Woman jailed for warning drivers of a speed trap
06-29-2012, 10:12 AM
#1
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Woman jailed for warning drivers of a speed trap
This is total BS, abuse of police power. Another "bad apple" 
case.
Texas Woman Arrested for Warning Drivers About Speed Trap - Yahoo!
case.Texas Woman Arrested for Warning Drivers About Speed Trap - Yahoo!
A Houston woman's attempt to save drivers from a speeding ticket landed her something worse: 12 hours in jail.
As she rode her bicycle home from a grocery store last week near downtown Houston, Natalie Plummer noticed police officers pulling over speeders. After she parked her bike and turned one of her grocery bags into a makeshift sign warning drivers about the "speed trap" ahead, an officer drove up and arrested her.
"I was completely abiding by the law," Plummer told ABC's affiliate KRTK. "I was simply warning citizens of a situation ahead."
But Houston police saw it differently, and arrested Plummer for standing in the street where there a sidewalk was present, a misdemeanor charge.
Houston police spokeswoman Jodi Silva said that officers found Plummer standing in the street, waving her arms as she held the sign.
But Plummer denied ever leaving the sidewalk on West Dallas Street, alleging that the arresting officer invented a reason to detain her.
"He couldn't take me to jail for holding up this sign or he would have. So all he could do was make up something fake about it," Plummer told KRTK. The officer searched Plummer's backpack, she said, and threatened to arrest her for obstructing justice, a felony charge.
Michael Dirden, Houston's executive assistant police chief, said in a statement that if Plummer believes the police acted inappropriately, she should file a complaint with the department's internal affairs division.
After being held in jail for 12 hours, Plummer was released on bond, and will soon appear in court to face her misdemeanor charge.
While Plummer's method of alerting drivers to police activity might have been unprecedented, state laws covering such warnings are decades old. Their most common form, flashing headlights, is legal in some states but illegal in others.
Laws in New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and Florida allow headlight flashing, while other states, such as Arizona and Alaska, forbid it. In Washington, drivers may be fined $124 for flashing their high beams within 400 feet of another vehicle for any reason. Other states forbid headlight flashing in some circumstances but not in others.
In Massachusetts, flashing car lights is not illegal, but it may result in an encounter with a police officer. If a driver says no when an officer asks whether headlights were flashed to warn drivers of a speed trap, the officer might ask if the motorist was driving with defective lights — which state law forbids.
As she rode her bicycle home from a grocery store last week near downtown Houston, Natalie Plummer noticed police officers pulling over speeders. After she parked her bike and turned one of her grocery bags into a makeshift sign warning drivers about the "speed trap" ahead, an officer drove up and arrested her.
"I was completely abiding by the law," Plummer told ABC's affiliate KRTK. "I was simply warning citizens of a situation ahead."
But Houston police saw it differently, and arrested Plummer for standing in the street where there a sidewalk was present, a misdemeanor charge.
Houston police spokeswoman Jodi Silva said that officers found Plummer standing in the street, waving her arms as she held the sign.
But Plummer denied ever leaving the sidewalk on West Dallas Street, alleging that the arresting officer invented a reason to detain her.
"He couldn't take me to jail for holding up this sign or he would have. So all he could do was make up something fake about it," Plummer told KRTK. The officer searched Plummer's backpack, she said, and threatened to arrest her for obstructing justice, a felony charge.
Michael Dirden, Houston's executive assistant police chief, said in a statement that if Plummer believes the police acted inappropriately, she should file a complaint with the department's internal affairs division.
After being held in jail for 12 hours, Plummer was released on bond, and will soon appear in court to face her misdemeanor charge.
While Plummer's method of alerting drivers to police activity might have been unprecedented, state laws covering such warnings are decades old. Their most common form, flashing headlights, is legal in some states but illegal in others.
Laws in New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and Florida allow headlight flashing, while other states, such as Arizona and Alaska, forbid it. In Washington, drivers may be fined $124 for flashing their high beams within 400 feet of another vehicle for any reason. Other states forbid headlight flashing in some circumstances but not in others.
In Massachusetts, flashing car lights is not illegal, but it may result in an encounter with a police officer. If a driver says no when an officer asks whether headlights were flashed to warn drivers of a speed trap, the officer might ask if the motorist was driving with defective lights — which state law forbids.
06-29-2012, 10:16 AM
#2
Saw this. Totally B.S.
