Ever been in a situation where you could've gotten a ticket but the officer let you off with a warning?

"TheHondaBro" (wwaveform)
11/29/2016 at 01:11 • Filed to: None

I have, only two years ago.

I was still in Oregon. I was going up Highway 97 when I was caught by a state trooper. I was doing 80 in a 55 mph zone. The officer took my license and registration. He didn’t even take them back to his car. He took a look at them and asked me if I’ve ever gotten a ticket in the state of Oregon. I said I hadn’t. He gave me my things back and told me to slow down. No ticket.

Needless to say, I stuck to 55 up until the interstate.

DISCUSSION (42)

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:16

I haven’t been pulled over [knocks on fake wooded Ikea furniture] in over six years. Got off with a warning there too.

TheHondaBro > Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo
11/29/2016 at 01:17

It’s safe to say you haven’t been able to exceed the speed limit.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:18

Touché.

PowderHound > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:19

Uhhhh yes. Just a couple years ago I got pulled over for I think it was 93 in a 55 and 70ish in a 40 at the same time. He let me go.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:26

No and with the joop, my Velocity to Never Exceed is probably 60 mph. After that speed you’re in the fourth dimension.

beardsbynelly - Rikerbeard > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:26

9/10 times I’ve been caught doing something wrong I’ve been let off with a warning.

TheHondaBro > beardsbynelly - Rikerbeard
11/29/2016 at 01:27

That would explain the Riker beard.

TheHondaBro > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
11/29/2016 at 01:28

Mah Accord is a speed doggo yo.

Noodles > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:32

When I got my DUI in 1998ish, When I passed the cop I was speeding but not by much, saw him turn around & turn on the lights. That’s when I ran a stop sign, got up to 85 in a 25, ran another stop sign. 3 miles down the road the z28 started sputtering (I had ran out of fucking gas). Pulled into the closest parking lot, the 4 of us jumped out & ran. I jumped a fence that the ground on one side was 6 feet further away than the side I was jumping from. We hid in the woods for 20 minutes, then went back to the car. The cop was waiting just out of our view for the brake lights to turn on. I still can’t believe all I got was a DUI.

Does that count?

TheHondaBro > Noodles
11/29/2016 at 01:33

Shit...

Noodles > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:33

Shit is right!

Biggus Dickus (RevsBro) > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:34

Oh yeah. Senior year of high school my friend and I lived a few houses apart. Well, one night we were at another friend’s house and left at the same time. It turned it to the two of us “street racing” (i use parentheses because I was in my old ZJ and he was in an old Grand Caravan) each other home. Long story made short, a cop pulled us both over and called our parents making them pick us up in the middle of the night but, he let us off with a warning.

DC3 LS, will be perpetually replacing cars until the end of time > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:37

One time I got pulled over for doing a West Texas roll through a stop sign. The officer was going to give me a ticket until he saw my registration.

Cop “Ohh, you signed your registration? I’ll let you off with a warning since no one does that.”

I obviously didn’t say anything, but it was a pretty WTF moment.

TheHondaBro > Biggus Dickus (RevsBro)
11/29/2016 at 01:37

I didn’t have street-racing friends in high school. All my friends conceded that my car was the fastest.

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:37

Twice. Both years ago.

Once when I was entering a rural town and got pulled over for 76 (kph) in a 50 zone. Officer let me off with a warning because I was still decelerating. Which was generous, I was a good 500m past the sign, it’s not like he was unreasonably close to the limit change.

The other one’s a much better story. I was at university in the UK, and driving a Fiat X1/9. Very late one night I was coming home from a friend’s place through Milton Keynes (roundabout capital of the universe). I got a bit enthusiastic round a roundabout and the tail snapped out. Amazingly, and through pure luck rather than Mad Skillz(TM), I caught it and managed to get it into a stable slide. This does not happen in X1/9s, they’re light, short wheelbase and mid-engined and therfore extremely snappy. You’re either on rails or through the hedge backwards.

The roads were deserted and I was in full-on “Yeehah!” mode on account of not having just trashed my car. So for the sheer hell of it I hung onto the slide and drifted it 4 times round the roundabout -turns out that once you successfully get them settled sideways, they’re pretty happy to stay that way.

