# "Checked by Radar" **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 5, 2019, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008 "2019-11-05T02:11:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/21 "2019-11-05T15:09:13Z")
It is probably just me, but I always read that sign with meaning number 2: check: stop or slow down the progress of Similar: halt, stop, bring to a standstill Them’s powerful radar waves - they can make your car slow down, like driving into a strong wind. A radio wind! ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/22 "2019-11-05T15:13:10Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > Generally when aircraft is utilized enforcement is done in a bulk operation. Several squads are daisy chained on a bridge or entrance ramp. The method of clocking in the plane is usually [VASCAR](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VASCAR). 10-20 cites per hour can be issued easily. I’ve seen groups of officers working with planes not just pull over one car, but pull over platoons of cars. Everyone from the red Ford Ranger to the white Dodge charger is speeding? Grab them all. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/23 "2019-11-05T15:14:57Z")
Well, sure, **JAQ** , but the sign doesn’t say how much the radar slows you down. But those radio waves do still impart a nonzero momentum to your car. (though this does still depend on the cop aiming the radar gun at you as you’re approaching him, not after you pass him) ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/24 "2019-11-05T15:21:54Z")
> [@Jinx](#): > > This may be a long shot: I understand, when radar was new technology, the public was not given full disclosure about the use of radar to monitor speed. And, while there may have been a precedent-setting court case in multiple States, how can I find such a case in my State? For starters, is what I am seeking deemed “Case Law”? And, where would I begin to find Case Law cases? If I could cite such a case, it would strengthen my argument in a similar situation. Thanks! 🆒 If you are seeking cases which address “full disclosure about the use of radar to monitor speed,” I doubt you are going to find it. If you are looking for cases in which radar speed evidence was deemed to be admissible in your state, you’ll need to tell us what state you’re in. To provide one example, Connecticut’s leading case is [here](https://law.justia.com/cases/connecticut/supreme-court/1966/153-conn-365-1.html). In many states, radar evidence was made admissible by judicial notice by a specific act of the legislature, so you won’t necessarily find relevant case law for your state. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/25 "2019-11-05T15:24:35Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > societal gain from increased compliance with speed limits - fewer accidents, fewer deaths, better traffic flow with less delay, reduced carbon outputs, etc. Do you have a cite for these benefits? And for the contention that police issuing tickets for speeding increases compliance? ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/26 "2019-11-05T15:36:02Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > Do you have a cite for these benefits? And for the contention that police issuing tickets for speeding increases compliance? Increased enforcement of speed limits does increase compliance, but it doesn’t last when enforcement is lowered, and its localized to where the enforcement is taking place. You can look at the paper [Speed Enforcement and Speed Choice](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0001457582900380) as a starting point if you want to know more. There’s other research out there as well. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/27 "2019-11-05T15:49:10Z")
> [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > The oner sign I remember most clearly was “Speed Checked By Aircraft.” Around here the signs say Speed _Enforced_ by Aircraft which brings to mind strafing runs. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/28 "2019-11-05T16:04:39Z")
[**Fighting a Radar Ticket**](https://blogs.findlaw.com/blotter/2016/11/how-to-fight-a-speeding-ticket-based-on-radar-or-laser-evidence.html) I would like to remind you that, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” If, like me, you believe that most posted speed limits are bullshit and want to consistently travel faster, getting a quality radar detector can save your hide on a consistent basis. Better yet, get an anti-radar detector. Mine can disrupt radar long enough for me to slow down but not so long that the police can detect that their radar is being interfered with. That is actually an FCC violation and a federal offense, so you don’t want an actual scrambler. ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/29 "2019-11-05T16:16:56Z")
I have always found that hiring a lawyer has been to my advantage. And the lawyer typically costs less than the ticket, the points , insurance rise etc. Most of the time the lawyer has asked for a jury trial and the case has been dismissed in pre-trial. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/30 "2019-11-05T16:17:11Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > Around here the signs say Speed _Enforced_ by Aircraft which brings to mind strafing runs. I saw one of those on my first drive into either Georgia or Florida, and that was exactly the image it called to my mind. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/31 "2019-11-05T16:32:08Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > Around here the signs say Speed _Enforced_ by Aircraft which brings to mind strafing runs. When I was a kid, I thought the planes that caught you speeding would land on the highway and ticket you. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Vorlon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@The\_Vorlon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Vorlon)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/32 "2019-11-05T16:51:21Z")
