Plod again....

[Fat Albert]

He admitted not having a calibrated Speedo and that he did not know what speed I was doing as I was doing 60 by the time he caught up with me.

It was quite clear that he had a pre-conceived idea of who I might be (typical Red Porsche Driver) and he had a pre-prepared script that he was going to deliver come what may, this was somewhat undermined by the fact that I have a clean licence and have had the car over a year. When he started going into his Risking Life spiel I was going to mention that I am ex-RAf Aircrew and a current private Pilot and that I spend a lot of time analysing the risks of my actions and the limits of my own capability, but decided that it might inflame an already emotional (for him) situation.

It was an unmarked focus without Blues & Twos (unless he was only a Level 5 driver so unable to use them?) At first I assumed he was just an outraged member of the public and was about to show him a clean pair of Falkens, but then noticed some equipment on the dashboard and that his young Gingette companion was in rail-workers yellow. He then pulled up alongside and got very shouty.

He wrote my details in his little notebook and I shall await the thump of the Section 59 on the doormat, if he can convince his seniors that it is the most appropriate action in my case.

 

[944 man]

Id complain about that too. A public servant has no place shouting at a member of the public in a peaceful situation.

 

[DivineE]

I would love to get hold of the recording from the police car that pulled me over in the TVR but it would look very bad on the officer involved so I doubt it'll ever make Police camera action. I was simply enjoying a relaxing evening drive when I unwittingly outran him so felt as calm as stepping out of the bath when he pulled up alongside me. He could barely pronounce a word and was shaking uncontrollably from the adrenalin which I later found out was because they had been driving flat out for the last 2.2 miles to catch me.

His partner also said 'this is a 1.8turbo' as if I should be surprised my V8 cerbera had left him twiddling his thumbs at the traffic lights. I didn't think it was approriate to mention I was barely using 1/3 of the throttle untill I got it into third but hopefully my impecable lane disaplin on a three lane roundabout even though I thought it was a skoda taxi sitting up my jacksie rather than a police car was enough to demonstrate I was not 'gunning it'.

I still hate the guy who firmly told me all police traffic enforcement cars had to have xenons fitted! It sounded like a reasonable policy so I believed it and always looked out for that at night. I can now assure you absolutely that this is not the case in all areas!

 

[xenon]

ORIGINAL: DivineE

I still hate the guy who firmly told me all police traffic enforcement cars had to have xenons fitted! It sounded like a reasonable policy so I believed it and always looked out for that at night. I can now assure you absolutely that this is not the case in all areas!

Probably not the case in any areas. Many enforcement cars will have xenons by virtue of the fact they're normally high-end cars to start with but now many HID-equipped cars have bi-xenons with a single D1S bulb for low beam and high beam which makes the headlamp flash that the coppers use difficult if not impossible.

I hope FatAlbert gets this sorted, it looks like you ran in to a right tosser.

I guess the calibrated speedo is irrelevant - he's not specifically accusing you of speeding for which a calibrated speedo or home-office approved device would be necessary, he's got a bee in his bonnet about improper driving. That might be a pain if he pushes it; he and ginger will corroborate each other and I'd place bets on who the magistrate would believe if they say you were driving like a dick.

I had an almost exact-same situation when I were a lad and I bottled it and pleaded guilty by post but I wished I hadn't as the evidence was only opnions much like yours.

Very best of luck.

 

[Fat Albert]

Thanks again for your answers, I have wondered in hindsight what would have happened if I had just floored it when I thought he was just a muppet flashing his lights, I could have probably got home, kissed the wife and kids and drunk a cup of tea before he worked out my address from PNC and then came to find me (as happened in last month's episode)

Perhaps I will try that next month.....


