Talk Your Way Out of a Ticket

[Sequoia]

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When You've Been Pulled Over
Be on your toes, here: The first few minutes after you get stopped are critical. "If you're going to be doing any fast talking, do it before the officer starts writing the ticket," says Lauren Z. Asher, a New York City attorney specializing in traffic law. Nowadays, most ticket-writing systems are computerized, which makes it a whole lot harder to make that ticket disappear once an officer starts the paperwork. Here's what to do:

Stick 'em up
You've watched the show "COPS," right? Well, so has the officer who just pulled you over, who's now wondering whether he's got a homicidal nut case on his hands. So don't pull any fast ones. Put the officer at ease by turning off your engine, lowering your driver's side window and placing your hands on the steering wheel. Don't root around for your personal documents until the officer asks for them — the motion may be mistaken for you hiding something or, worse, retrieving your handy Smith & Wesson.

Name-drop
It feels shameless, but go for it. If you have a police benevolent association, or PBA, card, hand it over with your license and registration. (Departments give these cards to donors, and individual officers hand them out to family and friends.) Keep in mind, though, that you'll get better results if you actually know an officer and have a card with his badge number on it.

Play dumb
When the officer asks, "Do you know why I pulled you over?" it's best to feign ignorance. "Sometimes it's a fishing expedition," explains Aaron Larson, a civil litigation and appeals attorney in Ann Arbor, Mich. The cop might have you for speeding for example, but not notice that you've got a blown-out headlight. No need to volunteer that information

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http://ibs.smartmoney.com/dealoftheday/index.cfm?story=20060728&nav=ibs&ibshatkey=fran

Check out the replies, some are pretty funny.

[MissB]

1. "Beam me up, Scotty"

:rofl:

[scarletwoman]

2. I suppose I ought to be ashamed to admit it, but the one time I got pulled

over for speeding (almost 20 years ago), I fell back on the time-honored female ploy of bursting into tears.

Punctuated by sobs and sniffles, I essentially told the truth -- with a bit of dramatic embellishment -- of my miserable morning of dealing with a broken clothes dryer, the necessary retrieval of my dog who had broken loose, and my young child who had missed his school bus and therefore had to be driven to class. In short, a tearful litany of all the trauma I had already gone through that morning which had therefore caused me to be leaving late for work -- and thus to be speeding. "Something I would NEVER ordinarily do, officer!"

The poor guy was rendered helpless before the power of my feminine distress, of course, and gallantly forebore from writing me a ticket.

:evilgrin:
sw

[DoYouEverWonder]

3. I was about 8 months pregnant

when I got pulled over for speeding. The cop was a middle aged fellow and wanted to know why I was going so fast. I told him with as much distress in my voice as I could that I really had to go to the bathroom very badly. It was a riot to watch his reaction. He was very happy to send me on my way as long as I promised not to go fast.

[scarletwoman]

4. Beautiful! A classic!

Thanks for the chuckle. :D

sw

[Sequoia]

6. Gotta go, gotta go, gotta go right now!

I know the feeling.

[pansypoo53219]

5. my uncle gave me 'gas' for X-mas

i had had too much coffee on a state highway, l;ooking for a fucking mobil and could see a cop following me. lights. pull over. quick explain i had to pee and looking for a mobile.

made it to mobile up the road and no ticket but a warning. maybe gas for xmas not so bad.

[RebelOne]

7. Well, I can boast that I have talked my way out of three tickets.

This was when I was younger and it helped that I was an attractive blonde.

[EnviroBat]

8. Honest to God...

I had a Sheriff pull me over once when I was younger. He was belligerent as hell and if I said one wrong thing he would have probably pulled me out of the car by my head. After taking my wallet he went storming back to his motorcycle, (motorcycle cops are always pissed off which I can't understand). When he came back to my car he literally threw my wallet back at me! He shouted, "You just got the biggest break of your life, I'M OUTTA TICKETS!" He went back to his bike and went tearing off in a huff. Of course, I was laughing hysterically as he drove by me...

[Nye Bevan]

9. "Will you let me off if I buy you a doughnut?"

I never tried that one.

[BootinUp]

10. Traffic cops just didn't like me

When I was younger.

One time got pulled over for doing between 45 and 50 in a 35 zone, downtown Fullerton. When I saw the lights I stopped kind of quick a couple of feet passed the intersection line as the light was yellow. So he comes up to the window, I asked him, so what seems to be the problem? He said something like "Oh yeah? ok, first you were speeding and second you stopped past the intersection line." He wrote me 2 citations.

I got lots more stories. Old ones though.