I just got back from a vacation with a few girlfriends. We had such an odd thing happen, and I wondered if any of you have any insight. It was really unsettling.
Our trip was out of state. On our way back, we were pulled over for speeding. The driver was advised she was going 83 in a 65. I do think she was speeding. The whole thing was really odd though. The officer first asked for everyone's licenses, which I have never had happen. After he took out licenses, he advised us to roll up the windows because "it gets really windy here". A moment later, another cop car came heading toward us and then flipped around and parked behind the first officer's car. He came back a few minutes later and claimed he could not pull up her license plate in the system. He asked her if one of the letters was a letter O or a zero and then went back to his car. (wouldn't a reasonable person try a zero if the O did not work? Why come back to the car to ask?) A few minutes later, he came back and ordered the driver to get out of the car. He told her he smelled pot in the car and wanted to search the car. The driver was super polite the whole time but told him no, he could not search the car. He kept grilling her as to what we did all weekend, "were you partying? Your friend is pregnant, why wouldn't you party, you have an automatic designated driver". Finally he wrote her a ticket and let us leave. On the ticket he wrote the wrong speed she was going- he wrote she was going 64 in a 65. It was really like he was not all there, and just wanted to harass someone.
None of us look like "hooligans", we are all 32 and were nicely groomed. We are all mothers and one of us is pregnant. None of us smoke, there was nothing in the car that even smelled of cigarette smoke. We spent the weekend shopping and eating out. It was SO WEIRD.
What do you think was going on? Have you ever had an unsettling experience like that?
@Nicole, LOL! Pretty funny!
Yeah, we were out in the middle of nowwhere...isolated country road in Wyoming. That was the creepy part. It was in the day, but last year we made the same drive and loved it because you could go 15-20 minutes without even seeing another car. There was literally nothing out there, I think if we had kept driving till we hit a populated area, the cop would have been chasing us for 15 minutes! I don't mind giving over my license for an officer to check. It was just the sum of everything that made me wonder if all was really on the up-and-up. We all had a weird feeling from the beginning of the encounter.
@Ahnjayla S. lol! Guess we are country girls!
Boring day on the open road - happened to pull over a car full of hot chicks. Called in his friend to take a look. Gave a ticket anyway?
I've never had anything like this happen, but my guess is that they suspected you of something, and were stalling while they were trying to verify their suspicions. Maybe you fit the description of someone they were looking for.
I'm a retired police officer. Parts of this seem odd but other parts not so much. Stopping the car for that speed is definitely a good stop. Asking for all your driver's licenses is not so odd. Depends on what he was investigating other than just the speed. Your car may have fit the description of a car used in a crime.
Same for having another car for back up. Since it was a rural area, back up may be standard. Or the second cop wanted to talk to the first one about something totally unrelated. Or the suspected, tho not real, condition may require back up for officer safety.
All that seems odd to me, besides the wrong speed on the ticket, is the asking whether or not the car license number was a number or a letter. But as someone else suggested it may be a stall tactic. Or.....if the plate is a vanity plate and not clear, it would be reasonable.
Having you roll up the windows might indicate he was investigating pot use. Someone may have called in their suspicions and given them a wrong plate number. Perhaps they transposed numbers or letters. That would also fit in with the officer asking about the plate. Also, he may have been checking out whether or not you knew your plate number.
I suggest you call his department and ask to speak with his supervisor to find out more information so that you have peace of mind. Your questions are legitimate. Anytime you have a funny feeling about something, trust your instinct and ask questions.
I would contest the ticket. It's written wrong. By saying you were going 64 in a 65 mph zone you weren't violating the speed laws or whatever Wyoming calls it. You won't have to pay. Call the court listed on the ticket to ask how to handle this. Later: Or you could just let it go and the judge will dismiss the ticket when it gets to him. If you're not going to appear in court then do what the ticket tells you to do. Don't say you were going 84. If you have to post bail, the court will refund it once the judge dismisses it. Completely ignoring it will cause difficulty.
Later in response to another post. The police have the right to ask for ID of anyone. And everyone has the right to say no, unless they're driving a car.
Another thought is that this may have been a training exercise.
Well if he DID think he smelled something in the car after pulling you over, I am not surprised he collected all the licenses and asked you to keep the windows rolled up so you couldn't air the car out or throw anything out.
Also not surprising that he asked for a second car for back-up if he thought he was about to do a search.
To me, the weird thing is not his behavior- that might be consistent with a law enforcement officer who thinks they are about to make a bust. BUT, why did he have that suspicion? Maybe the place you pulled over at happened to have a skunky smell. maybe the drivers eye's looked red and glassy from not wearing sunglasses or from driving too long.
Who knows. Does sound a bit odd that he suspected you nice ladies.
I don't have any insight, but when I first saw the post I read your name as Getawaygirl and I thought "Hmm, maybe she was up to something." Lol!