.....although I have been driving like a vicar on that particular road ever since, so the intervention has had some effect

 

[wayner007]

If it was unmarked and flashing his lights at me I would of left him for dead and then phoned the bib to say I was being chased and got away as I was scared thought they might be trying to hijack my said Porsche.
Otherwise I would have told them both to get a grip and see them in court.
Working on the railway in London on nights seems to get me pulled over a fair bit especially in North London but I can say hand on heart that each time was my fault even the latest one where I went to turn right in the right hand filter lane, realised it was the wrong one so pulled back in then pulled out on the next one and turned right at which point the flashing lights came on and I got a right bollocking to which I kept stum said sorry and went on my way so tight lipped and effed off but without any points.
To be honest any type of arguing on the spot is pointless and can normally guarantee the situation will get worse as the copper will not back down. Got away with an ear bashing when leaving London at 100mph on my clock 90mph in the traffic car for saying nothing other than sorry no excuse. Got a pretty good handling car and consider myself a good driver after driving lots of track days but if your speeding and get pulled over play the game and if that doesn't work go down the court route.

 

[gilbo]

The 'legislation' was only introduced in 2002. It actually took bloody ages for a tiny amount of bobbies to start using it and longer them trying to enforce it and caselaw is probably still being written on it.

If it will make you feel better - the most common type of police officer who will be fluent with the rules on sec 59 will be traffic bobbies - I would find it strange if any traffic bobby would be lowering themselves to drive an unmarked Focus without at least a calibrated speedo let alone everything else - you were more likely stopped by neighbourhood or response - and very few of these will have even the foggiest idea about how to correctly deal with you properly and 'IF' any notification of the stop actually manages to get posted through your letterbox, I would question the likelehood of you being stopped again by any other police officer anywhere in the UK at any time in the future who will even think about using 59. You were probably unlucky on this occasion although nothing has actually happened to you other than a conversation with this guy? I would seriously put the whole thing out of your mind - I wouldn't bother complaining as it will not get you anywhere unless you recorded him swearing at you or something.

99% of non traffic police officers HATE dealing with traffic matters. Most of the police officers I have ever known are good for giving 'non-confrontational' parking tickets and won't get involved in anything else!

Incidentally, I sincerely hope the officer gave you a record of the stop/check/conversation?

 

[Copperman05]

ORIGINAL: gilbo

Most of the police officers I have ever known are good for giving 'non-confrontational' parking tickets and won't get involved in anything else!

Err, police officers dont give parking tickets...(anymore)........(thankfully)[]


Edd

 

[wayner007]

ORIGINAL: glib

Incidentally, I sincerely hope the officer gave you a record of the stop/check/conversation?

Never had one of those in all the times i've been stopped and never had one the time I got pulled and was cautioned/ verbal n.o.p to appear in court, which I never heard anything more about.
Keep your headdown and speed and forget about it.

 

[DivineE]

ORIGINAL: wayner007

Never had one of those in all the times i've been stopped and never had one the time I got pulled and was cautioned/ verbal n.o.p to appear in court, which I never heard anything more about.
Keep your headdown and speed and forget about it.

Boy were you lucky. I got nothing in paper either.. kept saying to people 'do you think I might have got away with it?' People said no way and 5months later they were right. Court summons appeared through the door! Lost my licence 6 weeks later in the court room.

 

[barks944]

I've had a incident a month or so on my mind for a while now. I was making progress down my local route to the nearby town when a car came flying up behind me, we were on a bit of straight road late at night so I gave it a bit of a tickle. Slowed down after that as we came to a populated area and then saw it was a silver skoda RS behind, alarm bells rang of course so I took it steady. The car followed me all the way across town despite me making a point of going slow at times before eventually heading off out of town. Seems like he was going that way anyway and it was only one bloke in the car but it made me wonder if it was an off duty police officer or something. Anyhow not had anything yet but I'm not confident I won't! Safe to say with the speeds I was doing I will be knee deep in it if it was a copper.

 

[ukmastiff]

I feel the need for a rant now

Lots of moaning about abuse of powers here and no one saying I was speeding so therefore I was in the wrong period, funny that isnt it.

