Unmarked police vehicles for traffic stops...Thought?

[Texan2]

The ones that say poleece on the doors of course. Gee, everybody knows that.

You can see "Police" on the doors when it is DIRECTLY BEHIND YOU??? Really?

The answer is that you cant. So an unmarked car with a ton of lights looks much like a marked car with a ton of lights in the rear view mirror of the violator getting pulled over.

For years, this whole topic has been one of sour grapes by people who don't like police enforcing traffic laws on them.

I don't know af any remote rural areas that have unmarked traffic enforcement vehicles. It is usually in more populated areas. HIGHLY unlikely that someone is going to spend $3k-$5k in lights for their fairly new look alike patrol vehicle to impersonate a cop in a city full of real cops.

Use common sense, drive to an area that is well lit/populated. You will be ok.

 

[winchster]

You can see "Police" on the doors when it is DIRECTLY BEHIND YOU??? Really?

The answer is that you cant. So an unmarked car with a ton of lights looks much like a marked car with a ton of lights in the rear view mirror of the violator getting pulled over.

For years, this whole topic has been one of sour grapes by people who don't like police enforcing traffic laws on them.

I don't know af any remote rural areas that have unmarked traffic enforcement vehicles. It is usually in more populated areas. HIGHLY unlikely that someone is going to spend $3k-$5k in lights for their fairly new look alike patrol vehicle to impersonate a cop in a city full of real cops.

Use common sense, drive to an area that is well lit/populated. You will be ok.

Y'all should lighten up. Of course you can't see anything on the car that would indicate marked or not. I was being sarcastic.

I am fairly confident there aren't any PD's that misspell police on their cars.

 

[Texan2]

If they DO misspell it, these guys will come for them....

 

[winchster]

If they DO misspell it, these guys will come for them....
View attachment 23812

Now that's funny.

 

[CZ guy]

HIGHLY unlikely that someone is going to spend $3k-$5k in lights for their fairly new look alike patrol vehicle to impersonate a cop in a city full of real cops.

Yeah, me and the folks I worked with dealt with fake and wannabe cops pretty strictly. Ask one of Houston's TV anchors about what happens when you pull up to a roadblock after an explosion and turn on your white flashing lights that are hidden in your headlight assembly, in an attempt to get past an officer and report the REAL story before the dust settles.........

I still smile about that one!

 

[Charlie]

Yeah, me and the folks I worked with dealt with fake and wannabe cops pretty strictly. Ask one of Houston's TV anchors about what happens when you pull up to a roadblock after an explosion and turn on your white flashing lights that are hidden in your headlight assembly, in an attempt to get past an officer and report the REAL story before the dust settles.........

I still smile about that one!

I'd like to know more details on that stunt!

 

[CZ guy]

I'd like to know more details on that stunt!

LOL, for obvious reasons I cannot list the names of those involved but when a cop has been standing on a major freeway, diverting traffic away from a deadly explosion in an industrial complex and a plain-Jane white bronco tries to slide by in a line of ambulances and fire apparatus by flipping on illegal white flashing lights (as described in post #95), the result might be an expensive one! Especially when the driver is motioned to stop but he decides to roll by slowly yelling "emergency response" to an officer that recognizes a TV news-person sitting in the front seat.

 

[Charlie]

Brain dead person!

 

[AMERICANTARGETS741776]

Rules vary from state to state and sometimes between individual municipalities but, some agencies, in efforts they say are meant to catch aggressive drivers or people texting while driving, have taken to using unmarked cars for traffic enforcement. In places where this isn't legal, agencies have taken to "ghost" or otherwise subdued markings that you can't see unless they are viewed under ideal lighting conditions. This is clearly an effort to have an unmarked car without violating the law but, cops would never lie or cheat just to meet a ticket quota.

Whatever you may think of these cars, it raises another issue that has long been a problem. We live in a world where any idiot can buy a new or recently retired, police spec Tahoe or Crown Vic that may still have lights/siren in it or he can buy the gear to install it himself. People being pulled over by these fake badges for the purpose of robbery and worse is not common but, it does happen. What are your thoughts on this and what would you do if you were driving along, having committed no known violation, and suddenly found yourself with an otherwise unmarked vehicle running lights and sirens behind you?

