christ, i got arrested today

[mark414]

and while that on its own is a very stupid thing, the further along i go in the story only makes it more stupid.

i got pulled over on the freeway because apparently the DMV hasn't updated their records to show that the car i was driving was registered 3 months ago.

according to the officer i had a warrant out in shorewood (a suburb of milwaukee) of all places. he said it was because of a $75 ticket, from last july, for failure to stop at a stop sign. i had no idea what he was talking about.

but he booked me anyways, towed the car, and got lost twice on the way to the shorewood police department. after sitting in the holding cell for awhile, a shorewood cop came in and told me that, "if you want to leave, all we need is your signature as far as we're concerned." i had to sign something acknowledging a future court date for the aforementioned warrant and then i was free to go.

do you know what the original ticket was for? about a year and a half ago a shorewood cop gave me a ticket for failure to stop at a stop sign after i had slowly rolled through a completely empty 4-way-stop intersection.

ON MY BICYCLE.

i have a very strong suspicion that when all is said and done, they will have spent more money with their nonsense than they will ever ask me to pay.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

1. Wow.

Futher proof that cops are dumb.

How the fuck did he get lost en route to the police station? It's not like he goes there everyday or anything.

[mark414]

2. to his credit, and which i failed to mention

he was a county sheriff, so he goes to stations all over the county

but still...i've never even lived there and i knew where it was...

[survivor999]

6. Pathetic...

:)

[ghostsofgiants]

8. This is sort of a tangent...

But I got my proof that cops are dumb last week. About 3/4 of my sociology class are in training for the provincial police force. It's a course on criminal deviance, so the constabulary has some kind of deal with my university for that type of training in addition to the standard police stuff, I guess. It's a morning class, and I'm a slacker, so I kinda developed a habit of not going, haha. A habit I've since broken, but before the midterm, I went to ONE class. Just one. The police trainees HAVE to go every class. The class average was 63%. My roommate's girlfriend, who is one of the trainees, got 60%. I got 72%. I laughed at the silly cops and then robbed a liquor store.*






* I did not actually rob a liquor store.

[Kali]

3. ON MY BICYCLE

:spray: Sorry to laugh, but you got me good. Your day may have sucked but this will be a story you will be repeating a hundred times a day when you are old and senile :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Haole Girl]

4. On your bicycle?

On your bicycle? That's absurd. I hope your short stay in jail was not too unpleasant.

[XemaSab]

9. A few months ago

I was driving around with a friend and he got pulled over for expired registration. The nice officer told him that they had a warrent out for his arrest for riding his bike at night without a light on back in '93.

I'm series.

[Floogeldy]

5. Tickets have to be paid.

Or a warrant will be issued. Good lesson. ;)

[XemaSab]

7. oh GAWD

I got a ticket today.

1. The last time I went to Kings County I got a ticket.

2. Praise Jesus I registered the car on Friday.

3. The last time I went to Kings County I got a ticket for speeding and a fix-it-ticket for expired registration.

4. That was 2 months ago. :hide:

5. At the time, the nice officer reminded me to keep it under 80. :hide: :hide:

6. I'd only ever gotten 1 ticket before the speeding ticket.

7. That was a fix-it-ticket for a busted headlight.

8. Somehow the signed ticket got lost in the mail and became an 1100 dollar fine and almost went to warrent.

9. This morning the lovely Shine informed me that I had a busted brake light.

10. Less than 5 hours later I was being pulled over for said busted brake light.

11. But the registration was paid.

12. So the nice officer just gave me a fix-it-ticket.

:D :D :D :D

13. But I'd probably better get ready to go to the slammer, if history is any indication.

:hide:

[Shine]

10. OH NO! The very light I pointed out was what got you the ticket??

that fucking sucks, dude. Weird timing, esp since you said it had been out for a few MONTHS.

Sorry about that. :hug:

Don't worry, I don't think you'll do any jail time. :D

[XemaSab]

14. Like, oh the irony

:rofl:

I dunno if it had been out a few *months*, but a few weeks for sure.

I am such a doofus. :banghead:

[Shine]

24. No you're not.

:hug:

that IS some weird fuckin' timing, though. hmmm...

[XemaSab]

25. really wierd

I blame Kings County.

I am going to think on your pm so if I don't respond it's not because I didn't read it. 'Cause I did. :)

[Shine]

26. You probably think I'm a complete freak. Admit it.

I'm a Polly Anna freakazoid, what can I say?

Oh well, I embrace my freakishness. It's workin' for me.... LOL. :D

[XemaSab]

28. Oh I totally don't

You actually seem like one of the most open people I have ever met, and that's why I want to think about what you are saying. :D

[Shine]

29. Oh good, I'm glad.

Thanks for your kind words. :hug: You're a sweetheart.

[jobycom]

11. If the intersection was completely empty, where'd the cop come from?

Sorry, but I ride bikes, and have little sympathy for bikes blowing through stop signs. You should have stopped. And then you should have paid the ticket. Don't blame the cops. Sorry you had a rough day, though. There are far worse crimes, but yours was a crime.

And you'll wind up paying more than the $75, too.

[mark414]

16. the cop was down the block

and i slowed down when i came up to the intersection, saw that it was completely empty and kept going. no blowing through was done...

this was a bored suburban cop with nothing better to do...if i would've done this in the city they never would've looked twice.

i would've hoped that the officer could use some personal discretion and realize that it's a waste of everyone's time to pursue something as ridiculous as this (giving me the ticket in the first place).

and anyone who says that they would come to a complete stop at an empty intersection on their bike is a liar.