Eventually I decide enough’s enough and peel off up the road. About 30 seconds later I see blue lights in the mirror -Oh shit, there goes my license!

So I pull over and the cop walks up. He opens with “Excuse me sir, that business at the roundabout. Were you in control of the vehicle?”

“Yes!” says I with a big fat grin on my face, stupid and still on the adrenaline high.

“That’s all right then. On your way” says the cop, and heads back off to his car.

Guess he figured if you were sober enough to drift an X1/9 at 3am, you weren’t a hazard to other traffic. But wanted to make the point anyway...

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:39

0 to Zoid in 2.5 canadian seconds.

Sovereign, Purveyor of Coupes > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:40

Oh yes. statute of limitations hasn’t passed yet in WA, so not sure if I should elaborate.

Also awesome 90s chrysler. best Chrysler. also, last good Chrysler.

beardsbynelly - Rikerbeard > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:41

I got caught doing 40kph over and got a warning because the lidar malfunctioned. That was fun.

TheHondaBro > Sovereign, Purveyor of Coupes
11/29/2016 at 01:43

Technically Plymouth, which is better than Buick.

Noodles > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen
11/29/2016 at 01:48

That’s funny. + X1/9= good story

Sovereign, Purveyor of Coupes > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:49

Very true.

As far as my offence, I gladly took a $760 dollar ticket, if that gives you a decent idea. both me (for being dumb), and the officer (much less so, but for letting me and friends be dumb) could’ve likely got in much troubles.

pip bip - choose Corrour > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:52

yes, i was doing 180km/h in a 100km/h zone in rural Victoria. i was running late for a function on a Friday night, i was hurtling along the Streatham-Chepstowe back road , i noticed flashing headlights on the left in the distance, then i realised stopped soon as i could so the cop didn’t have to chase me. talked my way out of it.

PowderHound > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 01:54

Oh I semi have another one. The other month I was at a red light that is a short 55 to the start of a highway with 65 speed limit. I was in front with no one behind and a line of cars in the left, welcome to Utah. When that turned green I decided to give her a bit of hell and wring it out real quick as I was almost home from a 3 hour drive I needed a little boost (puns!). I left quick and immediately see someone come out of the left lane and trying to catch up and race or something. It had the bright white headlights and seemed like the x5 I was near earlier.

Once I hit 85 I slowed down to a more reasonable low 70 as this car gets right on my ass and goes to pass.

I think nothing of it, I had my fun. It slowly passes as I see that oh hey it’s the cops! They never as much as flashed their lights at me but I swear they were seconds away. Definitely made my heart drop real quick

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen
11/29/2016 at 01:57

Also (and this has only just occurred to me, 30 odd years later): Milton Keynes is the motorsport engineering capital of the universe. It’s not impossible he was quite familiar with young men driving competently but overenthusiastically in the wee small hours...

Wagon Guy drives a Boostang > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 03:08

About 12 years ago...

My ex-wife had moved with the kids from Austin to Houston and one weekend I had gone to drop them off after a visit with me and got stopped by the Texas State Police on my way back home.

At the time I was driving a 1971 Datsun 510 wagon as a running project and had just put on dual side draft carbs, NISMO long tube header and full custom exhaust. The car was running a bit rich and since I was one my way home I decided to open it up and see what it would do with the new setup. At one point between LaGrange and Bastrop I got the speedo over 110, and was slowing down while entering Bastrop with other traffic when there were three troopers by the side of the road running speed laser and just waving people over to the side. I got waved over. I was over the posted limit of 55, but had been sticking with traffic for the previous 1/2 mile so wasn’t over by too much.

When the trooper walked up to my door he asked right away if I know why I had been pulled over. I played along with him and said no, but that I saw them shooting laser. He said I was recorded doing 65 in a 55 zone. I asked him what their target was on the front of my car. This was his turn to play dumb, because the next thing he said was “your front plate”. I showed him my front plate, since it was sitting on the floorboard of my car. He changed it to, “well, then your front grill must be reflective”. Nope, try again sparky, the whole front of the car was flat primer grey, not a reflective surface in sight. “OK, we shoot the windshield sometimes.” That’s not how light reflection works, angle of incidence = angle of reflection, your laser off my windshield shoots into space, not back to your gun.

