If you have ever thought of holding a SpeedTrapAhead sign, or are considering doing so yourself, there are a couple of points of law with which you should be familiar.

I have heard stories, and read some articles, of other people holding signs of this sort in other countries. Some of them made their point. Some of them attracted lots of attention, not all of it good (like Fred Zahn in the picture to the left). Some have been ticketed. And, some have gone to jail. Is that what you pictured when you were dreaming of having the fortitude to hold a SpeedTrapAhead sign yourself? The first two reactions, ‘making your point’ and ‘attracting lots of attention’, are the good parts. The rest are definitely NOT good!

I have read only about Texas law; so, I don’t know much about the laws in any other state or country. One of the things I learned while perusing through the Texas legal statutes, was that holding a sign is NOT “Hindering Apprehension or Prosecution”. Here is the part of Texas law that affirms that statement:

Texas Penal Code – Sec. 38.05. HINDERING APPREHENSION OR PROSECUTION.

(a) A person commits an offense if, with intent to hinder the arrest, prosecution, conviction, or punishment of another for an offense [...] he:

(1) harbors or conceals the other;
(2) provides or aids in providing the other with any means of avoiding arrest or effecting escape; or
(3) warns the other of impending discovery or apprehension.

(b) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (a)(3) that the warning was given in connection with an effort to bring another into compliance with the law.

(c) [...]

I’ve omitted parts of the passage that don’t apply; but, you can clearly see from the highlighted portions, that it’s perfectly legal to hold a sign like this. You are trying ” to bring another into compliance with the law”. So, you can’t get arrested for “Hindering Apprehension or Prosecution”.

In a future post, I’ll talk about how holding a sign is not “interfering with public duties”. In the mean time, think about all the things you COULD get in trouble for (while not doing something stupid, of course); and, I’ll tell you why you’ll probably be just fine.

Keep the speed down. Pay attention to your surroundings. And, keep your hard earned money in your pocket — not in the magistrate’s!