How to humiliate your local highway patrolman...

[Udie]

 There was a bad deal here in houston a few years back. There were a rash of police chases and it seemed that every one ended in the death of an innocent bistander.  The worst case was when a family of 6 was killed when a police car slammed into their parked van. I think 2 of the children survived but the mom, dad and 2 of the children died.

 If thier chasing somebody for murder I think it's justified to chase them, but if their chasing somebody for running a red light or even just because the person is running is another matter.  Then there is the fact that if the criminals know that the cops won't chase them they will run and we will have more posible chases.  Tough call, I do personaly think that public saftey is more important than catching a criminal, but where do you draw the line?  

udie

[Maverick]

 

Originally posted by Udie:
There was a bad deal here in houston a few years back. There were a rash of police chases and it seemed that every one ended in the death of an innocent bistander.  The worst case was when a family of 6 was killed when a police car slammed into their parked van. I think 2 of the children survived but the mom, dad and 2 of the children died.

 If thier chasing somebody for murder I think it's justified to chase them, but if their chasing somebody for running a red light or even just because the person is running is another matter.  Then there is the fact that if the criminals know that the cops won't chase them they will run and we will have more posible chases.  Tough call, I do personaly think that public saftey is more important than catching a criminal, but where do you draw the line?  

udie

Udie,

The problem is that in many cases the real reason the suspect is fleeing has yet to be determined. In other words the original crime hasn't been discovered. Many simple "traffic stops" result in the apprehension of someone who has done something far more serious than a red light. The stop and arrest of Timothy McVeigh (sp??) is a good example. He was stopped for a traffic violation while fleeing the scene of the Oklahoma bombing. I have had people flee just to avoid a ticket, for a non moving violation yet. Incredibly stupid.

Locally, once the policy was announced that chases were being suspended an increase in the number of people fleeing was noticed. In some areas of town it was a dramatic increase. As soon as the lights came on the patrol car the other vehicle just took off at high speed irregardless of traffic and passersby.

It is a tough call to make a no chase policy but it at least lets the police off the hook. They no longer have to be concerned with catching the suspect.  Hopefully some other time that suspect will be caught doing something else without a vehicle.

The really sad part is the type of mentality (or lack of) that blur demonstrates. Many chases are called off and the suspect STILL crashes and hurts / kills someone. The police are sued then for not having caught the suspect before the crash. If a crash results before the chase is called off the police are sued for having "caused" the chase. This is a blatant example of projecting the blame on everyone EXCEPT the person who caused the problem to begin with. No matter which way it goes the police are, by some stretch of the imagination, held responsible for the actions of a person who is the one who caused the problem. No matter what they do, chase or no chase, they are blamed for the results.

Mav

[Maverick]

 

Originally posted by blur:
How stupid is the pig chasing him?

They should be brought up on charges instigating high-speed chases.

Blur,

There is nothing I could do or say to you that is worse than you simply being you. I hope at some point in your life you achieve the mental status of an adult. You obviously have far to go to get there. Here's a hint, it is not related to your chronological age either.

Mav

[Snoopi]

 

Originally posted by Staga:
Here's a realplayer video how Lotus (Opel) Omega 3,6 TwinTurbo humiliates police's Saab 9000 Turbo in Sweden.


IMHO public roads are not for race but that 377hp Omega is really "Uber"  

Now that is a automobile i haven't seen mentioned in a while.
Lotus Opel Omega.....sigh
377HP with 4 doors and room for the family and friends.
Drive it to work and go autocross racing on the weekends.

Some damn tea grannies in the U.K. tried to ban that car.
They didn't like the idea that it was that fast AND had 4 doors. A Ferrari..thats ok.. but a 4 door rocket....oh my god..it could lead to the corruption of parents !

[Maverick]

 

Originally posted by blur:
No amount of property is worth a human life.

Besides police have radios and helicopters. They should use them.

They do use them blur. There is a limit of how much money can be spent on them and how many are available to do the job. If your community does not provide the funding for a 24 / 7 helicopter patrol it won't be there most of the time. If there are few officers hired to work the areas, there won't be anyone to radio ahead to. Even road blocks are not a cure as they take time to set up and they HAVE to leave a route for the suspect to get through it if the suspect is totally set on not stopping.

