Regarding THIS post…
Well, I’ll make it short and sweet — I’m a little busy right now. I’ll write more details when I have more time.
All done!
If you found this website/post informative or interesting,
won't you consider making a small donation or other contribution?
From time to time, I review the visitor statistics for SpeedTrapAhead.org, just to see what people are searching for when they click to this site. There are always the usual keywords: speed trap, police radar, speeding ticket, James DeBrow (heh, heh), etc. But, I’m amazed at how often the search for “flashing headlights to warn drivers” shows up. Apparently, there are alot of people who are concerned about the legal aspects of flashing headlights to warn other drivers of cops ahead.
There ARE quite a few references to this issue on other sites; but, I thought I’d submit my perspective on the subject. Ever since I was a little kid, I can remember my dad flashing his lights at other cars for some reason or another. It’s a great communication tool, whether it’s to signal “I’m about to pass you”, “You’re clear”, “Thanks”, “Dim your lights”, or “Danger ahead”. My Granddad did it. My father did it. I do it! I think it’s just a natural way to communicate non-verbally. However, it seems to be more common lately for people to worry about whether they’re gonna get into trouble for warning others in this manner.
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:
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!
Update: (05/22/08) (In case you haven’t heard about this, here’s the original post about getting my ticket)
I went to the arraignment a couple of weeks ago. The prosecutor stated that he didn’t really know what the ticket was about. But then I started explaining about SpeedTrapAhead.org… then he suddenly knew what was going on. Obviously, there had been discussion of my sign holding prior to that day.
He asked what I thought should happen. I said, “I think it should be dismissed because…” He then interrupted with, “Well, That’s not gonna happen.”
“Well, then sign me up for a jury trial“, I said. And that’s where we’re at. I have a a pre-trial hearing on June 13th.
I really don’t think that this will actually go to trial. I think this is just a delay tactic to give me a little time to “get scared” and bargain my rights away. Now, I can say, “Well, That’s not gonna happen.”
The prosecutor doesn’t want to drop it because that’ll put out the message that it was a bogus ticket and it’s okay to hold my sign. On the other hand, if it goes to trial and I win, a precedent will be set saying that it’s absolutely not against the law to hold my sign. Either way is okay, as either ruling will have basically the same effect. There is NO WAY Joe Citizen would think my sign is an official traffic control device.
Anyway, I’m just waiting, and getting my stuff together.
Any clicks on AdSense ads in the right column that may be of interest to you would be appreciated.
Also, Please check out THIS video of a PLEASANT encounter with a rational LEO.
I recently received the dashcam video from my encounter with the Lakeway Police Department’s Sgt. DeBrow.I also have re-edited my existing videos to include this new footage. Now, it is much easier to understand what transpired and to hear both sides of the conversation.
You can now clearly hear Sgt. DeBrow threaten to arrest me and impound my truck for not showing him my driver’s license, even though he already had all the identification that was required by law for me to divulge.
In addition to audio/video from my webcam, and audio/video from the dashcam, I also used audio from my cell phone recording. This is really neat because the way I do it, the audio is recorded directly to the web, securely stored somewhere that can’t be confiscated, erased, or lost by law enforcement.
You can check out the original post, with the updated videos here.
Loading ...