LEO Question

[Geezer]

I generally get one performance award each year on the FJR. They have always been in another state from where I live and, as far as I can tell, they have not shown up on my driving record in state.

 

[HotRodZilla]

Related or not related, I'm not sure, but here is my question: Why do officers touch the back of a car when they are walking up to talk to a driver?

Related or not related, I'm not sure, but here is my question: Why do officers touch the back of a car when they are walking up to talk to a driver?

Leaves "their" fingerprints on your car: if you drive off, they can later prove that your car was the one they pulled over.

We were taught this, back in the day, to ensure a trunk was closed...so as not to be attacked by someone hiding in an open trunk. The issue arises from doing it to EVERY car we stop. If I only do it to cars that actually have a trunk, I may get out of doing it ever...So, it gets done to everyone...Trucks, SUVs, cars, whatever. Now, with so many cars that have trunks that open from the inside, I don't know if it really matters, but it makes me feel better when I do it.

The fingerprint thing...I never heard of that until I saw it on a TV show once...So I don't know the validity of that. Since most of us do it as we are moving, I would think the prints may actually be smudges, and prior to the stop, there should be good vehicle info given to direct others to the correct car. Also, I know some guys that wear gloves prior to contacting people, year round, and write citations etc, while wearing them, so while placing a fingerprint on a car may be an added bonus, I think that was more dreamt up by TV than real life...

 

[Bounce]

Semi-related topic. How many times have you been pulled over by LEO while on the bike, and of those, how many times were you given only a warning?

there was this one week (unrelated to any rallies of certificate rides)... across about 10 states where i got 5 warnings on the bike. as well as one "pass" as he pinged me with instant on about 150 miles from any town in any direction. i was going about +40 when i threw out the anchor and locked in on the stupid OR posted limit for the next hour (to the border) expecting that any moment the Statie would come up, lock we away, and impound my bike. i doubt he ever put his patrol car in gear while laughing his *** off at how quick a big-assed Wing could slow down.

i've also been ticketed for +2, so don't use my one "lucky week" as anything to base your decisions on.

 

[Greg 03]

I personally don't write a ticket until people hit 15 over or 11 over in a school zone. I have pulled people over who have been going slower than those speeds but give either a verbal or written warning. In our department written warnings aren't tracked and there is no record of them other than the federally mandated traffic stop entry I have to make. If I wrote tickets for ten over in a non-school zone my hand would fall off!

I also touch the back of every vehicle I pull over and even take the extra step to remove my riding gloves. It's become sort of a tactile reminder to myself to stay alert and it also serves the purpose of being able to have my hands free in case I have to deal with any surprises.