# The last time you got pulled over...\[redux\] **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 13, 2015, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554 "2015-10-13T16:14:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/21 "2015-10-13T19:10:30Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > I’d never own up to _deserving_ any of my tickets! When I was young, I did some stupid things, I deserved some of those tickets. I am just lucky I didnt get more. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/22 "2015-10-13T19:41:59Z")
I don’t feel like I deserved it, but I was going about 10MPH over the speed limit, just like everyone else on the road at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Mixolydian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/da6949/32.png) [@Mixolydian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mixolydian)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/23 "2015-10-13T19:44:32Z")
Last May, I was pulled aside by the officer who’s assigned traffic duty at the local elementary school; rather than get into the long car pool line that winds through the parking lot, I took the calculated risk of stopping curbside to drop my son off - otherwise he would surely have been late. This act is frequently performed by many throughout the year, including myself when necessary; the officer is about 100 yards further up the street typically dealing with other traffic moving through the school zone. This time he saw me though, and asked me to pull aside. Note that this is actual city police… Officer: “How’s it going?” Me: “Well, pretty good, up until now” Officer: “You understand what you did wrong?” Me: “Yes, I know…if everyone did that, we’d have an even bigger mess…” etc. Officer: “OK, just sit tight” (goes over to his motorcycle to grab a pen, etc.) Officer: “I’m going to need you to just wait here for a minute or two. I’m going to pretend to write down your license plate number, so that it appears that I’m giving you a summons. Just don’t let it happen again. Have a nice day.” Me: “Thank you VERY much, officer, you too!” :eek:😃 ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/24 "2015-10-13T19:56:25Z")
> [@Asimovian](#): > > I did this poll once before about six years ago [[link to prior thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=546855)]. I thought the poll options and stories behind them were really interesting, so I decided to revisit it. I’m curious to see how many posters from the last thread have new stories from their most recent encounters. > > At any rate, as before, the point here is to share the outcome of the last time you were stopped by law enforcement while driving. Please feel free to tell as much of the story as you care to. > > And, for those keeping score, that date I was on the last time I was pulled over (still the last time, by the way) worked out pretty well for me. > > Poll to follow. Sometimes when I drive I like to rest my left elbow on the window sill and and place my hand on my cheek. Apparently that looks exactly like I’m on my cell phone to a passing officer. He pulled me over, I protested vehemently I wasn’t not on the phone (which was buried deep in my purse on the back seat). He made a vague mumble about slowing down (I wasn’t speeding either, but whatever) and off I went. ---
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/25 "2015-10-13T20:44:45Z")
I used to get pulled over so much so I’m not sure this was the last time. I forgot something for work so I was rushing back home and got pulled over for doing 75 in a 55. I apologized, said I was running late for work. He told me to slow down because there had been a lot of deer in the area. No ticket, just a verbal warning to slow down. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/26 "2015-10-13T20:54:01Z")
Honestly, I’ve forgotten. I took the last car that was registered to my name off the road in 1993. I’ve driven on occasion since then but haven’t gotten pulled over by the police. I’m not a bad driver in _all_ ways but I tend to speed. Being tired of too much contact with the officers of the law was a major factor in deciding to stop being a regular automobile operator. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/27 "2015-10-13T20:58:35Z")
Last February. I had just pulled out of a restaurant parking lot in the next county, when a sheriff’s deputy pulled me over for a headlight that was out. No ticket, just a verbal to get it fixed. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/28 "2015-10-13T21:12:46Z")
The last time I was pulled over was 2 or 3 years ago (I think); I failed to come to a complete stop at a stop light. I’m not sure if I ‘deserved’ to get a ticket or not, because there were no other cars at or particularly near the intersection…but in any case I got off with a warning. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/29 "2015-10-13T21:29:28Z")
My last actual citation was at least 15 years ago. I’ve been pulled over probably a dozen times since, and each time I had definitely earned a ticket, but for some reason, I never get one. . ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/30 "2015-10-13T22:20:49Z")
I was pulled over in the HOV express tunnel from 93 to the Boston airport. It was a single lane, in the middle of the day, with no other cars in site. I wasn’t paying attention to the speed limit signs and I guess my brain just defaulted to “standard city interstate speed”. Turning around the last bend, at the end of the tunnel there was a state trooper waiting on the shoulder. He waved me over, and gave me a ticket for 57 in a 35 :smack:. It was a pretty obvious speed/HOV trap, and I didn’t argue or ask for any leniency at the time. (He waved another two or three cars over while I was waiting.) I did dispute the ticket, which in MA involves an initial hearing with a magistrate. There, I just said that I didn’t realize I was driving that fast and I certainly didn’t intend to. The magistrate told me to be more careful next time since there was always a state trooper waiting in that tunnel, and then cancelled the ticket. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/31 "2015-10-13T23:11:12Z")
