easySPEEDcamaro

I have now lost all respect for the police enforcement agency.

So I go drop off the girlfriend from her work last night. Picked her up at 12, drove her home, and left her house around 1. Get into my car, drive not even a block away, sirens behind me. I'm like "sweeeet, i'm getting pulled over and to my knowledge i did nothing, this should be fun".

So, the cop comes to my door. Starts asking me questions.
Cop: whose car is this
Me: mine and my dad's
Cop: whose name is the car in?
Me: it's in my dad's name
Cop: do you have insurance on the vehicle?
Me: Yes we both have insurance
Cop: so the car is in your dad's name for insurance purposes only?
Me: I did not say that, I told you the car is mine and my dad's, we both drive the car, the ownership is in his name, and we both have insurance on the car.

Basically he was trying to put words into my mouth trying to make me confess that the car is only in his name for insurance purposes, which I would not do whether it be true or not.

Next he says "well just give me your driver's license, ownership and insurance and you'll be on your way"

I reply "well, did I do something wrong?"

He goes "you don't have your front plate mounted"

Now, the story with the front plate. I got a trenz billet grille and did alot of work to my car earlier this summer. I also got a custom plate and thus decided to mount my plate on the dash.

I TAPED IT to the windshield from inside so it is 100% visible from any direction. The part that irritated me was I actually called the police station and asked them if this was ok, and they said yes it was as long as the plate is visible and not tucked into the dash. ON TOP of that, I got pulled over last week because the plate had fallen off the windshield (the tape got unsticky) and the cop wrote me a ticket, and said for me to tape the plate back to the windshield and come by the station and he would get rid of it.

And here I am a week later, and this guy is giving me **** for the plate even after I mounted it (different cop this time though). So immediately I explained this to him. I even had the officer's name and number and a little report of me being pulled over a week ago and the cop said it was ok.

What does the cop say in response? "I DON'T GIVE A **** WHAT THAT COP TOLD YOU, I AM TELLING YOU NOW WHAT THE REAL LAW IS" He tells me that the law is that the plate must be fronted to the front most part of the vehicle and cannot be tucked in the dash. Those were his exact words, he swore at me. He showed total disrespect. And wait, the story gets better. Suddenly his partner comes to the passenger side of my vehicle and says "IF I WAS TO SAY I SMELL MARIJUANA WOULD THAT BE COMING FROM INSIDE OF YOUR VEHICLE???".

At this point in time I am growing a huge disrespect for these *******s. I'm sorry I have been polite with every cop in my life, but these guys were just complete *******s. I responded "would you like to search my vehicle, because you are more than welcome to. I just finished school, dropped of my girlfriend and am heading home, and don't do drugs, so I don't know why you would make such an accusation".

So next the cop goes I am getting a ticket for my front plate regardless. I explain to him that it is not reasonable in my scenario, I asked him to radio the other cop who pulled me over. I also explain to him that I know the law and he is wrong as I have done my research. His response "I AM NOT GOING TO RADIO THE COP YOU ****ING TALKED TO, I AM WRITING YOU A TICKET AND THAT'S FINAL". He then tells me to take the ticket to court and that if I mount my plate it will get thrown out.

I tell him I go to school 50 hours a week right now and I don't have the time for this and since it is the enforcement agency's fault I am in this mess in the first place (what, I'm not suppose to take what 5 other cops before him as the law?) what is the point of writing me a ticket as I am obviously not at fault here. He says tough luck and walks back to his squad car.

So I walk to the squad car not about to give up. I approach the driver's side and the cop yells at me "why don't you get on the other side of the car moron before someone hits you". So I come to the other side, and I start sayin again that this is unfair and that I don't have time to drive an hour to book a court date, and then attend court for 2 hours (as i will plead not guilty, i will have to wait for EVERYONE before me to finish). Then he goes "GO AND HAVE A ****ING SEAT IN YOUR CAR AND WHEN WE ARE READY TO TALK TO YOU WE WILL COME TO YOU".

So I'm sitting there, waiting and waiting, he finally comes. I tell him I am not happy with his actions and that I will be filing a complaint with their ranking officer IMMEDIATELY for the way they have abused me that night. The cop responds "YOU GO DO WHATEVER THE **** YOU WANT, THEY WON'T CARE OR LISTEN TO WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY, OR DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT".

So at this point he gives me the ticket, and I just got so irritated I say to him "I hope this has been the hightlight of your day and it makes you FEEL REAL WARM INSIDE doing this to me". He responds "go **** yourself" and walks back to his squad car.


Well, I drove to hte police station and talked to the seargant, some woman. They said "we can't do anything, here is a form you can fill out for a public complaint and submit it back to us". And as far as the ticket is concerned she said I had to take it to court as they apparently can't do anything once it's been written.

WOW, never thought something like this would happen to me, but i am going to ****ing pursue this cop to the highest degree possible.

easySPEEDcamaro

OH AND IN ADDITION to that, i got the sergent to look up the criminal code, and what did it say?

