Crime?
I dunno about Texas, but here in Illinois you can get a ticket if anything obstructs view of your license plate -- hitch, light out, and even snow. :X (edit: I've received warnings for 2 of those 3 in the past lol)
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Well y'know we Texans are (ironically) liberal with death-penalty, so figure they wouldn't be shy about dishing out tickets for much less than snow; that he didn't say the word "warning" and because his reasons seemed pretty laughable - hence doubt :/
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Seems to me like he just wanted to check people due to the burglaries. If they wanna pull people over, they can almost always find a reason.
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That's what i'm saying - he just wanted to check out admittedly suspicious out-of-the-ordinary occurrence; imo he devised license plate issue as a complement to (again imo) the poor reason of not signalling in a turning lane; yeah it's technically required by law afaik to always signal. But. Cmon now
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i would still check what the law says, even if this really sounds like a 'hey, are you the robber?" pull-over - don't need to give them any more reasons than you have too.
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also, if the law says that the hitch shouldn't obscure the license, then somebody installed it wrong and should be liable to fix it at no cost.
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my hitch was in place before i moved here (and can actually remove it with relative ease); got the plate put on no problem. every year a full inspection is mandatory on all vehicles - must have a sticker in bottom right (if you're looking at it) of windshield proving you passed.
why did i pass past inspections if this was an infraction?
why haven't i been stopped before?
whole point is that in the cop mentioning it, he was just giving a further reason for having stopped me when he really didn't have (")a good reason("); yes, to not signal is illegal but at 4 in the morning? time doesn't really matter either - the law is the law, period; am just saying, if i had been at another intersection in which the surrounding area hadn't been frequently burgled, i'm almost certain i wouldn't have been stopped (reference: all the other times i've driven late for how long i have been around here), hence my saying "the cop was talking shit."
for sure, better safe than sorry, but i'm not in the wrong for calling the cop on his shit xD (would technically be wrong if didn't remove hitch though, but at least correct according to principle)(which doesn't matter much if it ends up costing :S)
see also stlpaul's comment
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note that inspection doesn't look for everything that's prohibited, just a particular checklist.
Hell, in NJ, inspection only checks emissions, nothing else
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Only most of Austin apart from Alex Jones are liberal/democrats, most in Texas are conservatives/republicans upholding the 2nd amendment and the constitution. As a driver you should know nothing should obstruct your license plate, but hey you were lucky and i'm glad you weren't fined.
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The plate should be always visible, I don't know about fines but it's pretty important.
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I've been driving around here for two years - only just now was noticed? Nah
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Doesn't change the law, just because nobody called you up on it yet. What would you do next time? Explain that you didn't think that you actually had to care about the law, because nobody warned you before that warning? The result would be quite devastating. ;)
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Aha. Ahaha youre clever :P ignorance of the law doesn't make one exempt - as he's authority, his word is literally law. My whole point is that, considering how the interaction went down (very pleasantly), i'm leaning towards the side of not giving too much of a shit about that hitch heh.
My previous comment concluded "Cmon now." A sound legal argument it is not - merely calling the officer on his bullshit; mind, i do very much appreciate his doing his job and being ready to defend my neighborhood - was only annoyed because it seemed he conceived of the plate thing to double-down on saving face, so to speak. Again, i's in the wrong for not signalling but mentioning the plate was an attempt to (further) justify his stopping me when it was discovered i's a resident and not a trespasser - and nothing came of it beside mentioning it to me, didn't run my license or anything, only glanced at it.
And if i have to (literally) pay for that dismissal later, ok.
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Hah wow man. I'm gonna go out on a limb, and guess you're as white as wonderbread. Not a judgement, I am too, and I actually live in a similar area, but that bubble around you stands out bigtime. I am very unsurprised to learn it is the first time you've been pulled over.
Save face?Dude... you broke very blatant laws twice in the small time he was following you. Luckily it turned out you weren't the bigger thing he actually cared about, but most cases you're getting pulled over are ABOUT hitting you exactly for those sorts of concrete issues to generate revenue.
The cop had you dead to rights. He could have fucked up your day hitting you hard on both of those things, but you were extremely lucky. You seem to have this weird alright-but-annoyed stance here that's driving me crazy because you were actually pretty damn lucky but dont have the experience to even realize your luck. Be happy mang, be happy (and remove the trailerhitch).