He gave up on that angle and then tried to get me for exhaist pollution. “I noticed quite a bit of smoke coming from your exhaust.” We then spent 15 minutes by the side of the road talking about tuning dual carbs and how hard it was to learn this ancient tech in the modern age. Oh and talking about the fact that 1971 cars are emissions exempt...

We had then spent entirely too much time talking, and he still hadn’t written a single thing on his ticket book. He looked down at it for a minute, then handed me back my license and insurance card, wished me a good day, and asked me to slow it down a bit...

Driving an old car is sometimes it’s own reward...

Sam > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 04:32

Wouldn’t you like to know... OFFICER HONDABROZONE. I bet your undercover car is a Civic Si with a high-level wing and “dope stance yo”.

Sam > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 04:34

Hah, the street racers I hung around had fast shit. One dude had a 360 Modena and there were several tuned GT-Rs. Living in an area with a large Indian population means some crazy shit, cos those folks are insanely good businessmen around here.

traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 06:47

License plate lights were out on my grandad’s truck. One of the less offensible things to get pulled for

bhtooefr > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 07:40

Only once, and it wasn’t even an interesting story.

Had been awake for almost 20 hours, was driving home from a get together, and wasn’t really doing a good job of staying awake. Upshot was, it was almost midnight, on a Saturday night, and I was weaving.

The adrenaline hit from lights flashing in the rear view mirror was more than enough to wake me up. Once the cop realized that I was just sleepy, not drunk (I was stone cold sober), and I was literally a mile from home (so the adrenaline hit would get me home), he let me go with a written warning.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 07:42

I once got pulled over in Delaware doing 60 in a 50. I was confused when he said 60 because in my head I was like why the hell would you pull someone over for doing 10 over on the highway?? He must have been looking for something bigger though since he didnt even bother running my license and stuff. Regularly drive 20+ over at home in NJ while getting passed constantly and never see anyone pulled over so it was confusing as hell to me.

facw > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 07:53

Had a trooper wander out into the middle of the Masspike on foot to try to get me to pull over. I had no idea what he was doing, so I slowed down to like 30 so as to have no chance to hit him, but didn’t stop, so he got back in his car and came after me, at which point I pulled over immediately. I had been going 73 in a 65, which seemed so far below what they’d even bother with it didn’t even occur to me that he would have wanted me to pull over. Regardless he was quite angry at me for ignoring him, but I simply told him that I was confused as to what he was doing and was mainly concerned with not hitting him while he was in the road. He told me he could look out for his own safety, asked me if I had a radar detector (I did not), and then sent me on my way with a warning to keep it under 70.

shop-teacher > facw
11/29/2016 at 08:45

That is BIZARRE!

DaftRyosuke - So Long and Thanks for All the Fish! > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 09:00

Most of the time I get pulled over, I’m always late for something. The cops have always been generous.

shop-teacher > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 09:22

I put together a string of five warnings in a row in my 20's. The first three were all within four weeks, and the first and third of those were from the same cop.

Land_Yacht_225 > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 09:31

No, actually. My constantly driving at least 20-over in 80% of situations has never gotten me pulled over once.

However, I did used to have cops turn around on me and follow me home, hanging right off my bumper to run my plates, at least once a week coming home from my valet job in my Lincoln.

DutchieDC2R > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 09:31

My right Xenon light was out. I hadnt had time to replace it yet, drove for a day (and evening) with the broken light. That same evening, I pass a cop car and as soon as I passed it, I knew they would stop me. Black car, blacked out windows, broken HiD light, you know the drill.

I get pulled over, both officers walk up to my car, check my details, drivers license, insurance, everything checks out. Then they start ‘The Talk’.

‘Did you know your headlight is not working?’.

‘Yep, it happened today, I hadnt had time to drive to the shop and I dont keep spare HiD units in my car.’

‘Alright, well, Im gonna discuss this matter with my colleague, hold on.’

.......Officers walk back to my car.

