This is some B.S., It's not about the hurricane and Bush Options

[darksecret]

Fewer troopers write fewer tickets

Officers acknowledge cushion on speed limit; drivers take advantage

Associated Press

COLUMBIA - Fewer troopers on the roads in South Carolina led to a 7 percent drop in speeding tickets issued during the first half of 2005, compared with the same period last year.

Which may be related to another statistic compiled by AAA Carolinas: motorists in South Carolina, which leads the nation in speed-related traffic deaths, drive about 10 miles an hour over the speed limit on average because they think officers won't pull them over.

The state Department of Public Safety reported 66,671 speeding tickets written from January to June 2005, down from 71,647 for the same period in 2004.

Public Safety spokesman Sid Gaulden said state has 783 troopers, down from the 961 troopers on the road in 2000.

While there is no written policy, officers interviewed recently said they do pick and choose whom they pull over.

On a recent August evening, Lance Cpl. C.M. Coats of the S. C. Highway Patrol parked his cruiser under an overpass on Interstate 77, cut off his lights and had his pick of speeders.

All of the first 10 cars to pass him were going faster than the posted 60 mph speed limit. He chose to pull over the 11th car, though she was going no faster than two other speeders who went by at 80 mph.

"It's up to the officer," he said.

The woman was from Pennsylvania and told Coats she was trying to find Fort Jackson just outside of Columbia, but ended up in Charlotte, more than 80 miles away.

Coats reduced the charge to going 69 mph in a 60 mph zone.

Coats would not say whether he had a cushion that he allowed drivers before he pulled them over.

Roderick Bailey, traffic safety manager for AAA Carolinas and a former police officer, said officers do have limits, but they vary.

"I had my own limit," Bailey said, "and that changes throughout the day on that same highway."

Bailey said he would stop motorists driving 10 mph over the speed limit, but during high traffic times, such as rush hour, he would reduce that to 8 mph over the limit.

On weekends, meanwhile, he might allow a driver to go 14 mph or more over the limit.

He said writing a ticket for driving 1 mph over the speed limit would "look pretty stupid in court, so it's the reason people do what they do."

LaShawn Pendergrass of Kingstree, S.C., said she feels comfortable at 7 miles over the speed limit, but will increase that to 10 mph over on interstates that have a 60 mph limit.

Esther Kramer of Columbia said she is a consistent speeder, but uses her cruise control to keep herself at no more than 7 miles an hour over the limit.


Explains why you get a ticket when 5 others are commiting the same crime.

My mistake.

This post has been edited by darksecret: Sep 12, 2005 - 2:39 PM

[Bigmeanbulldog55]

I think the nicer your car is, the less chance you have of getting pulled over. That is, as long as it doesn't have a body kit or obvious mods. Cops pull over crappy cars because they have no business going fast. I haven't got a singal ticket sence I got my Celica. I got 3 when I had my Geo.