[flexinator]

I was driving home from work today, empty 3 lane highway, driving in middle lane doing 65 in a 65. A sheriff blows by doing 90 in left lane without any lights on. So I move over and speed up to keep pace with traffic. I notice traffic slow, so I slow down, then traffic(the cop) speeds up, so do I. I never got closer than 4-5 car lengths.

So, obviously the guy flips on his lights and pulls me over. I had a ten minute argument with him that I wasn't speeding to my knowledge, only following him, assuming his rate of speed would be acceptable. His response, was that he can do what he wants, and I shouldn't "worry about what the police are doing" I only needed "to worry about myself"

In the end I got out without a ticket, but I'd like to know the law. Can an officer break traffic laws without due cause without lights on?

[edirtaynine]

Originally Posted by flexinator

In the end I got out without a ticket, but I'd like to know the law. Can an officer break traffic laws without due cause without lights on?

whos gonna give him a ticket? you?

can law enforcement break other laws? no, but whos going to stop them when they do? fuck a cop anyway.

[914kid]

he was rushing to dunkin donuts man "official police business"

[ChipB]

You were doing 65 in a 65, and then you sped up to follow a cop? Guilty as charged - you're lucky he let you off. And it sounds like yuo wete tailgating him as well (4-5 lengths is NOT sufficient following distance at such speeds).

[deadmn1337]

i would like to know as well cuz i see them do crazy things and i have heard of a few cops that have been pulled over by sheriff's or other agencies and gotten tickets.

[NemesisX]

The thing is when you're traveling well above the posted speed limit and another car is "tailing" you (even if they're not tailgating you), some people consider this to be an aggressive maneuver so I'm not surprised that the officer was annoyed.

I mean technically speaking both of you were speeding so he was absolutely within his right to pull you over.

And "traffic" doesn't mean "one single car that's traveling at 90 MPH." Traffic refers to what the majority of the cars on the road are doing. I don't think the majority of the cars on the road were doing 90. Most cars were probably around 65-75 and the cop was doing 90. And, you were following him.

[flexinator]

Originally Posted by ChipB

You were doing 65 in a 65, and then you sped up to follow a cop? Guilty as charged - you're lucky he let you off. And it sounds like yuo wete tailgating him as well (4-5 lengths is NOT sufficient following distance at such speeds).

Thanks for the info. Perhaps you can detail proper following distance. I now realize how lucky I am for the cop cutting me a break, thanks for your insight into this situation.

[blackturbo]

Originally Posted by ChipB

You were doing 65 in a 65, and then you sped up to follow a cop? Guilty as charged - you're lucky he let you off. And it sounds like yuo wete tailgating him as well (4-5 lengths is NOT sufficient following distance at such speeds).

I agree, you are lucky that he let you off. He could've just followed protocol and issued you a ticket. I understand your frustration with the no lights and how he was speeding, but in the end who is going to issue him the ticket? Just let it be and carry on..

[Myrder]

I don't think "Traffic" constitutes one cop car...

[derrick603]

Why would you ever speed when a cop is right there in front of you? And why would you assume that it's okay to do something illegal just because a cop is doing it while on duty? That doesn't make sense to me.

[N8N]

Legal answer: probably not.

Real answer: of course he can.

[vitriol]

In New York, cops can basically speed all day long. They are specifically authorized to do so by New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law section 1104.

Most emergency vehicles may only exceed speed limit if lights and sirens are on; police are exempt from this rule, and may drive whatever speed they deem to be appropriate while on duty.

Technically -- according to the law -- your cop should only have been speeding if he was "involved in an emergency operation," but like others have said, who's gonna pull him over to check? Plus I imagine it's easy for any cop to establish that he's involved in an emergency situation anytime he's on duty.

http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/nycode/VAT/VII/23/1104

As a side note, it's legal in NY to perform a citizen's arrest, even on a police officer. When he pulled you over, you should have arrested him for speeding while not responding to an emergency!

[roadkillrob]

In MA emergency vehicles cannot break the law unless responding to an emergency, not sure about NY, so if they are speeding without their lights on, technically they are breaking the law as much as you would be. In reality, they can mostly do what they want, I did have a friend about 10 years ago that did what you did, got a ticket and took it to court as she was just following the cop, no light no siren. Judge tossed it out and read the cop the riot act which was nice to see!

[ndjenks]

You should have just stayed doing 65...you weren't doing anything wrong. Speeding up to keep up with him is almost asking for trouble. Yeah hes an ass, but you gotta pick and choose your battles.

[GetSomeE92]

Don't worry. Some of them get what's coming to them: FHP Pulls over City of Miami Police Officer

[paddy335]

What kind of muppet tailgates a speeding cop car and then gets p*ssed that he got pulled over?

[BEAR-AvHistory]

Saw some putz do this on 147 between Durham & Raleigh. He blew by us in tandem with a State Trooper & a little way down the road he was pulled over with the cop car now behind him with the lights flashing.

[ken1137]

I was in my uncle's squad car (back in High School) and we were late. He put his lights on and hit the gas ...we made it in time You wont get any cop to admit that though. They can do what they want in their opinion.

[Eddien123]

Originally Posted by ChipB

You were doing 65 in a 65, and then you sped up to follow a cop? Guilty as charged - you're lucky he let you off. And it sounds like yuo wete tailgating him as well (4-5 lengths is NOT sufficient following distance at such speeds).

right like you never went a spec over the limit. I bet you kiss ass when a cop pulls you over. The only reason he didn't get a ticket was cause he stuck up for himself and he was right.

[Deep_Blue]

Police can also claim (perhaps legitimately) that they were headed to an emergency situation where sirens would have blown their cover.

[AzureHaze]

Well, lesson learned OP. Not a good idea to mess with a cop, even though that wasn't your intention. Yeah, they can do whatever they want most of the time and justify it with some bs reason unfortunately. That's why I got no love for pigs. Hopefully some good ones are still out there.

[DC_Oldboy]

Lol