[LostinVA]

33. I'm not a liar

I have and do come to a complete stop at an empty intersection on my bike -- just like if I'm in my car, because those are the VA traffic laws. It pisses me off when cars don't treat bikes as "real" vehicles, because we are -- with the same rights and responsibilities of cars.

I wasn't going to post anything, because you had a really sucky day, and arrest warrants for a $75 traffic ticket are crazy. Then you said people who say they stop at an empty intersection on bikes are liars... well, I'm no liar.

[radwriter0555]

35. Yeaaaaahhhhhh BUT... you got a ticket. And if you had arranged to go

to the court date, it would have been dismissed.

Now, you'll get another chance in court and you better be real humble and sorry and business-like and professional or they're going to make your life hell.

What a drag. I know exactly where you're coming from. I got a ticket for jaywalking decades ago, and when I finally got around to getting a driver's license, I had to pay some $600 in fines.

I won't even mention the 5 tickets I got one night on a moped in tallahassee florida.

[Shine]

12. That's quite a story.

sorry you had to go through that experience. You should milk that story for all it's worth, though. It's a good one.

:thumbsup:

:hi:

[Floogeldy]

38. I like the way you always put a positive spin on things.

;)

[petronius]

13. If you can't do the time, then don't do the crime, you freakin' criminal!

:evilgrin:

Just kidding, that deputy seems a tad overzealous. However, I think you may be wrong with your strong suspicion; be prepared for that $75 ticket to acquire a hefty chunk of late charges and court fees. You may want to auction off your right arm and first born child now, so you can "pay the clerk on your way out..."

[XemaSab]

15. Dude...

see my post above..... FOR A BUSTED HEADLIGHT THAT GOT FIXED WITHIN 48 HOURS! :o

[petronius]

19. Crikey - I missed the part about the $1100 fine

You had to pay that!? You probably underwrote a sizable chunk of the Kings County annual budget with that check...

[XemaSab]

22. That was in Humboldt County

And I sent the court a letter contesting it on the basis that I had gotten it fixed and sent back the signed ticket.

Haven't heard back from them about it though. :shrug:

[LiberalHeart]

17. Speaking of bad arrests...

Check out this story -- and the video of the dash cam:

http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=5532210

Glad that didn't happen to you.

[mark414]

18. when i left the station

i couldn't help but be a smartass and say to him thank you for ridding the streets of such a dangerous criminal, now i'll be able to sleep soundly at night and he threatened to put the cuffs back on and throw me back into jail!

for people who are supposed to be so tough and brave they sure are big babies when it comes to sarcasm...

(and for all you damn law and order people who'll never blame the cops for anything that was the only time i was a smartass to him!)

[BlueIris]

20. Yikes. That sucks.

But thanks for the heads up there. I didn't know you could get a ticket that way.

[mark414]

23. i could've understood the ticket

if i would've just blown through the intersection without looking, or there was traffic, or a car had to stop to avoid hitting me, etc. etc. i would've accepted it without complaint.

but i was casually riding home after a long day of classes, had stopped pedaling, and pretty slowly approached the intersection...i even used my brakes a little bit! but when i saw it was empty what sane person would stop? the cop was halfway down the block and came roaring after me...

[jpgray]

21. Damn. And I got pulled over four times for speeding and no ticket

But then I am a white male.

[zonkers]

27. Sure the bike ticket was ridiculous but you must have known a bench

warrant when you failed to appear. Same thing happened to me. I got a ticket for riding my bike on the sidewalk and ignored it. Years later, I got a ticket for open container on the beach. Next thing I know, I was in the clinker all weekend eating cheese sandwiches. It was a wake up call for me. Never had a ticket since and that was fifteen years ago.

[radwriter0555]

36. *snarf* "...eating cheese sandwiches..."

I'm sorry, that made me laugh!

[zonkers]

37. Snarf on rad one. You remember the surplus cheese situation in

the eighties when he government was just giving it away

[radwriter0555]

42. They were giving it away in the 70's too. My idiot dad was a probation

officer and somehow got his hands on a never ending supply of gubment ham and gubment cheese. He ketp trying to give me that crap...

Damn.

[enigmatic]

30. That's a story

You ought to write about this; I'm serious. It's right out of Kerouac...

[Evoman]

31. Damn...if a cop tried to arrest me, and I didn't know what

he was talking about...by the end of that little session, I have no doubt he would have something to arrest me for. I hate cops (my..ahem..STRONG opinions of police are based on generalizations, but I have met very few exceptions to those generalizations).

[tjwmason]

32. I remember the original ticket.

Getting a fine for doing that on a bicycle is utterly bizarre...presumably the policeman was in a bad mood needed to fill a quota. :eyes:

[LostinVA]

34. No more bizarre than if he had given it to someone riding a car

I've been fighting for YEARS for bikes to be respected by other drivers as a "real" vehicle... the laws of Virginia reflect we have the same rights -- as way as the same responsibilities of respecting the same traffic laws. Not respecting the same laws someone follows while driving a car undermines our arguments for why we deserve the same rights. Cyclists can't have it both ways.

I don't think warrants should be put out on a $75 traffic ticket. But the ticket was legit.

[AwakeAtLast]

39. Did he call you "Tater Salad"

Sorry, couldn't resist! :D

[bettyellen]

40. well, was there a cavity search?

:loveya:

[mark414]

41. multiple

although i'm singing my praises that i forgot my glass pipe AND my stash at my brother's house...or i would probably still be in there

P.S. a couple of my friends are trying to get me jobs with them at the milwaukee airport...which would mean totally free flights for me...so i will come out to NYC though probably just for a day or two at a time at the most...but i could come every weekend if i wanted to!

word...i will keep you updated