My most recent pull-over was a rather odd one. I was on my way home from work at about 8:30 in the morning on Thanksgiving Day (I work graveyard) and got pulled over by local police about a mile from my house. The officer checked my paperwork and said I had a tail ight out. I apologized and said I hadn’t been aware. She asked where I was going and I told her. After she went back to her car for a few minutes, she said she’d let me off with a warning and to drive safe. When I got home, I checked the tail lights and they were all working just fine. My best guess is they must have been looking for someone in a car that looked similar to mine. ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/32 "2015-10-13T23:19:16Z")
The last time I was pulled over, it was for expired plates. I had my recently deceased mother’s car and was taking it to the DMV to get the ownership transferred so that I could sell it. I showed the cop the will and other documents and I was only two blocks from the DMV and headed in the correct direction, but he was having none of it. He gave me a pretty steep ticket for expired plates. A few minutes later, I was at the DMV and happened to tell them the story. It was my extreme good luck that the chief of police’s wife was in line directly behind me. She had me give her the ticket, saying that was ridiculous and she’d have that taken care of. And she did. A week later I got a letter in the mail from the city indicating that my ticket had been cancelled. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/33 "2015-10-13T23:52:02Z")
> [@araminty](#): > > You don’t have an option for “I was given a random breath test, found to be below the limit and sent away with a cheery wave.” I would think that was option 1. My last RBT was a bit of a weird one - it wasn’t a block-the-road setup, I was just driving in a bunch of traffic, and suddenly there was a police car behind me with its lights flashing. I was a little freaked out … was there something wrong with my driving? As far as I knew, I’d been keeping all the rules. But when I asked, he said no, just random. Still not sure if that was actually the truth, but nm. ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/34 "2015-10-14T01:47:27Z")
I chose: I didn’t get ticketed and I didn’t deserve to. I was pulled over because I had a headlight out. I noticed the day before that my headlight was out so I went to Wally World, and bought a new one. The next day I headed out to have the new light put in, but it was raining so I turned on my lights. I got pulled over, showed the cop the new headlight bulb I had on the seat next to me, and told him I was on the way to have it fixed. He let me go. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/35 "2015-10-14T01:57:01Z")
On my bike and on grooved highway. I was weaving slightly because that’s the easiest way (to me) to ride on that crap and the cop just wanted to make sure I was sober. I actually joked with him slightly and thanked him; he was cool and to me doing a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/36 "2015-10-14T19:13:38Z")
My last experience was a few months ago. I was driving late at night on a divided highway, 2 lanes each direction with a median, in the middle of nowhere. I knew the digital dashboard on my car was not accurate. I had not had the car long, the best I could tell it was registering about 10% low. The speed limit was 65 and I was in a hurry to get home, so I cruised along with the speedometer registering 65. I figured that really put me at about 78, over the limit but not likely to get one pulled over around here. Much to my surprise, blue lights filled my rear view mirror. I pulled over, had all docs in hand , window down and hands on top of the steering wheel. When the cop asked if I knew I was speeding, I honestly explained that the speedometer read 65 but I suspected it was a little off. He said “Actually, the speed limit dropped to 55 about a mile back. I paced you at 85”. My face went :eek:. 30 mph over is a huge ticket and 85 activates the super speeder law which adds an automatic $200 to the regular fine and possible impoundment. He checked my registration, asked if I had been drinking, then said “Get that speedometer calibrated soon, and have a nice night!”. Not even a warning. Lucky doesn’t even begin to describe that outcome. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/37 "2015-10-14T19:31:29Z")
Physically pulled over? That would have been around 1986 when a radar cop caught me. Yeah, I was speeding, but there was no other traffic and it was a straight stretch of road. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/38 "2015-10-14T20:14:41Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > She lives in New Jersey, home of jughandles, gas pump attendants, and other such hopelessly confusing highway relics. You mean in a civilized state where gentlemen do not have to do such lowly tasks as pump their own gas and make left turns? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/39 "2015-10-14T20:36:25Z")
I went the wrong way down a one-way street (I didn’t see the sign). The cop let me off, but he had me dead to rights. ---
**Author:** ![2gigch1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2gigch1/32/3313_2.png) [@2gigch1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2gigch1)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554/40 "2015-10-14T21:02:17Z")
Once got lit up by Md State Police on a long exit ramp - hit the 4 ways and proceeded carefully off the ramp to a much safer spot to stop. Was informed my emissions was out of date (which I planned to take care of the next day, honest!) and was given a written order to fix, no fine if I did it in 30 days. Drove away and not two miles further down the road a sheriff’s deputy was passing me, suddenly slowed down, got in behind me and lit me up. I pulled over and just held the MSP fixit warning out the window as he walked up - I said “Just two miles ago… (laughing)!” Sheriff laughed, said “Yup, get 'er fixed!” turned on his heel and walked away. That old Volvo was a bitch to get passed emissions… * * * As for the gist of the poll I have often deserved a ticket and rarely been given one. Something about human decency seems to go a long way. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-last-time-you-got-pulled-over-redux/734554.md?page=3)