I don't agree with unmarked L.E.O. vehicles But we Sure as heck Need to Stop people from texting and driving, Its Almost as bad if not worse than someone driving Drunk. I mean come on... taking your eyes off the road for 5-20 seconds over a few words= STUPID.

 

[Texan2]

I don't agree with unmarked L.E.O. vehicles But we Sure as heck Need to Stop people from texting and driving, Its Almost as bad if not worse than someone driving Drunk. I mean come on... taking your eyes off the road for 5-20 seconds over a few words= STUPID.

Unmarked LEO vehicles are just another tool in the toolbox. Pretty hard to do many police tasks in a marked patrol car. The Mayberry Police Department world people wish for is a myth.

The idea that everyone has the RIGHT to know exactly which vehicles are police cars is pretty absurd.

I guess police can mark ALL of their cars when law breakers mark all of THEIR vehicles with "Criminal" so we can know who they all are.

 

[Charlie]

I'm lovin' this thread! I have no problem with unmarked vehicles. As said, if one is not breaking the law, who cares if they are marked or not. I agree that if our criminals of today were like the criminals they had in Mayberry, then cops wouldn't need unmarked cars!

 

[CZ guy]

...... we Sure as heck Need to Stop people from texting and driving, Its Almost as bad if not worse than someone driving Drunk. I mean come on... taking your eyes off the road for 5-20 seconds over a few words= STUPID.

Texting and driving is a hard violation to catch though in a marked patrol car. Maybe the use of a bucket truck with a cop dressed up like a tree trimmer above the roadway would work. Although, someone driving along splitting two lanes..... smiling at their crotch is pretty obvious!

 

[Charlie]

Drones!

 

[AMERICANTARGETS741776]

Unmarked LEO vehicles are just another tool in the toolbox. Pretty hard to do many police tasks in a marked patrol car. The Mayberry Police Department world people wish for is a myth.

The idea that everyone has the RIGHT to know exactly which vehicles are police cars is pretty absurd.

I guess police can mark ALL of their cars when law breakers mark all of THEIR vehicles with "Criminal" so we can know who they all are.

I wont complain if it saves us a few thousand tax dollars by NOT putting marking on these units lol I know what you're saying though, it makes sense from that perspective. Thanks for keeping the peace and dealing with an un-fair share of societies B/s. I truly appreciate it.

 

[robocop10mm]

Don't know how to say this without sounding adversarial because I truly am trying to show the "other side" of the issue, but if there is a black and white regulatory sign posted with a speed limit and motorists are routinely ignoring it, it WILL be enforced by traffic officers, to some extent.

Remember, cops don't get paid for convictions....only to write the ticket and show the "problem" is trying to be corrected. I cannot go any deeper into the mindset of that issue because I never experienced any similar circumstances in my career where I knew my efforts were for naught. And, it is not fair to judge another's actions when we cannot possibly know what behind the scene factors contributed to it. For instance, there could have been a sergeant, captain or deputy chief pushing for strict enforcement in that location and the actual guys writing the citations were following strict orders. I HAVE been there, as in told to enforce a "NO TRUCKS" zone to all but one company that had a friend on city council. I won that one.......

If an officer knew the speed limit sign was illegally posted (because his tickets get tossed), he would be obligated to NOT enforce speed violations there. If he were a PROFESSIONAL officer, he would report fact to the office responsible for posting the signs.

 

[CZ guy]

If an officer knew the speed limit sign was illegally posted (because his tickets get tossed), he would be obligated to NOT enforce speed violations there. If he were a PROFESSIONAL officer, he would report fact to the office responsible for posting the signs.

Absolutely correct. But, we know very little of the story, which was posted from an outsider looking in. Not saying he is wrong in his observations but there could be lots of factors involved he/we are not privy to.

Wish I knew the whole story behind that episode. Today there'd be a full-fledged investigation by the media and everything would be posted on Youtube!