Officers of the org, what speed do you look for?

I wouldn't have made a traffic stop unless you were 15 over but usually was about 20 - 30 over. If I stopped every car doing 15 over then I would have been on traffic all day long.. Typically when I made the stop the person was very thankful other charges didn't go along with a simple speeding ticket..
 
Is it true that cops have a quota to meet?
no. they are illegal.

but, if you are assigned out of the traffic division and ur not finding any violations then u may be removed from that division. so does that mean a certain amount of tickets will be written by some officers? yep.

thats a sweet gig for most. especially if they get to ride a motorcycle.
 
Is it true that cops have a quota to meet?

I would imagine its like any performance based job. If you are hired to do X and you cannot prove you are doing X, you aren't likely to continue in that role. While they dont have quotas I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that there is a local "standard" for lack of a better term they are measured by. And with all performance based jobs, those at the high end and bottom end are seen the same way.
 
no. they are illegal.

but, if you are assigned out of the traffic division and ur not finding any violations then u may be removed from that division. so does that mean a certain amount of tickets will be written by some officers? yep.

thats a sweet gig for most. especially if they get to ride a motorcycle.

Thanks for the insight

I see some cops in texas are riding sports bikes now. Well, not true sport bikes like busa, zx10 etc but i have seen a few on some sport touring looking bikes. It was hard to tell with all of the equipment it had on it. WE had a stare down as i passed by. :laugh:
 
I would imagine its like any performance based job. If you are hired to do X and you cannot prove you are doing X, you aren't likely to continue in that role. While they dont have quotas I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that there is a local "standard" for lack of a better term they are measured by. And with all performance based jobs, those at the high end and bottom end are seen the same way.

Imagine saying after a month on duty, nobody was speeding on my shift. :rofl:
 
Imagine saying after a month on duty, nobody was speeding on my shift. :rofl:

heh, yeah I'd guess if you didnt have some citations in the first few weeks you might have someone keeping an eye on ya :laugh:

and there are Busa troopers out your way. Not sure if Steve still has his in OK but he used to ride a busa for his patrol bike :cool:
 
Cops around here don't play around, anything above 5mph you have a chance to see the red/blue lights. I know when and where to be stupid around here. Unless I see a hot chick or the milf driving the BMW, then all thought process fly's outta my head.
 
Is it true that cops have a quota to meet?

They told me at first that I got a toaster if I met the quota... I never got one (sound familiar) then I figured it out, I didn't have a quote I could write as many as I wanted... Trust me guys I could have written 30 tickets a day for people going 30 over.... Better things to focus on..
 
I'm sure it depends on the state/city. You can usually tell by the predominant level of speeding on the freeways. If everyone is going between 5 and 15 over, like in NM you know they are not hardasses for speeding. In Virginia they went at least 10 over on the freeways but the cops were pretty strict on the highways and side roads. If you get pulled over for going 4 mph over the limit like I did in OK, you know they will clobber you. My experience is if everyone is going no more than 5 over, they are pretty strict. Of course there is always that one hardass who writes you for not completing a pass before the broken line stops. I literally crossed back into my lane withing 10 feet of it going solid. He just lookin to write a ticket. My overall impression in Colorado was they are pretty strict there.

I just look at the predominant flow of traffic and if they are really flying, I go along with them but just a little slower hoping I'm not the one who gets tagged. Good strategy? Has worked for me so far.
 
We have bike cops that run this stretch of highway and I can tell you going with the flow does not always work. In a group they seem to lower their handheld, but once they get a good target with a little space they hold it steady and pluck them off the road.

My friend thinks it is funny (he is with the sheriffs office and a SWAT sniper). Every time he is riding with me he giggles when I see a cop running radar because I slow down even if I am doing well below the speed limit.

I guess it is just an instinctive precaution, and some have taken it as a sign of respect or acknowledgement.

I know others take note when they see the front end dive knowing they have been spotted.
 
