Mr Plod, can't you do any better?

**inlinefour** · 26th August 2005, 02:11

At a time when the Police are trying to improve their image, one of the local naki ploddies does silly stuff like this?

Went home tonight to get my laptop to bring back to work after panicking that KB was offline and I'd go insane from boredom on the night shift.
On the way back from work I went around a courner a little bit quicker than normal, good line, remaining on my side of the road and still slightly below the speed limit. A Police car saw it and followed me. After about half a minute the Police car puts his headlights on full beam, right behind me! I flick the rear view mirrors and side mirrors (the Mazda has a button to fold the mirrors back) so the light does not blind me. After another 30 seconds, flashing lights and I've stopped immediately.
Now I jumped out of the car, pulled out my licience (yea, I know that I should have probably stayed in the car) and showed him my staff ID telling him I need to be back at work in 15 minutes. All I get back is grief, lecturing and general poor attitude from Mr Plod. He asked me if I'd been drinking, I replied that I was a staff nurse from up the local hospital and of course not. He then told me that even nurses drink and drive. I replied that might be the case but once they are charged for it they tend to run the risk of not being nurses for much longer...
Now I don't know if he'd had a bad call out prior to pulling me over, but hey that ain't my problem. He went on to tell me that I need to slow down as I was going too fast the whole time he was following. I was doing max 50km/h and less for a few courners, driving to the conditions and all. I pointed this out to him and was offered another helping of attitude with the comment, you was going far to fast. I just looked at him is disbalief and said whatever in a short tone. Ive allways had plenty of respect for the Police, but this guy deserved none as far as I was concerned.
I jumped back into the car and proceeded to the local servo to full the car up. On the way I stopped at the lights that was red. Mr plodd was at the lights one intersection back, which was also red. He then proceeded to drive straight through the red light and sit behind me. No worries the servo was only a few 100 meters down the road and he drove by as I stopped for fuel.
Well I still have respect for the Police, but maybe this turkey should have a holiday or look at a new line of employment? C'mon Mr plodd, you can do better than that, can't you???

**inlinefour** · 26th August 2005, 02:56

Yea, I know he was just doing his job. But I don't know any other profession that can get away with that sort of thing...

**Mooch** · 26th August 2005, 03:56

Know what this is like . Used to do shift work myself (18 years ago) . Worst week I got pulled over 6 times, twice on one night around the 2 am mark. Wasn't speeding / running read lights. My only crime was being younger running a car that was slightly lowered and had large mags on. Felt like harrasment , but I guess they had a job to do and must have been running some kind of blitz. They were all polite though.

**inlinefour** · 26th August 2005, 04:11

Originally Posted by Mooch

Know what this is like . Used to do shift work myself (18 years ago) . Worst week I got pulled over 6 times, twice on one night around the 2 am mark. Wasn't speeding / running read lights. My only crime was being younger running a car that was slightly lowered and had large mags on. Felt like harrasment , but I guess they had a job to do and must have been running some kind of blitz. They were all polite though.

I dont have a problem with polite Police and I have allways co-operated with them. Car is not modified, I don't consider myself young any more and for awhile they'd see my uniform & staff ID and tell me I can go once they realised who I was. The dude must be having a bad shift? Maybe he did not get a good days sleep, I know whats thats like. So I'll cut him some slack and let it be water under the bridge, so to speak.

**Sniper** · 26th August 2005, 07:55

Dont know if I have posted this before but we had a dumb plod in Picton that managed to pull me over 7 times in 7 days at the same time each day? Silly bugger only left me alone when I told him I would lay a complaint if he continues to pull me up on my way home. I swear he used to wait for me.

The first time he pulled me up I admit I was accelerating before I got to the 100km zone, he let me off that one but every day he would pull me up and ask where I was going, please take off my helmet, name, address, breathalsied me and the usual things. He was the only cop I was slighly annoyed at but I know all the other guys so I never had a problem with Police

**James Deuce** · 26th August 2005, 08:00

One dick does not a profession make.

In the last 4 weeks I've met nurses and midwives that make that guy look like an amateur, but I don't assume that all nurses are like that.

**Lou Girardin** · 26th August 2005, 08:16

Did you make a complaint about him running the red?

**crashe** · 26th August 2005, 09:17

Mate he was bored... all the crims were in bed asleep.

And saw you and thought aha... I will go and stop the person driving the car.

But did you happen to get his badge number... cos he did run a RED light... and that is a no no.

