How to handle a police stop

Not that it has ever happened to me but I read in a book that you
should:
1. Never pull over and wait for the officer to catch up. Say you and
the officer are traveling in opposite directions and he hits the
bubble gum machine. Golly, you aren't doing anything wrong so why
pull over? Pulling over would be an admission of guilt.

2. Never, ever run. The officer has a dangerous job. Traffic stops
are one of the most dangerous parts of the job. Running only serves
to heighten the officer's senses, scare him and make him want to burn
off the adrenaline once he and his compatriots have caught you. You
can out run the motor but you cannot out run the Motorola.

3. Never stop for an unmarked police car. Red and blue lights can be
purchased by anyone and there are some crazy people out there. If an
unmarked unit hits the lights slow to the speed limit, turn on your
hazard lights and ride until you find a well lit and populated area to
pull over. Experienced police officers understand this behavior and
will usually tolerate the well mannered exercise in caution. Why
police have unmarked or stealth vehicles is beyond me. Just who are
they hiding from anyway? Isn't their known presence supposed to be a
deterrent to crime? Why it's almost like they are trying to become
invisible to enhance the revenue stream. Of course we all know that
is not the case.

4. Always pick a safe spot to pull over. Somewhere that keeps you
and the officer out of harm's way.

5. Once parked shut off the bike, put down the sidestand and keep
your hands in plain sight while the officer approaches. Holding on to
the bars is a good example. Do not remove your helmet or start
looking for your license and papers. Undo movement makes an
approaching officer nervous. Just what are you looking for?

6. Greet the officer in an open friendly manner. Something along the
lines of "Is there a problem officer?" If you are carrying concealed
now is the time to announce the fact and where the weapon is located.
If you have a concealed carry license and are not packing now is the
time to tell the officer that you are not carrying.

7. Never lie, but do not admit guilt. This is an "innocent until
proven guilty" justice system. A very old and very effective
interrogation tactic is to use silence. Most people are very
uncomfortable with silence and will fill the void with chatter. This
rambling is the undoing of many people. If you find you are digging a
hole for yourself the first thing to do is quit digging.

8. Be friendly. The officer is just doing his job. Sometimes a
pleasant encounter will rate a warning. A good joke never hurts. Why
make an unpleasant situation more unpleasant? You are probably guilty
of the offense for which you were stopped.

9. Join an organization that really helps the officers and their
families. I am a life member of the 100 Club of Houston. Does it get
me out of tickets? NO. Does it let the officer know I am at least a
friendly face and make the encounter go smoothly? YES. Should you
join to get out of tickets? NO. Should you join to help the officers
and their families to get aide for doing an important but under paid
job? YES.

10. If you get a jerk commit to memory his badge number and name. If
the jerk becomes menacing ask for his supervisor. Be forewarned this
will escalate the situation well beyond the warning stage and should
only be used if you fear this person is about to abuse his position.
If the officer is unprofessional report his behavior to his superiors
in writing.

11. Have all your paperwork in order and present it when asked. Do
nothing you are not asked to do. If the paperwork is stored somewhere
tell the officer you are reaching for your paperwork then move
deliberately (slowly) to retrieve the documents. Never keep your
papers near you weapon.

12. Sign the warning or ticket and be on your way. Make certain you
are composed before proceeding. Riding a motorcycle is hazardous.
Riding angry or distracted will get you killed. If you find yourself
upset over the encounter stop and have a coffee or piece of pie until
you calm down. Make sure you have Bluebell with the pie.

 

I especially like #6: Not only should you announce you are carrying a gun,
announce it in a loud and forcibly manner. That way, the officer will not be
unsure if you are armed or not and can take precautions.

Randle, I don't know who you are, but that is a horseshit piece of advice
and will do nothing but cause a problem.

 

I like the Ice Cream/Pie parts of #12. Maybe the officers
should carry "after stop treats" <g>

 

If you have a handgun, you hand the CC License to the officer when you give
him your license and then inform him you are carrying. He will know you have
a gun when you hand him the license, but you have to announce anyway.

He may or may not want to know where it is. If he does not ask, no need to
point it out. Contrary to some folks belief that Permit holders are
dangerous, by having a permit, you are in compliance with the law and are
not flagged by rational LEO's. It is the non-permitted people that cause the
most problems.

If you are not carrying, you do not have to give him your CC License and
there is no need to.

If you are carrying a gun and don't have a License, and are not traveling,
you are in deep shit if caught.

I have spoken to some officers about the travel issue and it is not as hard
as some will make it to prove if someone is traveling or not. Coming home
from work is not traveling. You can still get your ass busted and end up
with a record if you carry without a permit.

 

: If you are carrying a gun and don't have a License, and are not traveling,
: you are in deep shit if caught.

: I have spoken to some officers about the travel issue and it is not as hard
: as some will make it to prove if someone is traveling or not. Coming home
: from work is not traveling. You can still get your ass busted and end up
: with a record if you carry without a permit.

Those officers should check the new definition of travelling. If you are
in your car, you are travelling. Doesn't matter where you are going.
Period.

The law makes no distinction as far as where you are going, how far you
are going, nothing. If you are in a private vehicle, and it is moving,
you are travelling.