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probably do deserve to get smacked down into place, especially since i do still think he was talking shit about the plate xD
of course i'm lucky and know that he could have broke it off in me - all things considered, i'm not able to take it too seriously, though i will try to reconsider
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Thats good. It really is in your best interest if only for the reason that the next cop who pulls you really might be a total prick, so you might as well not give'm that same reason twice and another way to ticket you.
Might as well make em work for it. :-D
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Your comment about him "talking shit" makes me think you haven't learnt anything.
He was doing you a favour by mentioning it (i.e get it fixed in the future) and turning a blind eye and yet your vocabulary, your attitude reeks of "who does he think he is stopping me?"
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there's no charge in my words, i just have a lazy lexicon.
i have learned to signal regardless - still iffy on the hitch though
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Well, does that the hitch block your number plate?
And do your local laws forbid that?
If it does then get it fixed. Surely you can reposition the numberplate then?
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if you're on the ground looking up at the hitch, yeah xD
apparently all laws forbid such (")obstructions(")
i asked the cop for suggestions as to how to fix - was looking for "move the plate elsewhere," and was hoping for a specific spot; he just said remove the hitch
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I'd say he was just keeping an eye on traffic at that time of night with those reports of burglaries going on.
He could have ticketed you for not indicating and so the fact that he didn't means he was just making sure nothing illegal was going on at 4 AM around there.
I don't know about the tow blocking the view of your license though, he might just be giving you a tip on how not to be stopped in the future if it's true.
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I was pulled over several times by now, I somehow always seem to fit the profile when they're on a manhunt or something like that... but never because of a trailer hitch ;D. Dunno about Texas law, your trailer hitch and if the cop was a prick or not, but I'd do it if it looks reasonable, paying a ticket or getting repeatedly pulled over because of something like that'd be more annoying to me. And over here the possibility to get shot is nearly 0%, so I don't even have to consider that ;>.
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it was a(s) nice (an) interaction (as possible, considering the situation xD). i knew from past advice to keep both of my hands visible at all times and announced when i was going to reach for my wallet when asked for license. that might have been why he didn't give a ticket or (")warning(") or anything shrug
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Yeah, I got some friends who work at the German police/border patrol and tbh - hearing their stories, I kinda get why they're always so on edge/grumpy ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Don't get me wrong, doesn't mean there aren't enough powermongering wannabe facists in uniform (Especially the younger ones are trigger happy af) , comes with the territory, but most of 'em are just working as everybody else is. Dunno, maybe he had a good day or bigger fish to fry, who knows... all in all wouldn't be something I'd consider doing for a living though ;D.
Meh, and in the end it's always better to be safe than sorry, especially when a gun or something like that is involved xD. Next time just flip him off and pedal to the metal after ramming his car, that will show him ;P.
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exactly, it was a young gun hoping he could get me on anything. though he apparently stopped me for one infraction and one "infraction," he decided not to fuck with it because i wasn't the promotion (in rank) that he was looking for.
again, though, it was a pleasant exchange - i work in a retail place and that's got its stress; can only imagine how it is for officers. which is to say, i am sympathetic to the stresses, but adamant in the thought that i was stopped for overall bullshit reasons; see also stlpaul's comment
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Sounds like he didn't check your trunk ... how much loot did you get away with?
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open pickup truck... but he didn't check inside my seats
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i was pulled over on a bike (not a motor bike just a normal bike) by police one night because there was a report of ' male doggers' in the park area
:P
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i had run-ins with da po-po while in high school - i'd run with a crew of like five other guys and just roam around town :x
they didn't like skateboarders either (i wasn't one of 'em, mind)
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If your trailer hitch is actually obstructing your plate it is a legitimate concern, because you could go speeding and they wouldn't be able to track you by speeding camera. I think he might have felt the need to pull you aside because of the combination of the two minor infractions, but I don't think he was being a jerk since he didn't ticket you.
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i agree, i just find it odd that this was the first time in years any ossifer has felt the need to lemme know; as previously stated, i figure he told me about it to further justify his pulling me over. meh
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Potato and Serve
Eat the police
No? Am I getting my leftist mottos confused?
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three rights make a left, but i made a left in turning (towards food) - therefore i may write three literal question marks
?
?
?
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just admit it you're a pesky thief and criminal ;)
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Because in turning lane, i don't bother to use blinker.
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BECAUSE in turning lane, i don't bother to use blinker
spoken in that particular tense; "i didn't bother to use" is more precise.
that clip implies i never use blinker - i (almost) always do, even when changing lanes with no cars behind.
when in turning lane, though, i find it to be redundant. shrug
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Just consider that he/they were doing their jobs, and be respectful to that.