The plate must be mounted somewhere where it can be visible from the front of the vehicle.

I find it funny how the cop was standing RIGHT beside my door and he is like "well look, standing here by your front tire, i have trouble seeing your plate in your dash.... Now I'm thinking to myself, if it's suppose to be mounted on the grill, you wouldn't see it at all from where you're standing!!!

Paul_Hughes_87 T/A

I have a phone number for a real good paralegal if you want to use him. He gets me and my buddys off everything and he will help you sort out that ******* cop. His office is across the street from the canadian tire plaza in Woodbridge. you should go as high as you can about the ******* cop talk to your local M.P. and anyone else that will listen.

Paul

George

That's about it - did you think it would be any different - the cops don't need you and they expect the same.

Sgt.D's92RS

Hey I read your story and wanted to tear some road cop a new ***. I hate when some of us act like morons. I am a cop and I apoligize for the treatment you recieved. I read that you spoke to the Sarge. You should ask to speak to someone of higher rank because alot of times the sarge just cuts things off at the pass and it never gets to the upper people. Write a letter to the Sheriff or ask for a LT.

Acceld Z

That sucks guy. But, they're The Police and can pretty much do as they please. All you can really do is be polite and respectfull and hope it doesn't affect your insurance.

One of the local guys here, Buddy, got pulled over and bitched out this summer. It was almost the same situation, I think.

Acceld Z

Heheh, this isn't Hazzard County Sadly, the police here have a different kind of hierarchy.

Maybe some of the members who are police officers could offer some advice?

85_ZED28

that sucks man, got me pissed off just reading it

trigger GTA

easy i think you need to go back and read it again... or i do.

i seem to remember it say it has to be on the forward most part of the car and the dash is just not good enough

Tony89GTA

iTrader: (7)

You guys should do what I do and have a tape recorder handy in your glove box at all times, especially when you have to deal with the cops in ontario!!

Hawk92z-TDZ

Thats what I do too I even pul it oput and hit record right in front of them, leaving it recording on the dash

Acceld Z

And what kind of response does that get? Alot of the import 'tards here do that. They get harrased even worse.

Pacer

Sorry to hear about your situation Easy ...

Somehow I think life would be easier if you just mounted the plate where it was supposed to be. No point opening the door to trouble when you have a car cops like to pull over.

I had a run-in once and lost a lot of points when the cop gave false testimony in court. I was young then. I learned to play by the rules and be polite. It's hard to win against cops.

Pacer

chevyrumble83

that aint nothing, u got it easy. i have been beatin by cops more then 5 times for no reasion and so have alot of my friends. they somehow think they can do whatever they like! i hate alot of them and i will always hate them>i could go on for hours with really bad cops stories and my view on the law system. but it will just **** me off for the day so ill leave it as that. dont get it twisted though there is acouple good nice sops out there but not to many..

the good thing is now u know how screwed up everything is, i suggest u just mount the plate (i did) otherwise they will never stop with it, trust me i went through the same thing as u.
oh and cops just luv to make $hit up and put words in your mouth so i suggest if u get pulled over just kiss there a$$, dont ever talk back, dont even speak loud to them cuz that can get u in trouble. k im just gonna stop now.......
each and everything should be recorded at all times (audio and video) this way we have proof!

F-BIRD'88

Having grown up and lived in T.O. for many years (don;t live there now), I have one bit of advice for ya. Mount the *** plate on the front of your car with screws or something permanent. If a cop ( especially a TO. cop) see's your plate mounted any where else but the front and back like every other car on the road YOU WILL GET PULLED OVER on a regular basis.
Doesn't matter what the law actually says or doesn't say
unless you want more tickets etc and abuse from stupid TO cops.

The smart thing to do is to avoid attracting attention to yourself.

Plate in the windshield...., loud exhaust, big hood scoop
big rear tires, suspension jacked up or exessively low... take your pick,,,your going to get pulled over.

Cops are cops..Most of them have no sense of humour or patience for young people in a performance car....TO cops are some of the worse there is. All you have to do is read the paper, they're in there constantly. Corruption, drug deals, racial stuff etc etc.
An hour or so making a custom licience plate mounting bracket is a lot easier than putting up with to constant police abuse isn't it.

The cop has no business swearing at you. Very unprofessional but not untypical of the TO. police force.
Your only recourse may be getting a newspaper editor to run a editorial in the paper about it. The mayor of Toronto and Police Commission needs to get a letter from you too.
Soon as you finish that cool custom licience plate bracket.