If you are between your house and your car, you can also carry concealed.
You are supposed to be going from one to the other. How else could you
get your gun to the car to travel?

 

If you say so. I would not want to put it to the test. Lets try this. If you
do not have a permit, get a gun and put it in your car and go to work. On
the way home, find a cop and tell him you have a gun under your shirt and
don't lie when you tell him you are coming from work. Let me know how it
works for you.

 

:>
:> Those officers should check the new definition of travelling. If you are
:> in your car, you are travelling. Doesn't matter where you are going.
:> Period.
:>
:> The law makes no distinction as far as where you are going, how far you
:> are going, nothing. If you are in a private vehicle, and it is moving,
:> you are travelling.
:>
:> If you are between your house and your car, you can also carry concealed.
:> You are supposed to be going from one to the other. How else could you
:> get your gun to the car to travel?

: If you say so. I would not want to put it to the test. Lets try this. If you
: do not have a permit, get a gun and put it in your car and go to work. On
: the way home, find a cop and tell him you have a gun under your shirt and
: don't lie when you tell him you are coming from work. Let me know how it
: works for you.

The first problem would be to get a job. Then I'd have to get a handgun.
(I would never admit to having a handgun in casual conversation.)

From Sunny's link,
<http://www.dallasobserver.com/2007-10-25/news/have-gun-will-travel/>

"The new law, the first bill Governor Rick Perry signed from the last
session of the Legislature, now allows gun owners without a permit to
carry a concealed gun both "to and from" their premises and their
vehicles. Guns can be carried in cars with a few restrictions: They must
be hidden from plain view, and the owner cannot be involved in criminal
activity or a criminal street gang or otherwise prohibited by law from
carrying a weapon.

In other words, if you're caught carrying a concealed pistol on the
street and don't have a permit, tell the cop you're walking between your
car and your home, either getting ready to travel somewhere or coming
home. The burden now falls on the police officer to prove you are not
really "traveling," which Dallas District Attorney Craig Watkins says is
virtually impossible.

"If you read the new statute, it essentially does away with the concealed
handgun law," Watkins says. As of September 1, his office no longer
accepted most UCW (unlawfully carrying a weapon) charges that involved
the "traveling" issue and dismissed pending cases. "

 

Cops aren't stupid. If your car is on Richmond and you are there with a gun
and you live in Katy, Barney Fife could work it out and bust your ass. As I
said, give it a try and let me know the results.

 

Cause I'm on the side of the road with someone with a gun in their
holster who probably was bullied as a kid and now wields a badge hoping
to pay back society for all the wrongs committed against him, and who's
colleagues would most likely find that my homicide was justifiable
because I looked like I was maybe about to grab a weapon?

Why fight your battles on the enemy's turf?



side note - I've actually known a few pretty decent PO's, including my
grandpa

 

Gosh dern. I just might be the only Texan on this particualr thread,
who does'nt carry a gun, huh.
I got stopped around memorial day, I quickly knew he wanted me.We were
taveling opposite on another. HJay and I both knew it. So, I thought
it was smart, to pull over quickly, not tomake the arkansas officer
have to ''flash'' me any more than needed.. I did not dismount, I sat
there till he told me to. My honey, never got off the bike. She sat
there, while on the KS, and while the officer and I communicated. I
honestly think my pleasant demeaner plus having my wife aboard, helped
me to only get a warning. Oh ,yeah, I didnt have my 22 pistol in the
bags. The reason, being, I dont have no permit to haul a weapon.

 

Maybe so....

I know that when I got stopped in Arkansas and arrested, I was hoping
Deputy Dog wouldn't start a "pat down". As screwed up as he is, he
might've really come uncorked to find a pistol....what do ya think?

First time I've EVER been arrested for asking a police officer why he
needs to know where I work....

 

When I was 18 and living in Ft. Worth, my friends and I were out and I
peeled out or something that got me stopped. I was arguing and raising hell
with the fella that stopped me and he called more of them. I was hopping
around mad and being a testosterone loaded shit. He just kept writing
tickets until he managed to find 5 of them for me.

 

Well, Jerry are you braggin' or complaining. (smile) Even at that age,
I knew when to talk and when to shut ass up. The stop on Memorial day
was my first ever, on a motorbike. So glad I had inshorence and uh'
''M'' on my cage licenses card.

 

Arrested, were ya?

 

Yup, the goofy cop couldn't add, couldn't spell, couldn't
talk....asked me where I worked and I told him twice and in middle of
spelling it for him I asked why he needed to know. This is when he
lost his cool and arrested me.

I called the court clerk and the guy had been on the job for all of
almost two months. Nobody liked him and he made a point of writing a
huge amount of tickets to the motorcyclists in Fayetteville for the
rally. When I told the ladies at the court what happened, they weren't
surprised....but thought I might be embellishing part of it. They
watched the dash cam video and when I called back for some other info,
they were laughing and saying I left out a few parts that the guy did
and it was funnier watching it unfold. This clown got me in the car
and then didn't know what to do with me. He sat there like a dog that
just caught a car....and so he's now nick-named (by the Shadow Babe)
"Deputy Dog".