As for "some coppers are wonkers" , mis spelling a term of abuse doesnt really hide the fact that you are indeed being abusive does it so why mis spell it ?

Some milkmen are wonkers as are some dustmen I'm sure but its still pretty pathetic to be categorising people by the job they do. Bigotry is bigotry be it against colour , creed , oreintation wealth or profession.

The really great news is of course that the gobby people and people with a chip on their shoulder are usually the folk who dont get away with a warning. I'm sure a certain forum user will know exactly what Im saying.

So those who like to have an attitude its your right and please do enjoy it !
but you'll always be the ones who pay for it ten times over in the long run which brings me great joy.

Thanks

Mas

 

[944cop]

Couldn't agree more with Mas their are good and bad in all professions, and having not been on the forum for a while I read this post with a wry smile on my face. Edd is right tho it's a very wierd use of Sec 59 and not really what it was designed for. Without wanting to give away all the tricks of the trade I suspect it was because the speedo wasn't calibrated that you got a Sec 59, but like Edd states without knowing all the circumstances it's hard to say. Just one thing are you sure it was a bobby and not a PCSO.

 

[944 man]

Of course, with a bad milkman, all that happens is that he ignores your 'one extra pinta please Milko' note of a morning - he isnt able to impact your life adversely.

 

[ukmastiff]

You forgot he may well **** you wife whilst you are at work too []

( just to lighten the mood)

Mas

 

[DivineE]

Lets not make this thread politically correct like all the others. Please. I was just relaxing in the harmony of others exchanging tales of enjoying their cars. Such things are a rare sight nowadays and Porsche owners appear to be the amongst the final core of driving lead passion for cars. Thousands now have forgotten why we even love cars. It saddens me how many 'car lovers' have become so detached from driving their machines that they have never felt the g-force of proper acceleration or the thrill of stringing a complex of bends together and feeling the physics of a chassis at work. When I was at Silverstone the other day there were people there who had PAID to drive on a private track.. with no limits and still they didn't know or want to drive their cars faster than I would if I were ferrying my grandmother home from the farm shop with a box full of eggs on the dash. How can they be that ignorant of where the limits lay in their car. I don't wish to persecute them I'm just sad for them that they have never really understood what their cars were designed for or why mans love for cars grew in the first place.

Maybe I'm a man born 50 years too late but I'm proud to light the spark of hope in those few that know me and have discovered this pleasure through me where they may otherwise have lived their whole lives without ever understanding.

 

[Fat Albert]

ORIGINAL: ukmastiff


I feel the need for a rant now

Lots of moaning about abuse of powers here and no one saying I was speeding so therefore I was in the wrong period, funny that isnt it.



Thanks

Mas

Mas, please re-read my opening post, especially:

ORIGINAL: Fat Albert
Had I been given a FPN for speeding I would have just taken it like a man, fair cop and all that, but when I was being careful and actually not very aggressive, I am thoroughly pi**ed off!

 

[peanut]

ORIGINAL: Fat Albert

He admitted not having a calibrated Speedo and that he did not know what speed I was doing as I was doing 60 by the time he caught up with me.

I should think there is the reason he chose to use section S59 right there ![]

It could never go to Court under a speeding offence. In frustration and exasperation I should say he has chosen the only option open to him in order to give you a bit of a verbal shaking and hopefully make you think . Without camera backup or a corroborating witness ie partner you've probably nothing to worry about . If it went to court the onus would be on the Police to demonstrate that you drove 'recklessly' A brief would have it dismissed in a jiffy.

Good to see solidarity and support from the missus though ! .................. 'umph well maybe you should slow down then ' .....

 

[ghost]

ORIGINAL: ukmastiff

You forgot he may well **** you wife whilst you are at work too []

( just to lighten the mood)

Mas

Why would the milkman want to 'kill'' his wife while he was at work?
(just to darken the mood again) []

marcus