I heard about someone that got pulled over and got a ticket for flashing his lights to warn oncoming drivers.
To me it's like this... if you guys are going to set traps and sit around with the sole intention of writing tickets then we should be allowed to let people know what's coming.
Hell, I've seen the CHP on private property out in the fields by my house with their lights off waiting on people. 100% illegal.
I've seen them set traps with the planes before too. The CHP goes flying by which makes people go... oh sweet... and speed up. Then they pull off the highway while the plane up above follows the speeders and he pops back out and nails them. I watched them do this off 101. Hell one of the times I slowed down because I saw what they were doing... actually looked up and saw the plane. Tried to warn the mustang next to me. He took off. Got popped about 2 miles later.
I heard about someone that got pulled over and got a ticket for flashing his lights to warn oncoming drivers.
To me it's like this... if you guys are going to set traps and sit around with the sole intention of writing tickets then we should be allowed to let people know what's coming.
Hell, I've seen the CHP on private property out in the fields by my house with their lights off waiting on people. 100% illegal.
I've seen them set traps with the planes before too. The CHP goes flying by which makes people go... oh sweet... and speed up. Then they pull off the highway while the plane up above follows the speeders and he pops back out and nails them. I watched them do this off 101. Hell one of the times I slowed down because I saw what they were doing... actually looked up and saw the plane. Tried to warn the mustang next to me. He took off. Got popped about 2 miles later.
06-29-2012, 11:15 AM
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Saw this. Totally B.S.
I heard about someone that got pulled over and got a ticket for flashing his lights to warn oncoming drivers.
To me it's like this... if you guys are going to set traps and sit around with the sole intention of writing tickets then we should be allowed to let people know what's coming.
Hell, I've seen the CHP on private property out in the fields by my house with their lights off waiting on people. 100% illegal.
I've seen them set traps with the planes before too. The CHP goes flying by which makes people go... oh sweet... and speed up. Then they pull off the highway while the plane up above follows the speeders and he pops back out and nails them. I watched them do this off 101. Hell one of the times I slowed down because I saw what they were doing... actually looked up and saw the plane. Tried to warn the mustang next to me. He took off. Got popped about 2 miles later.
I heard about someone that got pulled over and got a ticket for flashing his lights to warn oncoming drivers.
To me it's like this... if you guys are going to set traps and sit around with the sole intention of writing tickets then we should be allowed to let people know what's coming.
Hell, I've seen the CHP on private property out in the fields by my house with their lights off waiting on people. 100% illegal.
I've seen them set traps with the planes before too. The CHP goes flying by which makes people go... oh sweet... and speed up. Then they pull off the highway while the plane up above follows the speeders and he pops back out and nails them. I watched them do this off 101. Hell one of the times I slowed down because I saw what they were doing... actually looked up and saw the plane. Tried to warn the mustang next to me. He took off. Got popped about 2 miles later.
I've commuted 580 back and forth to Tracy/Stockton/Etc. for 15 years. CHP has pretty-well cleaned up their act on 580 but, they run wild out in the valley. I was being paced by a plane on Mathews between Tracy and Lathrop and the only reason I knew and slowed down was because he passed by the sun and cast a shadow into my sunroof. I jammed on the brakes and about a mile up CHP was camped out in some ranch's driveway shooting me with his LIDAR cannon. He then followed me all the way to Lathrop and then turned around. Really douchey behavior out there.
06-29-2012, 11:21 AM
#8
B.S. if you ask me. I hate the CHP. There are way too many of them, they get paid too much and they do too little to actually increase the safety on the roads or lower illegal activity. It's purely a revenue generating operation 90% of the time.
06-29-2012, 11:42 AM
#9
Also, while this was in Florida, the consequences of the ruling could have implications nation-wide:
Florida judge rules flashing lights for speed trap warning is covered under free speech
-Brian
06-29-2012, 12:13 PM
#10
While I don't "hate" the CHP, I couldn't agree more with this statement. Pure revenue generation. Very little to do with public safety.