As far as CT goes, Karma is a bitch–I recall that years ago, their staties started having medical problems, that ended up being traced to the habit of putting the energized radar gun in their laps while working, and toasting their wedding tackle. Opps… ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/33 "2019-11-05T16:57:54Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > :dubious: > > Do you know this to be fact or did he just say that’s what happened to his case? > > Where did this take place? Is there an actual statute there that mandates the signs be present? You’re correct, I wasn’t actually there at the courthouse, so all I know is that’s what he says happened. It took place in Sacramento County, California. I don’t know what the actual statutes are, and honestly I don’t feel like looking them up right now. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/34 "2019-11-05T17:19:34Z")
> [@am77494](#): > > I have always found that hiring a lawyer has been to my advantage. And the lawyer typically costs less than the ticket, the points , insurance rise etc. Most of the time the lawyer has asked for a jury trial and the case has been dismissed in pre-trial. Does the price of a lawyer at least give you second thoughts about running lights, speeding etc.? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/35 "2019-11-05T17:30:26Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Does the price of a lawyer at least give you second thoughts about running lights, speeding etc.? In Pennsylvania we have signs that make me wonder. [“DRUNK DRIVING” with the red slash through it](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gannett-cdn.com%2F-mm-%2F9065941e142eb769bb76794c742e08d1e14ee558%2Fr%3D300%2Fhttp%2Fwww.gannett-cdn.com%2F-mm-%2F9065941e142eb769bb76794c742e08d1e14ee558%2Fr%3D300%2Fhttp%2Fwww.gannett-cdn.com%2F-mm-%2Fd08d45643816340bafc1a1e0548739bac26e815a%2Fc%3D542-30-2294-1782%2Flocal%2F-%2Fmedia%2F2016%2F03%2F09%2FDetroitFreePress%2FDetroitFreePress%2F635931080568239632-sign-040707-teasteerbrook8-HR.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.freep.com%2Fstory%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fmichigan%2F2016%2F04%2F21%2Fcourt-no-dui-driveway%2F83326170%2F&tbnid=avl8YuWMPSXPMM&vet=12ahUKEwi10LPXy9PlAhUBEd8KHdQCDB8QMygAegUIARDPAQ..i&docid=q1oB_kjDaVCKNM&w=300&h=300&q=no%20dui%20sign&safe=off&client=firefox-b-1-d&ved=2ahUKEwi10LPXy9PlAhUBEd8KHdQCDB8QMygAegUIARDPAQ) and under that “YOU CAN’T AFFORD IT”. To me it sounds like a challenge, and, honestly, most people _can_ afford their first DUI. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/36 "2019-11-05T17:42:17Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > It is probably just me, but I always read that sign with meaning number 2: > > check: > stop or slow down the progress of > Similar: halt, stop, bring to a standstill > > Them’s powerful radar waves - they can make your car slow down, like driving into a strong wind. A radio wind! Similarly, I like to read the “fine” in “$200 FINE FOR LITTERING” to mean, “acceptable or appropriate.” But I’ve usually got something better to use that $200 on than scattering it along the freeway. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/37 "2019-11-05T17:43:29Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > They still do that. Got a ticket about five years ago for speeding. The motorcycle cop writing the ticket said I’d been clocked by a police airplane. I thought they still did that with a stopwatch and those white hash marks on the side of the road every quarter mile or so. I’m sure that is still done in lots of places, but this particular video shows more sophisticated stuff going on: [Speed Enforcement by Aircraft: View From The Plane](https://youtu.be/YHWMFnLJLDs?t=171) (speed enforcement starts at 2:50 or so). I wanted to see more actual speed enforcement, but they spend most of the video flying over urban areas and observing stuff. It’s pretty neat how they have the augmented reality going on there. It looks like the officer is clicking waypoints as he watches traffic and GPS + maps are used to figure out the actual distances instead of relying on pre-measured sections of road with hash marks. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/38 "2019-11-05T18:21:08Z")
> [@minor7flat5](#): > > I thought they still did that with a stopwatch and those white hash marks on the side of the road every quarter mile or so. By “clocked,” I just meant “noticed.” I don’t have any idea what specific tech the airplane used to determine I was speeding. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/39 "2019-11-05T20:43:16Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > By “clocked,” I just meant “noticed.” I don’t have any idea what specific tech the airplane used to determine I was speeding. If it happened anytime in the last 40 years odds are high that it was VASCAR. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2019, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008/40 "2019-11-05T22:52:11Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > When I was a kid, I thought the planes that caught you speeding would land on the highway and ticket you. That’s actually possible on long stretches of 5 in central California. Ruler-straight and flat for miles. Local trivia: Harris Ranch (a decades-old steakhouse in Coalinga) has an airstrip and is very popular with the CHP pilots for lunch. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checked-by-radar/843008.md?page=3)