‘Well, its your lucky night. Get it fixed, first thing tomorrow.’

osucycler > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 10:00

Headed back to college over break to play a gig with a friend of mine in my sisters 1986 Monte Carlo SS. Probably doing at least 10-15 over and I see a highway patrol man coming towards me. I look down at the speedo just as he turns the lights on and realize I am busted as the big black Monte sticks out like a sore thumb. I make my way over to the should from the left lane and get onto the shoulder and wait, and then wait some more. Finally he comes roaring up behind me, gets out of his cruiser, walks up and asks for my license and registration, and invites back to his car. My buddy looks at me like “you’re screwed” at this point I am silently agreeing with him. As we sit in the car he’s running my info, thankfully clear, and asks me why I stopped. I told him I knew he had gotten me. He asked how fast I thought I was going. I estimated low. He told me yeah he had clocked me much higher and that he would’ve kept going. He appreciated me stopping, slow down, and have a nice day. With my warning in hand I did just that.

Takuro Spirit > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 11:57

55mph limit, was going 60, on a downhill section of highway the limit dropped to 45mph and I was unaware, didn’t see the sign.

Saw the cop.

Got pulled over for 57 in a 45.

SHE was nice, and after I explained the situation (wife said I was ‘flirting’?) she let me go with a warning.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > shop-teacher
11/29/2016 at 12:08

That is an impressive streak.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > TheHondaBro
11/29/2016 at 12:41

Warning used to be few and far between when I was younger, but they are now pretty common in my 30's. The most memorable warning was getting pulled over in my racecar:

Back in November of 2007, I had come back from a race and was getting the car (SCCA ITA class, 1st gen integra) ready to rest for the winter (adding some antifreeze to the cooling system, ect...). The last thing to do was adding some fuel stabilizer to the tank and filling it up. Against my better judgement of loading the car on the trailer and stopping at the gas station on my way to put the car back, I decided I would drive it there real quick. After all, it was a beautiful fall day, middle of a Saturday afternoon and the trip involved driving down a minor arterial road for about half a block and going through one intersection. What could go wrong?

I got to the gas station and did my thing. While I was filling up the car, three cops pull into the station. A Sargent and two officers go inside and get drinks. I can see them all looking at my car and talking about it. Since it was a bright red racecar with numbers and stickers, a roll cage and gutted interior, worn race tires with no visible tread, no side windows and no licence plate, there was no mistaking it for a street machine. When I finish and start up the car, it also sounds like a racecar.

One of them followed me out of the station and lit me up as soon as we cross the intersection. I pulled off onto the street next to the one I live on. The officer asks for the usual license, registration and insurance. He also asked me “what in the hell are you driving?” I tell him that there would not be any registration or insurance on my racecar, explain what I’m doing and how I know it was a stupid decision, and that I’m was only going to drive it another 1000ft and put it on the trailer for the winter. I get my wallet out to give him license, and then I start shitting a few bricks when I can’t find my license. I had pulled it out of my wallet that morning(to show along with my competition license) and left it in the console of my truck. I explain this to the officer, and give him my particulars to look up in the system. He asked if I had any other ID, so I gave him my military ID (I was in the reserve as the time).

As he was back in his unit running the cursory NCIC, WITS and MVD checks, I was thinking of how expensive this experience was going to be.... No license (NM requires you to physically have it to present upon demand, like most states), registration and insurance tickets were going to around $500. No insurance is also a mandatory metro court appearance, so I would have to take some time off work and explain my bad decision to a judge who was going to find me guilty and assess the $325 fine anyway. There were also many equipment violations he could write if he wanted to, and towing and impounding the racecar was within his discretion.

Instead of all this unpleasantness, he walked back up to the car shaking his head with my ID in hand. He gave it back me as he said “I don’t even know why I’m doing this, but get the hell out of here and put this thing away.” I drove it the 1000ft home and promptly put it on the trailer. I was very lucky.

shop-teacher > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
11/29/2016 at 13:08

Thanks, unfortunately it came to an end a few years ago when I got my first ticket in nearly 15 years to the date. The weird thing about it, was all the cops who gave me warnings were very short with me. They did not seem to be in good moods at all. The cop that gave me the ticket, on the other hand, was the absolute nicest guy to ever pull me over. I couldn’t even be mad!

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > TheHondaBro
12/25/2016 at 13:30

I have a couple times because the CHP was a Marine. Semper Fi and on our way.