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I dunno about the trailer hitch thing, but if it indeed obscuring vision of your plate you should remove it or place the plate in a visible location. That being said, I get annoyed when people don't use their signal lights, but that's because half the people where I live break almost every rule of driving on a daily basis, I see constant accidents, and when you're out as a pedestrian, it's the most nerve wrecking shit imaginable because it's like you don't exist to drivers. I've almost been run over so many times it's not even funny, drivers ignoring crosswalks, stop signs, red lights, etc etc etc...
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I use to work at a shopping center and our boss came in one day with a broken leg. I jokingly suggested he got it while not giving way to cars on a pedestrian crossing. I was right lol
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lol, nice. But yah, it happens far too often. I myself have been lucky that I've escaped situations like that because I'm overly cautious, but I have quite a few friends who've been hit overtime. The most shocking was an incident with one of my mom's friends years back, big guy, got hit at a crosswalk on his way into work, got up and the person saw how big he was, panicked, hit him again and drove off. Guess they were afraid of getting beat to holy hell. Luckily he walked away with no major injuries.
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wow! PLEASE tell me he got the plate!! holy fuck, if that happened to me, (bearing in mind it's easy to say shit when not in the situation) feel like i'd've tried to jump up and put my foot through their windshield. 'cause i a big guy too. and and - just - oooooh... that driver will get their comeuppance, i'm sure.
and yeah, i used to walk miles a day, just wandering town. drivers certainly do suck and i try to mind pedestrians whenever i see them
to be sure, only time i don't use signal is in those turning lanes - have learned to always now though not that i didn't know before then but getting off as lucky as i did, won't give another reason to be stopped for that again will probably end up removing hitch just to be safe, but i stand by the thought that his saying so was just BS
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I honestly don't remember if he had gotten the plate, reported it or anything. It happened downtown, so odds are someone at least called it in, but no idea what ever came of it. Was just one of those situations that turned into that story we'll always remember and talk about down the road.
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It's normal to be a bit annoyed when pulled over by police but it's just part of having a licence. First time I got pulled over was for forgetting to put on my headlights, probably 30 mins after sunset on a main street that is lit up like daylight, in a bright yellow car. But the police are just doing their job and most people, myself included, are quick to minimise their mistakes.
I work as a driving instructor and I get the question all the time, "Do I need to indicate (signal) if I'm in a turning only lane?" Think about it though. Do you think all drivers and other road users (e.g. pedestrians) from all directions can see that it's a turning lane? And should it be up to them to try and guess what you're doing? I frequently use the fact a driver is not signalling while in a turning-only lane as a clue they're going to go straight, which sure enough they often do, or that they're somewhat distracted. The indicator makes your movements more predictable and therefore keeps you safer so it's in your own interest to move your finger an inch and use it. :p
About the trailer hitch, number plates are often used for pointing a laser at while testing your speed, or obviously for other things like red light and speed cameras, toll cameras, gas station runners, etc. For accountability it needs to be visible within a certain field of view. In many places there are automated cameras (where I live they're on most police cars) that scan the number plate of vehicles to check if they have valid registration.
Consider the luck of the learner driver I knew who was pulled over for the first time and breathalysed (testing their blood-alcohol level) during their driving test!
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i can dig it
i feel bad about how succinct this comment is in the face of your paragraphs - very much appreciate them but not much more i can say; always have that thought in mind that those around might not know it's a turning lane - that using the signal ensures psychologically that you will turn - if am first in line, will usually use signal but if in middle of several cars, meh and at 4 in the morning with no one around xD
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Ah but there was someone around. You said so yourself. The cop that was sitting behind you. From personal experience, I have found that at those times when I badly cut off another driver or rider e.g. on a lane change, it was when I thought there was nothing there and my signal was very late. My point is that if you start making assumptions about what's happening around you and get slack on the rules then you're not really giving yourself the best chance to deal with the unexpected. This is why I say it's smarter to use your indicator, because if you stuff up on something else, your actions are less likely to cause an accident. The other driver or rider has already prepared for you and will more easily react to your mistake.
Sorry if it comes off as a bit of a rant but you could understand road safety is a passion of mine and I see all sorts of mistakes on the road every day, and most of those are not from the driver I'm supervising!
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First time I got pulled over I had done an illegal turn on an intersection, spun my wheels at the next intersection, and was doing 80kph in a 60kph zone, all while on a probationary licence which means even 1 infraction is immediate loss of licence.
