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Cops Speeding




Just got back from a two-day drive from LA to Houston, and something that 
bugs me almost everyday occured to me:

Under what conditions are cops allowed to exceed the speed limit? Do they 
have to turn on their lights/siren? 

What authority do ordinary citizens have to monitor/file complaint/pull over 
cops who are speeding for no justifyable reason?

(case in point: While I was driving my date home at about 10:55pm one night, 
a cop turned his flashing roof lights on because I was braking on the 
off-ramp from 55mph down to 35mph. He swerved around me, turned right and 
peeled out onto the same street I was planning on taking, and pulled into a 
grilled chicken restaurant because it was about to close at 11pm. Granted, 
they do a great chicken sandwich, but do I have any authority to go in and 
tell him to slow down, or file a complaint against him?)

I think this might also go to the disrespect shown cops. They drive 80+ 
because the donut shop is about to close, and us 'ordinary folks' get 
tickets for driving 69mph on an empty freeway on a dry sunny day. While I 
agree I don't have a calibrated speedometer, it doesn't take a rocket 
scientist to tell when a cop is doing 80+ mph on the freeway. It's 
frustrating as hell...

--Dan Parker
eds@neosoft.com





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