**inlinefour** · 26th August 2005, 10:08

Originally Posted by crashe

Mate he was bored... all the crims were in bed asleep.

And saw you and thought aha... I will go and stop the person driving the car.

But did you happen to get his badge number... cos he did run a RED light... and that is a no no.

Provided that he does not send me a ticket in the post, I'll leave it alone. He might be a good dude having a shitter of a night shift. Last night someone from the Police was supposed to turn up to the ward and take a statement, I would not be surprised if it was supposed to be the same guy. Hopefully it was and he turns up tonight, so I can have a quite word with him. The local servo attendant tells me that he sees the same thing often and gets the same treatment when he goes out on his break on night shift. I'm just glad I was in the car and not the Hilux, as I'm known to courner the same at times and had I been pulled up in that, I could understand some of what he said. The bit that only peeves me is the dirty intimidation tatics, i.e. headlights on full behind me. Surely thats illegal even for the Police? I'm keen to see what spud has to say if he ever comes accross this thread. As for blowing the red light? I don't do it but in half an hour I saw 3 other vehicles doing it also and I'm known to do it on my bike if the lights are not triggered. One day I'll come accross him again no doubt, I'll remember him, I wonder if he remembers me...
AS for the comments about crappy hospital staff, yea got to agree there, however you'd be surprised how much grief we get from patients & visitors these days. In saying that I've sean some really dodgey behaviours and as I'm a senior on the ward I have no problem bailing those involved up about it.

**SpeedyGirl** · 26th August 2005, 11:13

That your badge is not wriiten in Crayon and he didn't think you had escaped ?????

**Ixion** · 26th August 2005, 11:51

Has not happened to me (well, it hasn't to your Nana, either), but I've heard of quite a few cases of this "You went round that corner too fast" stuff - even if said cornering is within the speed limit. What's the drill on this. If it's within the limit I can't see they've any ground to stand on - especially if nothing touched down. Not speeding, all they could argue was careless or reckless or something. Pretty unlikely to succeedd (assuming you didn't crash of course !)

I guess if a cop did try it on me I'd ask if he was a bikey cop. If he was, I'd listen respectfully , cos they're good and if he thought it was dodgy it maybe was. Not a bikey cop? Then how can you judge what's a suitable speed for a bike? You're not qualified to judge.But is there anything they can actually get you on - "going faster through a corner than i reckon he should have"

(realise the OP was in a cage at the time)

**WRT** · 26th August 2005, 11:58

I once went thru a checkpoint while heading home after getting off the ferry having been away for two weeks. The cop went over warrant, rego, licence, didnt breathalize me (this was on great barrier island, i doubt he had the gear) but did put his head inside which I took at the time to be to smell for alcohol.

He then proceeded to tell me he was warning me about my driving, as he had seen me "hooning" around on the other side of the island. I was like, are you sure? When was this? He replied that it was just the other day, and when I asked him how that could be as I had only just got back on the island after being in town for two weeks, he said "yeah, well dont let me catch you again".

Righteo then . . . glad we got that cleared up.

**inlinefour** · 26th August 2005, 16:57

Had a female been the driver instead of me: got intimidated by the lights on full beam, hit the throttle and then be stopped for speeding??? Apparently this has happened in the UK and it went to court. Guess who got in trouble? The ploddy of course! I'll aske him for his badge number should it happens again, I guess it was a piss poor attempt at revenue collecting?

**spudchucka** · 26th August 2005, 17:06

Originally Posted by inlinefour

The bit that only peeves me is the dirty intimidation tatics, i.e. headlights on full behind me. Surely thats illegal even for the Police? I'm keen to see what spud has to say if he ever comes accross this thread.

If you were never speeding then the whole attitude about going too fast is a bit daft. But having said that at 0200 in the morning pretty much any vehicle on the road is worthy of stopping as far as I'm concerned. Basically because it is only shift workers, drunks and criminals that are on the roads in the wee small hours, (generally). So I have no problem with you being stopped.

The headlight thing - Who knows? Sometimes I'll use high beam just to read a rego if it is hard to read for any reason. Sometimes I'll flick them on high and turn on the tack down lights, (the ones on the light bar) once the car is stopped if I have any concerns about the car being full of dodgy pricks. Its better for them to be squinting like a blind leppar as I approach the vehicle, it just helps ensure you can see everything and everybody in the vehicle and limits their ability to aim anything at you.