I explained to them I had stopped to pick up 2 stranded guys whose car had run out of fuel and was taking them into town to get some, but was in a hurry to get home since it was 11pm and I had college the next morning.
They kept telling me how stupid I was and that the 2 guys were not the type of people I should be helping. When I admitted I was an idiot they gave my papers back, said dont do it again and left.
Huge relief and kind of amusing way to avoid a ticket, but I am pretty sure they were more interested in chasing down those 2 guys who had walked off while we were talking.
As for hitch obstructing your plate, here any obstruction is illegal and they will even fine you if they consider it too dirty or faded to read easily.
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damn! i think you might have beat me out on the luck there :P
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No picture of the hitch? :)
If you have a lifted truck or something it's possible that from certain angles it could be (slightly) obstructed but if there was no warning (shrug)
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shrug maybe later if think about it if don't remove it
not lifted, is actually a tiny '93 single-cab chevy; so yeah, with that in mind, i call further BS on the cop xD
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It's called pretexting and the police do it all the time especially if you're a minority. It is legal though ethically questionable.
Pretexting is when they really want to stop you for invalid reason A (like "i have a funny feeling about this guy"), but they need to find reason B as a valid excuse to pull you over ("his plate is obstructed"). All of those laws about how closely you can follow, how many feet in advance you must turn on your signals, how long you must be at a complete stop when at a stop sign, etc. can be used as reasons to stop you. Almost everyone is in violation of something or other during the course of their daily drive.
Since he didn't give you a warning or anything it was almost certainly just an excuse to stop you and check you out. Maybe he gets lucky and you act suspicious, or you have warrants, or he smells/sees drugs, impounds the car and hits the jackpot. Maybe he was just bored and looking for some action. Who knows?
Technically, anything that blocks any part of any letter or number on your license plate is illegal. That includes a trailer hitch or a bike rack. Even those decorative license plate frames. I think 99.999% of the time the cops wouldn't care.
If he had written a citation I'd say maybe they were just looking to generate some revenue or hit their quota. But since he didn't I'd say he was just sizing you up and looking for trouble.
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I will add a funny extra. I live in Missouri and here, trucks whose combined weight + towing power exceed 18,000 lbs (those most likely to have a hitch) are not required to have a rear license plate at all. So big F250's and stuff like that don't have rear plates. In fact if you want a rear plate on one of those you have to pay extra. Go figure.
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that is exactly what i's thinking, so much so that i've already linked your comment a few times elsewhere in this discussion ahahaha
i admit i's in the wrong for not signalling and he was justified enough in stopping me for that; since no citation for that and having mentioned the hitch only after mentioning the burglaries and ensuring i was a resident proves to me that, yep, he felt the need to further justify since he didn't get what he wanted out of me (because to fail to signal at 4 in the morning with no other traffic was apparently also a crappy reason to him xD)
wow on the Missouri law! what's the reasoning? that such monsters as those are prone enough to be towing something that to bother with a rear license plate isn't worth it? i mean it's still required to have a plate on the trailer yes?
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Yeah, trailers have their own plates, it's something cheap like $5 a year.
I suppose most of the time big trucks like that are commercial vehicles, they would be hauling something, or if it's something like a dump truck it would be so dirty or banged up the plate would be unreadable anyway. They make the rear plates available because people who drive out of state get stopped by the police in places where rear plates are mandatory. LOL.
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Where I'm from, you must use blinkers even in turn lanes. It never was reinforced until recently since the police industry is running dry on cash.
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In a turning lane. Car pulls up behind me. Because in turning lane, i don't bother to use blinker. Get pulled over a ways down the road for that and because apparently my trailer hitch is obstructig my plate (first i've EVER heard that); also several break-ins around my house lately it seems.
No (in)formal warning, nothing - not sure if he was just fuckin' with me or checkin' if burglar (rolled out around 0350 so shrug)(didn't sleep, go to gas station for 'bacco) but just glad nothing came of it, though annoyed that it happened.
Will add gib later - at work now - but just wanted to ask y'all's opinion, because SG seems a haven for all sortsa advice:
should i take seriously his claim that i must remove my trailer hitch?
Level 0: https://www.steamgifts.com/giveaway/t6fRN/neo-now
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EDIT: i wrote this after it had happened - with no sleep; the way it's written leads one to think one thing when another actually happened; comment (and my reply to it) clarify - TL;DR problem with the hitch was only mentioned after it was proven that i was on the up-and-up - after everything was sorted - as opposed to the burglaries being mentioned afterwards
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