I got tagged with a warning at 50 in a 40. I was in a group of about 6 cars and next thing I see is a cop standing in the midle of the road with his LIDAR gun. Pulled us all over as a group and when he got to me he asked me if I had a MSF card which I then presented. He said, he was a MSF instructor and since I have my MSF card he was going to cut me a break and give me a warning. (That made no sense to me but i wasn't about to complain)

After I had the warning in hand I couldn't help myself and I had to ask him one question. "As a motorcyclist, is it safe to travel the speed limit on this road?" After a long pause he said, and I quote, "Sometimes" You see, on the stretch of road I was on, it is actually DANGEROUS for a Motorcyclist to go the speed limit because they then become the hazard with people whipping around and cutting them off.

I would rather be going slightly faster than traffic because I can't see what's going on behind me. I usually don't because I don't want a ticket or the higher insurance.

Sometimes I wish LEOs would consistently write for going 1 MPH over. That way there is no grey areas and you know where you stand.

What the hell am I talking about? Where's the fun in that?
 
A personal friend of mine ( ex neighbor ) use to be a CHP patrolman. He was told that if he didn't write at least 2 speeding tickets a day he would be transfered to some place he didn't want to be. He was told a lot of other stuff that alienated him from being a CHP any more and retired a few years ago.

I saw years ago Oklahoma had some Hayabusa pursuit motorcycles painted in black and white.

Utah UHP is very vigorous on speed enforcement. They use to have some very low key un marked Mustang GTs to patrol with 4 or more years ago. Back in the 80s the UHP had 5.0 Mustangs and ran them hard chasing people... they were known to get light in the rear ( poor areo dynamic notch back roof was said to be the cause ) and crashed a few times at high speed with bad results for the officers involved.

California CHP is pretty busy enforcing speed limits and focuses on areas where accident rates have spiked. I like the fact that many CHP officers leave their KA band radar turned on all the time in so my Valentine One can notify me that KA is working in the area. Other than that most people are speeding on the interstates in socal between 5 and 15 mph over the limit up to the point when traffic is moderately busy. I have passed many CHPs using radar or LIDAR around 10 over in traffic and not been stopped.

I believe the limits are set low due to the average drivers skill and awareness level not being satisfactory for higher speeds. The improved power, tires, suspension, handling, and safety of newer cars makes cruising at much higher speeds possible. However, the roads here in socal are rough in many places and would cause problems with higher limits.
 
I cruised through radar once clocked at 116(down from an indicated 160 a minute earlier),told him i guess i'm just an old man on one of these young kid's motorsickles and it just kinda got away from me...told me to slow down and let me go.:thumbsup:

(that same line has since worked several more times...:laugh:)

^you should be ashamed of yourself old man. :poke::laugh:

...that's what i keep tellin' myself.:laugh:

Oh, that one just went in the tool belt. Might need it in a few weeks :laugh:
 
I cruised through radar once clocked at 116(down from an indicated 160 a minute earlier),told him i guess i'm just an old man on one of these young kid's motorsickles and it just kinda got away from me...told me to slow down and let me go.:thumbsup:

(that same line has since worked several more times...:laugh:)

^you should be ashamed of yourself old man. :poke::laugh:

Is it true that cops have a quota to meet?

I've worked four different places and have never had x number or kind of tickets to write. However if someone does have a quota, does it really matter if you get caught breaking the law.
 
seven mary three....

- Tv (opening) - YouTube[/url]
 
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In one job I was asked not to right tickets , Sheriffs Office, the Sheriff is elected :laugh: In two others I was asked to give 15 over. In the present one I haven't been given any direction. I don't typically mess with less than 12, SCHP in this area 9. SC is an absolute state. If you're doing 36 / 35 your speeding.

College place Washington was asked to stop writing for 1 over the speed limit. The courts did not believe a half a needle with on your gauge was reasonable. Some officers contact at 8 over and write after 10 plus.

The irony is the local PD here puts up signs saying there is speed enforcement zone ahead and they still have people pulled over. THEY HAVE SIGNS OUT and you still speed.
 
So again do you guys make any exceptions for bikes over cars as far as speed is concerned? I understand getting a ticket for speeding in town, thats something I just dont do but honestly I go the speed limit on the freeway and lightly traveled highways maybe 10% of the time. Does it make a difference at all if its a bike or a car?
 
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