Also, while this was in Florida, the consequences of the ruling could have implications nation-wide:
Florida judge rules flashing lights for speed trap warning is covered under free speech
-Brian
Also, while this was in Florida, the consequences of the ruling could have implications nation-wide:
Florida judge rules flashing lights for speed trap warning is covered under free speech
-Brian
And let me expand upon my chp thing. It's not the officers that I hate. I'm actually pretty friendly with them when I run into them at the coffee shop or whatever. Those guys have to be ******* every day of their lives. It can't be very rewarding. And some of them are good folks. They have to stand out in the rain to help people. Deal with first response on accidents. Etc. It's not all tickets. I just hate that there is so much budget put into it and there are so many of them. I am not kidding. My commute is about 16 miles and I see anywhere from 4-10 every day. It's retarded. I drive through a double fine zone so they hang out there to make money.
06-29-2012, 12:19 PM
#11
Speed traps are illegal in the state to begin with too.....
California Vehicle Code 40801 States
"No peace officer or other person shall use a speed trap in arresting, or participating or assisting in the arrest of, any person for any alleged violation of this code nor shall any speed trap be used in securing evidence as to the speed of any vehicle for the purpose of an arrest or prosecution under this code."
California Vehicle Code 40801 States
"No peace officer or other person shall use a speed trap in arresting, or participating or assisting in the arrest of, any person for any alleged violation of this code nor shall any speed trap be used in securing evidence as to the speed of any vehicle for the purpose of an arrest or prosecution under this code."
06-29-2012, 01:20 PM
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Speed traps are illegal in the state to begin with too.....
California Vehicle Code 40801 States
"No peace officer or other person shall use a speed trap in arresting, or participating or assisting in the arrest of, any person for any alleged violation of this code nor shall any speed trap be used in securing evidence as to the speed of any vehicle for the purpose of an arrest or prosecution under this code."
California Vehicle Code 40801 States
"No peace officer or other person shall use a speed trap in arresting, or participating or assisting in the arrest of, any person for any alleged violation of this code nor shall any speed trap be used in securing evidence as to the speed of any vehicle for the purpose of an arrest or prosecution under this code."
Does that mean any time a cop is hanging out on the side of the road where it's impossible to see them until you're right on them a speed trap?
They do this ALL THE TIME; especially after blind crests or turns in the road.
06-29-2012, 01:49 PM
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I get stabby!
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She's an attention wh0re if you ask me...if she was smart she would have made a sign and stick it in the ground instead of standing there like an idiot on the side of the road with her sign made of a paper lunch bag. be certain though if she was African American she would be locked up for disturbing the peace while in possession of a controlled substance while resisting arrest...
It makes me wonder how some of these Leos slip through the cracks during the hiring process. My friend got hired with a dept awhile ago, this guy would be the last person you would think of being a cop.He was very involved in the Asian gang life. Back in the day I've witnessed this guy cut off the pinky fingers of other gang members...now he's a cop lol how he passed the lie detector exam I don't know...
It makes me wonder how some of these Leos slip through the cracks during the hiring process. My friend got hired with a dept awhile ago, this guy would be the last person you would think of being a cop.He was very involved in the Asian gang life. Back in the day I've witnessed this guy cut off the pinky fingers of other gang members...now he's a cop lol how he passed the lie detector exam I don't know...
06-29-2012, 04:18 PM
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She's an attention wh0re if you ask me...if she was smart she would have made a sign and stick it in the ground instead of standing there like an idiot on the side of the road with her sign made of a paper lunch bag. be certain though if she was African American she would be locked up for disturbing the peace while in possession of a controlled substance while resisting arrest...
It makes me wonder how some of these Leos slip through the cracks during the hiring process. My friend got hired with a dept awhile ago, this guy would be the last person you would think of being a cop.He was very involved in the Asian gang life. Back in the day I've witnessed this guy cut off the pinky fingers of other gang members...now he's a cop lol how he passed the lie detector exam I don't know...
It makes me wonder how some of these Leos slip through the cracks during the hiring process. My friend got hired with a dept awhile ago, this guy would be the last person you would think of being a cop.He was very involved in the Asian gang life. Back in the day I've witnessed this guy cut off the pinky fingers of other gang members...now he's a cop lol how he passed the lie detector exam I don't know...
06-29-2012, 04:21 PM
#15
What constitutes a speed trap? The problem is this is completely up for interpretation.
Does that mean any time a cop is hanging out on the side of the road where it's impossible to see them until you're right on them a speed trap?
They do this ALL THE TIME; especially after blind crests or turns in the road.
Does that mean any time a cop is hanging out on the side of the road where it's impossible to see them until you're right on them a speed trap?
They do this ALL THE TIME; especially after blind crests or turns in the road.