Radar/Some Fool

[C Dick]

There is a house on Dixie North of Brampton with an older Chrysler painted as a police car, parked in the driveway, to slow speeders. It gave me a start the first few times I spotted it.

I read of a case where a guy told some other guys on the sidewalk "she's a cop", referring to an undercover posing as a streetwalker, so she charged him with obstructing justice. I would think that annoying the police on purpose is a pretty dangerous game to play.

 

[WhOiSyOdAdDy?]

be sure to shut your detector's power off as soon as it detects radar, otherwise officer Friendly's radar detector detector will find your new found toy and confiscate it. Unfortunately there isn't a radar detector on the market that can hide. Cops have the upper hand at the moment.

I wish they had told me that at Future Shop when I bought it.

 

[rembrandt100]

Amazing isn't it.

If you were the dude that had to slam on his brakes, spilling the coke you had all over the interior of the car because some a-hole went thru a red light you would be pissed off.

If a family member was injured by a hit and run driver, that was caught, you would want the most severe punishment doled out to the offender.

But you all seem to think that it is ok to warn other drivers of a "speed enforcement zone". If it is not an "us against them" mentallity can someone please explain it to me?

Dave

 

[ham2004]

Confused, since it is illegal to own a radar detection device in Ontario.. and most of the other provinces, how did you buy it at Future shop...

 

[ocean976124]

If Police were doing radar on your street, would you complain, or hold a sign?

Depends, in my neighborhood, yes. I grew up in a neighborhood that used to be more working class people. Now, with the housing boom in the US larger and larger houses are being built and sold for more and more money. The speed limits are set ridiculously low and have never been obeyed in the 30 years I've lived there. It was never a problem before because I grew up in an era where you looked both ways before pulling into a street and if I as a kid was playing in the middle of the road and was hit by a car my parents would have said to me, "What were you doing in the middle of the road?"
Well, the yuppies have moved in and don't want to watch their own children nor do they look before pulling into a road. So they've complained to the police so much that the literal speed limit is now being enforced with a vegnence.
I can understand if someone is flying down a side street. But to have long roads that have 15mph speed limits are silly, and then to give tickets out for people going 25mph is even sillier....

 

[The Doctor]

I understand the guy's (holding up the sign) intentions...He is just trying to stop the police from enforcing the law, by warning commuters that there is a radar trap set up further down the road.

If Police were doing radar on your street, would you complain, or hold a sign?

Probably not cause it would mean the safety of your loved ones.
LDB

Whether it's radar, a guy with a sign or both the objective is achieved...people slow down and they remember that the area has a reduced speed limit in future trips.

There are areas of Toronto where the residents have placed signs on their lawns notifying motorists of the speed limit and the fact that it is enforced by radar patrolls. These signs are there with the approval of the police and work very well because the drivers don't know for sure if there is a speed trap waiting for them or not.

I agree that cops need to enforce the law and have ticket quotas to ensure that they do not neglect that duty. However, if people slow down then everyone wins and the cops can move along to another area where enforcement is required.

 

[TheNiteHwk]

Good question...

Is someone breaking the law if they are warning speeders to slow down radar trap ahead? As an ex-trucker and courier driver (and of course as a 'driver') I always 'flashed my lights' to warn of speed traps etc. When you drive for a living I think it becomes almost an obligation to the brotherhood so to speak. You feel like it’s your duty so to speak to warn your fellow drivers. How about radio and TV? Remember the good old days when CB was around? I have heard them on radio & TV sometime they announce radar trap locations. Even RIDE locations they give out sometime. (The latter I am against for sure.) Would these stations be doing that if it were against the law? Ummmm? Good question. Has anybody here ever been told or warned by LE not to do so? In all my years of driving I never have.

I was warned though (although I did not believe the guy) I was warned by a parking enforcement guy not to put money in meters of cars that don’t belong to me. LMAO. Yes true story. I was waking along the street. I passed the parking ticket guy writing a ticket. A few feet further along I noticed a car was parked at an expired meter. So I popped a quarter in the meter. The guy saw me. As I walked a bit more I saw another expired meter so I popped in a dime. Yes a dime! LOL! I think it gave the meter 3mins. LOL! The guy saw me. He came and looked at the meter. I was watching him to see if he would write a ticket. He was watching me. I walked along some more. And yes you guessed it. I spent another dime. This time the guy runs up to me. He warns me not to do that no more he is going to charge me with “interference”. I said to him “you must be joking” He assured me he was not. I did not pursue it any further though. I just walked away laughing.

TheNiteHwk(is still laughing)

 

[Pallydin]

Re: Good question...

Has anybody here ever been told or warned by LE not to do so? In all my years of driving I never have.

See my post at the beginning of the thread, as I have been chased and pulled over for no other reason than I was flashing my lights to warn of a speed trap. I was even 100% honest when the cop asked if I was having problems with my headlights ("no, I was flashing those cars to warn them that *you* were there").

End result: no ticket, cop reprimanded for harassment and operating outside his duty. Therefore, not illegal in the slightest.

PAL

 

[rembrandt100]

Warning someone about a radar trap is not against the law. If you are caught by the police they usually stop you and ask for your papers causing you to be delayed.

But putting coins in another persons meter is. It is an offence on the books and you can be charged. I remember a few years ago a fellow in a Santa suit was charged after the local stores had hired him to put coins in the streets meters as a Christmas good will stunt.

Please do not ask me to look it up in the books.

Dave

 

[Bearlythere]

I think warning of a Radar trap is a noble thing. No one should get a ticket for speeding in today's world. I think if the whole province decided to drive the speed limit, the cops would go out of their minds. I know the Premier would as he wants to extort every last nickle out of us without raising taxes obviously. Drive to rule!!!!


Seriously tho, as a trucker who runs the length of the Golden Horseshoe every day, I see radar all the time, and they never seem to really pull over the assholes and jerks who really cause a lot of trouble out on the highways. I do know that they never seem to do much about left lane bandits ( guys sitting in the left lane at or below the limit), lane changing weavers, or the numerous people eating with both hands, playing with computers or reading something as they cruise down the road. I see it all, and I am firmly of the belief that sitting by the side of the road nailing people doing 130 on a highway designed to handle traffic doing 120 is just a waste of resources.