic and tailgating each for a few seconds, then passing on to another. I saw the tell-tale shoulder movements of four-on-the-floor, obvious even in my rear-view mirror, and knew that we had a hot dog with a new 426 Hemi. I was in a 1965 Plymouth Fury with a 318 with two-barrel carb and Torqueflite, but I give my shoulder the old 4th-to-2nd downshift motion (I wasn't too far away from my 427 Vette and knew the drill well) and sure enough, zoom, the clown almost rear-ended me, with his lights flashing. I pulled over, chewed him out for being such a clown, and drove to work. Two weeks later, this clown was dead. He ran off the road at 100++ and hit a pole; the road bent a little there that wasn't even noticeable anywhere near the speed limit but wasn't passable at the speed he was traveling. It happened about a mile from where I told him he was being an *smurf* and a public menace. Some people just don't listen.

The key is to keep a slow, polite demeanor and show full cooperation no matter what, and *never* get argumentative. If you are really nervous, look for a dash cam to see if you are covered there; if not, unobtrusively try to turn on your cell phone recorder without raising it or showing its camera to get an audio recording of what is happening. Don't even think about trying to get video, and beware of seeming to make movements that might seem threatening. If there is a ticket talk to a lawyer ASAP before the dash cam video goes away and he will likely get it dismissed with a phone call. If there is no ticket, just forget it except as a good story, and remember that 99.99% of policemen out there put their safety on the line every day for your benefit. And, the guy who irritates you today may be the best cop in the county in a year or two.