Dumb cop

[rwilli1228]

So my girlfriend and I were riding back from the mountains going through notorious North Augusta, SC, known for dickhead cops who care more about speeders than assaults, drug trafficking, and even domestic violence (I'm not lying either).

Anyway...

I'm the lead and I notice we are getting closed in by heavy traffic on a 4 lane with suicide with a posted speed limit of 40mph. mph I was maintaining 45mph as the traffic came up behind us.  The traffic flow is doing about 50 and I see one of those annoyingly huge diesel Ford pickups RIGHT ON my girlfriend's tail.  Meanwhile a car full of teenage girls playing with their phones (driver included) is next to me and as she fiddles with her phone she swerves over at me.  By this time I'd had enough and decided that speeding out of that situation was the safest thing to do.  I see a gap ahead to escape this potentially lethal situation, give my girlfriend the signal to stay close, and bump it up to 60mph to get in the safe pocket ahead of the traffic.  As I'm doing this a cop clocked us both and pulled us over.  I explained to the officer the above scenario to which he replied something like... "Well wrecking at 40mph is a lot better than wrecking at 60mph."  I couldn't believe how stupid this guy was!  Then again he is a cop.  Anyway...  He gave us both tickets and sent us on our way.  The next day I go get a SC drivers manual.  In the motorcycle section on page 142 it says "Look for open space where you can escape if necessary.  Scanning the road and roadside for escape spots is most important when riding in heavy traffic."  

I'm going to fight the ticket.  It's only $80 and a 2 point violation but that's not the issue.  The issue is that not only are we being penalized for following the manual, we are also being penalized for making a decision that could have saved our lives.    I'll demand a jury trial if I have to.  This is exactly why I hate cops.  Screw 'em.

[bajakirch]

I'm sorry that your past involvement with law enforcement has you so jaded.

But I'll reiterate something I said in another post regarding police: More people talk themselves into tickets than out of them. If any of your animosity towards the police came through in your conversation with the officer in question, than it's highly unlikely you could have ridden away WITHOUT a ticket.

Not every cop in the world is out to get you.

[coffee_brake]

While not all cops are out to get us, rwilli has a point. I can verify that the police in the county he's talking about, and also the county where we both live, are mostly not very good. They do not obey the traffic laws, ignore flagrant violations of the traffic laws in surrounding traffic, and pick easy stops to pad the county's coffers.

There are some good officers that I've dealt with locally, but they aren't on the traffic beat.

I have no doubt as to rwilli's story. The North Augusta traffic cops for the most part like to give out easy tickets and ignore the truly deadly drivers.

[gammer]

I'd fight it too rwilli1228, if I were in your shoes.
Sounds like you have a case.

[DesignFlaw06]

I'm sorry that your past involvement with law enforcement has you so jaded.

But I'll reiterate something I said in another post regarding police: More people talk themselves into tickets than out of them. If any of your animosity towards the police came through in your conversation with the officer in question, than it's highly unlikely you could have ridden away WITHOUT a ticket.

Not every cop in the world is out to get you.

+1

[EM87]

I would fight it too.  Let us know how it turns out!

[rwilli1228]

Believe me, when dealing with the Gestapo...I mean the police...I conduct myself in a respectable manner using manners.  Only after they go away do I act "jaded".  Sorry... but all cops where we live are idiots.

[hppants]

The term "Law Enforcement Officer" is appropriate.  You were observed breaking a law, and he chose to enforce it.

The courts are where, among other things, the law is interpreted.  Sounds like you have a good plan.  I hope it works out for you.

[coffee_brake]

Believe me, when dealing with the Gestapo...I mean the police...I conduct myself in a respectable manner using manners.  Only after they go away do I act "jaded".  Sorry... but all cops where we live are idiots.

Not all, friend. Many, even most, but not all. Not the one who helped me with the kids tresspassing. Not the one who caught the road-rage chick on my road a few weeks back and got her from behind the wheel. Definately not the ones who wrote up the reports for our friend Derick when he crashed his Triumph.
But yes, the ones who speed through 30 mph neighborhoods like ours at 50+ mph, and the one who watched a car cut me off with me skidding out of the way and did nothing, definately the one who saw the truck with NO brake lights at all travelling in front of me at night and let him go. Those ones are jerks who don't deserve to wear the badge.

[spiritof86]

This cop obviously has zero knowlegde of what it takes to ride on today's mean streets.  Bad cop, no donut!

[bajakirch]

Bad cop, no donut!

Oh, we've moved beyond donuts. These days, it's all about bagels.

Asiago cheese with salmon spread...mmmmmmmmmmmmm.

[happycommuter]

I'm not entirely convinced that speeding was necessary for self-defense, but good luck in court.  Always fight tickets - it cuts into the profit margin. 
Do lots of research and don't expect to win on merit, but on technicality.  A dismissal for failure to provide discovery, failure to prosecute, or some paperwork omission/error is much more likely than getting a judge to believe that a biker was speeding for a legitimate reason.

http://www.motorists.org/fightticket/

BTW, one of my favorite group ride rules was "if somebody gets pulled over, we'll wait for you...a couple miles up the road."

[hppants]

If the LEO fails to show up, or the radar equipment calibration is out of date, you got a chance.  Otherwise IMO, bring your checkbook.  In Louisiana, a guilty judgement will add court costs to the speeding fine.