Not above the law
A few weeks back, I was driving home from work. One of the benefits of starting work early and getting home late, is the lack of traffic.
Recently the road people completed construction of the highway going from 4 lanes to 6 lanes. Traffic normally goes about 50 mph now along that highway, but the speed limit is only 30 mph.
You guessed it. I was doing about 50 mph, and being the lone car on the road, was a rather conspicuous target for the police car stationed a block or two from my house. I figured I was had, and I was. The officer told me he was going to give me a ticket for going 50 in a 30 zone, and went back to his car to write the ticket. I sat in my car and stewed, wishing that he would have at least had the grace to write it for a 45 or 40 rather than 50 mph speed.
My guess is that police officers usually feel somewhat guilty about ruining your day when they give you a ticket, because in each of the three or four instances that I've been the recipient of their attention since my driving career commenced many moons ago, they always try to make conversation with you after handing you the ticket and be pleasant. As the recipient, I've always just wanted them to hand the ticket over, and get out of my life. I was feeling this way towards this officer at the moment as I sat in my car and stewed while he wrote my ticket.
Sure enough, after a few minutes, he came back to my car and handed me the ticket.
"So, ya comin home from work?" he asked.
"Yes." I replied trying to be curt.
"So, where do ya work?"
"Erlanger." I replied.
"What do ya do there? Are you a doctor?"
"Yes"
"What kind of doctor?"
"I'm a surgery resident."
"Well why didn't you tell me that before I wrote you that ticket? I might show up there someday with a bullet in my chest, and I don't want you to see me come rolling in spraying blood out of my chest, and think, 'Hey, that's the guy that gave me a ticket.'"
At that point, he had me warmed up to him, and I laughed and told him that I didn't think that should have made a difference in his decision whether or not to give me a ticket. We then had a nice conversation about his son who is applying to medical school. I left feeling in a good mood, and I think he had assuaged his guilt about giving some poor motorist a speeding ticket.
Recently the road people completed construction of the highway going from 4 lanes to 6 lanes. Traffic normally goes about 50 mph now along that highway, but the speed limit is only 30 mph.
You guessed it. I was doing about 50 mph, and being the lone car on the road, was a rather conspicuous target for the police car stationed a block or two from my house. I figured I was had, and I was. The officer told me he was going to give me a ticket for going 50 in a 30 zone, and went back to his car to write the ticket. I sat in my car and stewed, wishing that he would have at least had the grace to write it for a 45 or 40 rather than 50 mph speed.
My guess is that police officers usually feel somewhat guilty about ruining your day when they give you a ticket, because in each of the three or four instances that I've been the recipient of their attention since my driving career commenced many moons ago, they always try to make conversation with you after handing you the ticket and be pleasant. As the recipient, I've always just wanted them to hand the ticket over, and get out of my life. I was feeling this way towards this officer at the moment as I sat in my car and stewed while he wrote my ticket.
Sure enough, after a few minutes, he came back to my car and handed me the ticket.
"So, ya comin home from work?" he asked.
"Yes." I replied trying to be curt.
"So, where do ya work?"
"Erlanger." I replied.
"What do ya do there? Are you a doctor?"
"Yes"
"What kind of doctor?"
"I'm a surgery resident."
"Well why didn't you tell me that before I wrote you that ticket? I might show up there someday with a bullet in my chest, and I don't want you to see me come rolling in spraying blood out of my chest, and think, 'Hey, that's the guy that gave me a ticket.'"
At that point, he had me warmed up to him, and I laughed and told him that I didn't think that should have made a difference in his decision whether or not to give me a ticket. We then had a nice conversation about his son who is applying to medical school. I left feeling in a good mood, and I think he had assuaged his guilt about giving some poor motorist a speeding ticket.
posted by The Mad Hatter at 11:13 AM
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