I’ve been pulled over for speeding more times than I should be admitting to and, just to echo what everyone else has said: cops most definitely do open with this question.
So far, the only answer that has gotten a laugh out of the cop has been, “What’s the speed limit? Yeah. Faster than that?” With a big smile. I’m a somewhat cute young girl, so that helps me case.
I wonder if any of the cops here have ever had this dialogue, and if so how did it turn out.
Cop: “Do you know how fast you were going?”
Driver: “kiss my ass”
When my daughter was a cute teenager she got out of at least two tickets by saying nothing and bursting into tears. She majored in theater in college.
Of course now she’s married and has a toddler, and she complains to the local police that they don’t enforce the 25 mph speed limit on our local streets strictly enough.
I am distinctly NOT young, cute, or female.
Nonetheless, adhering to Scubaqueen’s program has likewise gotten me out of at least four or five possible tickets in some forty years of driving. I’ve received three tickets in this same period, so it isn’t foolproof, but it definitely does work.
When I was young and cocky, every stop ended in a ticket. I wasn’t obviously uncooperative or disrespectful or anything, but I was pissed I was stopped, and I wasn’t going to offer up anything.
I rarely get stopped these days, but the last two times I got lesser, no-point tickets, even though I was stopped for something more severe (speeding and not coming to a full stop at a stop sign, respectively). The difference? I’m older, grayer, and at least can create the illusion of respectability :D, and I’m sure that helps. But I also sincerely have the attitude now that I’m the guy who got myself stopped, not the cop–he’s doing his job. There’s a real easy way to avoid getting stopped for speeding. Anyway, I think that vibe comes across, and I’m always courteous and I answer questions directly and honestly–e.g., I don’t say I was going the speed limit when I know damn well I wasn’t.
My theory is that cops don’t enjoy giving tickets out, except to assholes. So don’t be one!
Yes, just as surely as confessing to any other violation of law you can think of. As noted upthread, if there turns out to be a problem with his measurement of your speed, and/or you choose to challenge the ticket in court by claiming innocence, the officer can say under oath in a loud, clear voice: “Yes, your Honor, the defendant confessed to me that he had been travelling 45 in a 30-MPH zone.”
Nope (unless you were really hauling ass), but any ticket they write will be just that much more difficult to fight in court.
Nowadays you can technically be speeding when you are just keeping up with traffic. Go 55 and you will get run down.
A friend who is a former border patrol agent has a nice write-up on how to behave during a traffic stop. It’s written primarily for motorcyclists, but the basics work just as well for car drivers. At its core is the idea of doing everything you can, verbally and non-verbally, to convince the officer that you are not a threat to his safety or his authority.
I’ve employed these tips during my past couple of traffic stops: hands on fuel tank in front of me, I asked permission before digging for my license and registration, I asked permission to get off the bike and move away from the traffic lanes, and when he was busy back at his patrol vehicle, I stood facing him, stationary, with my hands clasped in front of me. Both stops resulted in only verbal warnings.
Allow me to clarify: It’s an infraction which is punishable by fine only, not imprisonment. So, if you are a speeder, you are not a criminal; ergo, confessing to speeding does not incriminate you.
Now, if you’re hauling ass and are charged and convicted of reckless endangerment, you may very well be a criminal in your area. But the speeding part is a minor traffic violation and doesn’t make you a criminal.
“Depends on how long you’ve been following me.” That’s what I wanted to say to the cop when he caught me doing 20 over.
Yikes, that seems pretty fast.
But, yeah, officers do ask that question. And I think your attitude has a lot to do with how the officer is going to react to you. If you get confrontational, you’re a self-entitled asshole. If you flip out and cry, you’re manipulative (assuming you’re a woman). I’d just say something like, “I’m sorry - I must have been going faster than I should have been. I didn’t realize.” Or something similar.
I’m a pretty careful driver now. I really don’t like feeling like I have to slam on the brakes every time I happen to see a cop, so I mitigate that issue by simply not speeding. Last time I was pulled over, I was honest. “I’m sorry. I was late for work and was going too fast. I won’t do it again.” To which the cop responded, “The world won’t end if you’re late will it?” I said, “No, you’re right. It won’t. I guess I just got caught up.” And he said, “This is your lucky day. I’ll give you a warning, but slow it down.” And I did.
In my world, one is factually speeding when one exceeds the speed limit regardless of mitigating factors.
I never break the speed limit, not even “technically” (whatever that means in this context), and I’ve never been rear-ended.
I picture myself saying “I was paying more attention to the road than the speedometer.”
How about:
“Do you know how fast you were going?”
“Please tell me, officer.” in as polite a manner as possible.
Here’s what I said in another thread long ago that addresses the issue of mitigating factors vs. factually speeding (For the record, I live in the DC area if that makes any difference.):
Nevermind
You are relying on an overly narrow definition of “incriminate.”
The bottom line is that you don’t have to confess your violation of the law to the officer, but if you do - whether that violation was a misdemeanor, a felony, or something else - that confession can be used as evidence against you.
Q1: Do you know why I pulled you over?
OR
Q2: Do you know how fast you were going?
A: I’m sorry, officer, have I done something wrong?
With this response, you are apologetic and polite, you avoid silly guessing games, you don’t inadvertently alert the cop to something else for which the cop could cite you, and there is no admission to be used as evidence against you in court.
Notably, Q1 requires you to speculate as to the cop’s motive, so how is anyone supposed to truthfully answer that other than, “No.”?
A line I thought was funny:
Q: Do you know why I pulled you over?
A: Because you only got Cs in high school?
An excellent read. Thank you. I especially liked this part in the opening paragraph:
I was pulled over in FL about a week ago
What I did, I was in the right turning lane and just missed the light. The people going straight just got the Green but were slacking so i just changed lanes and went straight. About 2 miles down the road i got pulled over.
The cop walked up and said
“So, what have we been doing in these last few minutes”
I said,
"Ill tell you, but first i got to tell you I have a concealed weapons permit, Here it is, I have a gun in my pocket, ill keep my hands where you can see them, and there is a gun in the glove box as well. "
Cop said, "Thanks for telling me that, so what was that back there?
I said, “well i was going to turn right but i caught the red so i jumped over and cut someone off and i know that it was wrong”
So he said " OH, ok i thought you used the turning lanes to speed up and pass everyone on purpose, and you know that is illegal." Again like a scene from super troopers his partner steps to the other side of the car and leans in a says the SAME EXACT THING! I did tell him that what i did was illegal as well and i was sorry. He handed back the license and registration and said, ok here’s what were going to do, youre gonna have a good day, and your also not gonna do that again. I turn to say thanks and hes already nearly in his car driving off. We get stuck next to each other for the next 3 lights.
I have been pulled over about 3 times in the last 10 years. Ticketed 1 time $580 speeding ticket.