Buddy

Honestly, just bite the bullit, mount the plate. As for the run-in, just chaulk it up to one to put into your "stories for you" folder. The reality is, cops are cops, always will be. How many times have you seen them blow by you on the road or through a red light to some retaurant or something like that? And guess what, you'll probably see it many more times in your life. As a kid growing up, the teachers and principle were always "right", even when the reality was they might have been wrong in some cases. Well as adults, there are still people in positions where, even when it isn't fair, that are always "right". Ask any cop out there if he has any traffic violations, (off duty) you'dd be hard pressed to find more than a handfull. it's the way it is, the way it always will be, here and everywhere. Your story is the story of many, probably everyday, with some much worse most likely.
If anyone (newspaper, local counselor - mp, or even the Mayor, and it would never reach that far) would listen to you, I'dd be a bit surprised. I'm not being ignorant to you, just honest.
Move on my friend, it'll be less breath wasted. Cops aren't all bad, it's just some people put in positions of power, abuse it. Even though I have my own stories, and hear more, I support the police. I just think they should spend more time on more serious crimes.

88firebird

Buddy of mine got pulled over... his rear running lights were out and he hasn't been able to figure out why they won't go on... brake lights work, but not the running lights... anyways, he got quite the scare when he got pulled over... he looked in the rear view mirror, and watched the cop approach his truck while drawing his gun and pointing it at the cab of the truck! As far as I knew the cops around here aren't allowed to draw their guns for no reason... but anyways... he checked my buddy's plates... turns out he forgot to renew them... then he asked for his insurance... turns out his insurance slip was at home... the cop was miserable, but was pretty fair with my buddy... he let him off the ticket for the lights, but he got a ticket for the expired plates, and had to show up at the cop shop with proof of insurance. But I have no idea why he drew his gun when pulling him over tho! That's not cool... and the cops wonder why some people get spooked by the cops and run!

johnyIROC

Where I used to live stuff like that was part of the daily routine... By yourself you won't get anywhere other than maybe getting the ticket thrown out in court. I think everyone knows that the police practice profiling based on age and vehicle type. Even if we could prove it beyond a doubt there is not alot of sympathy for young guys in sports cars. I don't think the harassment will ever stop.

cam-

You want to know a couple of pull over preventers. If I see a cop car i always roll my window down cold out or not day and night and even sometimes turn the lights on so he/she can get a good look inside cause thats usually what they want to do anyway catch you doing something other than a lame *** traffic ticket offence to make the stop worthwhile. The second is to slip it into neutral when passing a cop who has someone already over or is pulling out of a street or? I do this just long enough to get out of ear shot if possible and then put it back into gear. I also ALWAYS take my sunglasses off if I am driving passed or near a cop along with the window down thing. But by far the most important is to mute the tunes when near a cop cause thats a sure fired pull your *** over and see what your smoking kind of attention grabber.

I know that all of those things are outside of our "rights" and you certainly don't have to do it but man after countless stops and tickets over the years I can tell you those tips work

easySPEED I feel your pain man I used to get stopped all the time. Do yourself a favour and mount the plate. You ain't gonna win much worthwhile by fighting every cop who stops you for it.

Kandied91z

iTrader: (7)

without reading everyone's posts i'd say that first off you knew what was coming when he pulled you over. reguardless of what looks cool or how things work if your laws state you have to have a front plate then your going to have to deal with the hassles. sounds like your obviously a younger guy driving a nice car that gets attention. police eat that sort of thing up...

with that out of the way i don't know about your area but here if i were to get out and approach a car i'd be put in handcuffs and thrown on the hood of my car after i would have had guns drawn on me. sounds like things are different in your area which is good for you.

the best thing anyone can do driving cars like ours or any car that stands out is to prepare yourself. my own situation i have a setup of quite a few things after i've had much worse scenarios then this but the easiest is to make sure you have all your info quickly accessable. the less you have to wait the better. the second thing is to get yourself a tape recorder, a small one and keep it with your papers. no need to broadcast it to the police but be sure to turn it on when the conversation is going. my cameras are wired for sound but i use to keep a small recorder in the center console and set it on the arm rest when i got pulled over. saved my butt a few times...

i have had cops accuse me of not wearing my seatbelt when i clearly was. ( in car cop camera at court date). i have had cops accuse me of drag racing when i clearly wasn't. (tape recorder saved me here). had a police officer accuse me of trying to run him over with my car. (purchase records and recorder helped here). had 3 officers search my car, one broke my center console, another slid is flashlight across my roof and one scratched my fender while leaning against it with his cuffs. (tape recorder and cameras helped here)

needless to say i can drive through my small town without to much a worry but i don't trust any officers anymore. however each officer is different and i still give them the respect they deserve until otherwise which then it's best to shut up unless something is really truly wrong. as sad as it is to have to think about it they are people too with problems like everyone else and just because someone might be having a bad night is no need to cause un necessary trouble. most often happens with younger people because they know they can intimidate. be calm, collected, polite and their should be no reason but it does happen. prepare yourself and you won't get taken advantage of.

also as a rule of thumb obviously depending on what time of day it is but always try to get pulled over in a populated area. don't get right in the middle of things but make sure you pull into a gas station or a traffic situation. if it's well lit up the officers are less worried about you and if it's high traffic with people they are less prone to do things like above when they can be seen by others.

cam-

Wow! I was warned not to mess with the force South of the border but this is the first time anyone has ever explained in detail what they have been through. That tale is gonna make me think "thrice" when driving South from now on.