I have a law enforecement background (former traffic prosecutor)
None of this is odd EXCEPT the part about the weed. Taking all of your DL's, esp since you are out of state, is very common. As is calling in another officer. The second officer could have heard the call come in and was just in the area and wanted to stop to see what was up. They do that often.
As far as pot goes, myabe he smelled something odd, maybe he wanted to plant something, maybe your car matched the description of a stolen vehicle, maybe he thought you were doing something wrong, he just couldn't place a finger on it. Cops often have weird conversations with folks, I never understood why. Since I am not him, I cannot tell you what his thought process was.
But I can tell you, just because he wrote the wrong speed does NOT make the ticket invalid like another poster stated. Please do not let her assume that and not show up for the court date or do whatever it is she wants to do (supervision, contest it with a trial, etc). Your friend can contest the ticket, but if the officer shows up and says "she was going 84 in a 65, I saw it, I just wrote it wrong", your friend will lose.
We had a pullover kind of like that years ago. My hubby and I were driving. We didn't get a ticket at the end of it. I think that our car fit the description of something ELSE that had happened, and that they were checking that out.
You are right, that is really odd. Maybe he just thought "wow bunch of pretty ladies" and had a slow day? Needed to make his quota for tickets? Who knows. You could try calling the department he was in (all the information should be on the ticket) and tell them what happened. Maybe they have some insight.
Could have been a revenue catch. Some of the small towns that is their biggest revenue stream.
That encounter was extremely wierd. I can't imagine what the heck he was doing. He had no business asking for everyone's licenses.
I would contact the law enforcement agency and make a formal complaint. It won't do anything for you, but it may help someone else in the future.
What an odd situation. And the other ladies are right - your friend should contest the ticket so she doesn't have to pay anything or get points. If the officer wrote it wrong, it's invalid.
Well, from experience in Northern Wyoming the police are known to ticket ANYONE who goes even 1 over the limit. And we have been pulled over when a car was going the opposite direction as us - radar gun out and working while they were driving.
If you decide to contest it, whatever happens, take care of it. I had a friend that took care of a ticket 13 years ago and was still arrested when speeding with a warrant for his arrest.
Always a good idea to check things out and know your rights when responding to police.
sounds like he pulled her over for speeding and the flirted and you guys got lucky because he wrote the ticket in such a way to not give her points and J. a fine.
he may have smelt what he thought was pot even if there wasnt any or he couldve been baiting you
If she was going that fast he couldve wrote the real speed and her ticket wouldve been doubled and then she'd porbably have 3 points and insane insurance rates when they found out
All cops ussually call a 2nd car in the suburbs
You were given a ticket for going 64 in a 65 zone. Count your lucky stars and be thankful. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.
You contest the ticket and he tells the judge he made a "typo" and it should be 84 and what have you accomplished except be out Money for the ticket and money to travel to the court house. Unless you and Bill Gates are related and you have a 9 figure net worth, forget about it.
I'd let a cop see my license several times if he wanted to so I wouldn't have to worry about a ticket.
Is common sense that uncommon? Good luck to you and yours.
When I was a kid, my dad got pulled over in a different state than we lived in and the cop insisted he pay the ticket right then. He refused to give the cop money, but agreed to put a check in an envelope and mail it in front of the cop. I always thought that was kinda odd. I think cops target out of state cars because they think the tickets will never be contested since the speeder will not travel back to their state to fight it.
I had to laugh at a comment!! Arrested for reckless driving ?! Lol! Yeah they only ticket here. And here in MT a reckless ticket is less points on your driving record than a speeding! Crazy tidbit to throw out. Another fun fact is that you ask to see the radar reading if you don't feel they are being truthful. You can also ask your their supervisor to come out!! Always get the badge number and name of the officer. If you feel things were not handled right you can report them and the situation will be investigated.
Things sounded alright until you said he asked if it was an o or a zero. Giving her a ticket for 64 sounds odd too. I would fight that lol.
Your are lucky. At 83 mph, the driver should've been arrested for wreckless driving and the car impounded.
As for asking for all of your licenses, yes, that can and has been done. You were going 83. Why? It is now standard practice that when you have a car pulled over, that you run the IDs of all occupants through the police and ICE databases.
When I was a young woman, I was driving in my Mom's hometown and a cop pulled me over to ask me if I was her daughter. Only time EVER I got pulled over and didn't get a ticket! : )
I do know that, in Wyoming, out of state plates speeding AT ALL will be pulled over and ticketed. Also...he may have thought you all were cute.
oooo. don't like.
i agree, that's really fishy.
i don't know that i'd do anything about it, but probably EVERYONE should think about not pulling over until one is in a populated area.
:( khairete
S.
Quick question- you went to Wyoming to shop and eat? Wow, everyone I know does just the opposite!
