Miscellaneous

Ah, the police -- you gotta love 'em

So Car and Driver posted this little list of things to do and not do when you get pulled over by a cop. Pretty standard fare -- don't get out of the car, do what the cops ask, be calm and respectful, etc.

The interesting part for me comes from a discussion of one of the things not to do: "Don?t slam on your brakes when you see the flashing lights, and don?t continue driving for an extended distance." Trooper Larry Coggins (Florida, natch) says this about the issue:

Motorists should try to put themselves in my place. Just because I stopped a guy for speeding, it still runs through my mind that he might be fleeing a crime scene, might be a wanted fugitive, impaired, a kidnapper with a body in the trunk, a carjacker who hasn?t been called in yet?I just don?t know.

Yup. Everyone he pulls over, he thinks about how they might be a fugitive or transporting a dead body. Absolutely the right mind frame for a cop to be in each and every time he interacts with the civilian populace.

Full post as published by Quiz Law on May 16, 2008 (boomark / email).