Umm, actually, no it's not. Ever been through a DWI roadblock? Same thing, just more folks involved.

 

Funny you should mention that BobbDobbs, my car is debadged!

 

Let me tell you what is wrong with the story. Procedure would have him checking the tag for wants and warrants before he ever approached the vehicle. He either knew what the car was before he approached you and it was a fishing expedition or worse case he may have thought a women was driving the car (because it looks so cute) and planned to let's just say, "take advantage of the situation". Either way, you got a break because that could very well have become a bad situation.

 

Sobriety roadblocks are different because they do not discriminate -- i.e., they pull everyone over. The Supreme Court has ruled on it this way:

(emphasis mine)

 

Regardless, you still have a number plate, which he would have checked against the reported stolen vehicle. I'm curious why you're so inclined to let this cop off the hook.

 

Bob, I stand humbled and corrected.

 

Yeah, I was very puzzled, as I figured that he would've checked the plates also, and he didn't come out of his car right away... So whatever he was doing, I don't know, maybe he wanted to see if he could get me for something else (DUI, drugs, expired plates; nothing I have, but as I said, these cops are vicious). He didn't write anything down for me, and I don't have his name or badge number...But in no way am I surprised, especially with the police in this town..Small town cops, nothing to do, looking for their big break to bust some kid!

BobbDobbs-
He didn't give me a ticket, didn't give me an attitude, he was just hasty, and it was late. Compared to my other experiences with this police force:

My friends and I were on our way home late one night, and one of the kids is from Georgia. He wanted to drive my friend's Lexus, just to see how it felt, etc. as he was thinking of buying a used one. He wasn't speeding, did everything right, i.e. turn signals, and we wound up getting pulled over right outside of my friend's house for having expired registration. the lights on those awful blue and red led's, in full force, sitting there for 25 minutes while the officer checked the kid's license in Georgia to make sure it was clean.

She came back 25 minutes later, and said "Why do you have a warrant out for your arrest in Georgia?" and the kid goes "What?!?! I don't have a warrant!" and she goes "Nah, I know, I'm messing with you...Have a good night guys.." and let us go.

We went in the house and told my friend's parents that we got pulled over because the car had expired registration, to which my friends mom told us: "the registration was just renewed last month."

Luckily we had a name and badge number, and we called her in to complain. I was also smart enough to videotape the whole encounter from the backseat.

That's why this whole encounter, which took ~10 min TOPS, is not such a big deal to me

 

Well, I'm glad you're comfortable with a cop apparently violating your 4th amendment rights. I wouldn't be.

 

^+1, but you would have to be mostly blind to mistake a MINI for a Golf... Possibly if it was a stolen Lupo or Polo but I doubt most US cops would know what those look like anyways.

I say sue, it's the American Way !

 

What, plates can't be switched?

Perhaps the cop called in the plates and they came back clean on a MINI Cooper belonging to SilverBullet3687. Problem is, the cop doesn't know what a MINI Cooper looks like which he apparently did not; all those foreign hatchbacks look alike and the car still matched the description. And if it's debadged, what else has he got to go on??? So he looks at the license and registration and sees that it's a MINI Cooper registered to SilverBullet3687 and lets him go without any harrassment. Case closed.

Or maybe he was looking to umpimp your auto.

 

Or, the cop pulls him over on a fishing expedition, doesn't run the plate at all and takes a guess at the make and model of vehicle SilverBullet3687 is driving and gets it wrong. He's extra polite because he realizes he just broke the rules by pulling a guy over for no particular reason and let's him go in less than 10 minutes.

Considering it's a town known for the "worst cops around" I'm going with guilty until proven innocent.

 

I once had my Golf GTI mistaken for an SUV in a carwash. When I told the lady it wasn't an SUV, she goes "What kind of Mini-van only has two doors?" I just got my change and walked out. If you listen to Bill Engvall at all, it was a very "Here's your sign" moment.

Right now, I'd really like to make the GTI a fake MINI, only because I love MINIs and cannot afford one right now. Stupid working at a bank.

 

I wonder if the cop has ever seen one of those counterfeit MINI commercials...lol

 

What was your "Fast" whispering in your ear as he walked up?

 

Actually it's very humorous and the fact that it gets you that aggravated is the really scary part. Surely you must have read the article that because being a policeman is sooo boring most of the time that one of the prerequisites for becoming a cop is to be a bit below normal in imagination as well as intelligence. ;-) I swear I read this somewhere, but seeing as I'm 52 and older than most of you I'm allowed to forget...as I have. To all of you who protect and serve...I thank you and I don't believe that article I read somewhere, sometime one little bit. :-)

 

I dont think theres anyway that cop was sober in any way

 

 

A few years ago, when i had longer hair, I used to get pulled over all the time. Stupid excuses for the reasons they pulled me over were a dime-a-dozen.

As I have been pulled over, searched, given field sobriety tests, handcuffed, thrown in cop car, had my car searched and torn apart - example of one stop... And have had at least 5 stops like it, I learned to just laugh and go with the cops. I did have a couple friends that were cops and was pulled over to be given a wedding invitation...


The basic thing i learned was that because I was clean (never did drugs, never drove after drinking), it was just easier to go on... Only twice did I tell the cops to call their supervisors because there was a problem with their conduct. It's easier to say thank you sir, and go on home.

 

I wish I had your problem............the police are always mistaking me for a Mexican.....a Golf would be, in my opinion, slightly more flattering.

 

LOL, maybe he didn't know what a VW Golf looked like and figured he should just pull over all small silver hatchbacks!

 

I would have pummeled him with is batton.

NYC style baybee

 

Nothing surprises me about the stupidity of some cops. Some years back I was returning home from a friends house in my MGB. Not speeding, driving correctly, and I get pulled over by a sheriff's car. They have me exit the car and stand in their headlights for awhile. I ask a few times what's going on. They say someone matching my description had robbed a convenience store. I said, "you mean he's 6'7" and drives an MGB with a McClellan AFB sticker on it?" Got a very "got to hell" look from one of them and they told me to take off. I can understand if my facial characteristics resembled the guy, but the suspicion should have been off as soon as I got out of my car! They guy they wanted was 5'10".

 

You are 6'7'?? omg!

 

I'll be sure to call it in. What's your phone number? And uh, what's a Golf?"

 

He was probably just so excited when he saw a car that semi-matched the description that he didn't check anything, just threw on the lights. Probably was just hyped up to get a piece of the action/get credit for the arrest that he wasn't even thinking straight.