Sad fact is, that once a high speed driving situation is initiated, chase or no chase, the only one who is in position to determine when it will stop is the suspect initiating the high speed.

But it's much easier to blame the police rather than the idiot who started it isn't it blur.

Mav

[AKDejaVu]

Here in Portland, the police do not engage in high speed pursuits.  There were too many fatalaties of police officers, other motorists, pedestrians and offenders.  

Right after this became "law", a police officer decided to pull over a car that was driving "eratic".  The car saw the lights come on and accelerated.  The police officer did too, but backed off when he saw the car wasn't going to slow.  One mile later, the police officer came across the car wrapped around a telephone pole.  A high school student had stolen his dad's Thunderbird and taken his girlfriend out for a joyride.  They were both killed.  It just served to reinforce the law and prove that people can be stupid all on their own... no need for the police to help them out.

AKDejaVu

[AKDejaVu]

Actually, the title of this thread reminds me of a joke:

A state trooper was laying in wait on I-5 when a female motorist zooms by well over the speed limit.  The police officer pulls out in pursuit and catches up to her.  She pulled over as soon as she saw him.  She knew she'd been caught dead to rights.

Trooper: Ma'm, do you know why I pulled you over?
Motorist: I don't suppose it was to sell me a ticket to the policeman's ball?
Trooper: No Ma'm.  In Oregon the State Police doesn't have balls.

The officer then blushed, closed his ticket book and walked back to his car without saying a word.  He just drove off.

AKDejaVu

[Mickey1992]

Most likely an urban legend:

Officer/Deputy/Trooper pulls over speeding woman.

Officer: (sarcasticly) Where's the fire?
Woman: In my pants, would you like to put it out (wink, wink)?
Officer: No thanks, I don't put out trash fires.

Reportedly, the department set guildlines that officers were to longer greet drivers with, "Where's the fire".

[Mickey1992]

(Sorry, back to the developing topic)

North of Columbus there is a suburb that has a "no chase unless felony" policy.  An officer tried to pull over a burglary suspect in an unlicensed vehicle.  As a chase began, the suspect started throwing stolen items out of the car.  The officer pursued and some 20 miles later, the suspect ran a red light in downtown Columbus and killed another driver.

The media jumped on the story and blamed the officer.  The officer, admitting that she did not know if the suspect was a felon, stated that because of the apparent evidence and the time of day (2AM), she felt it was safe to pursue the suspect.

The suspect, who was later charged with manslaughter, check forgery, burglary, etc., stated that the only reason why he fled was becasue he *knew* that the suburb had a "no chase" policy.

The husband of the killed driver, who also blamed the officer for his wife's death, was quoted in the paper as saying, "I don't blame him for running from the police."

[AKDejaVu]

 

The husband of the killed driver, who also blamed the officer for his wife's death, was quoted in the paper as saying, "I don't blame him for running from the police."

One you can sue and actually get money from.. the other you can sue and not get anything.  I think he blamed who his lawyer told him to blame.

Good time to start in with lawyer jokes.

AKDejaVu

[Snoopi]

Staga:  Any idea where I can get a poster or sales brochure for the Lotus Opel Omega ?
Is it still being built ?

Regards,
Snoopi

[RAM]

 

Originally posted by AKDejaVu:
One you can sue and actually get money from.. the other you can sue and not get anything.  I think he blamed who his lawyer told him to blame.

Good time to start in with lawyer jokes.

Right on target, Dejavu.  

[StSanta]

Why do sharks never attack lawyers?

Professional courtesy  

[Staga]

Snoopi here are couple links for you; First and Second

Production numbers 1991-1994 ~1100pc

Nice Link too

[This message has been edited by Staga (edited 10-18-2000).]

[Rickenbacker]

Too bad he got away. I'd have preferred to see it end with the stupid diddly going into the woods, taking himself right out of the gene pool.


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        Rickenbacker (Ricken)

                -ISAF-
the Independent Swedish Air Force