So I was pulled over last week, for (as most of you guessed) nothing. and after reading the thread "This is getting out of hand ... enough is enough" forum it has inspired me to start my own.

and I have had enough also. I am tired of being labelled, threatened, confined and stripped of my freedom. If I wanted a police city I would live in russia or china, Not canada.

and I've decided to start my own Thread. I would like you all to post your cop stories. I've started with mine.

 

6:43 on a friday exiting north off of the 410, I realize a police cruiser is signaling me to pull over. I proceed to pull over on the shoulder of the 410 exit.

The police officer approaches my vehicle and immediately says, “you were going 130km/h.” Being 6:43 on a friday, there was still some left over congestion on the highway and not only was I not doing anything over 90 (being that I was exiting), it was also impossible to do 130 when there were multiple cars infront of me. I told the Police Officer that that speed limit was impossible and I was not.

He took my license and insurance and returned eight minutes later asking me to step out of my vehicle. We are still on the highway exit ramp–not the safest place to be walking around I imagine.

As I exit the vehicle (My father’s 1995 ford mustang) The officer questions me about tire residue around my rear bumper. I replied that it was just residue from a cleaning gel and regular tire shred that is expected from a rear wheel drive car and tires on their last miles.

The officer continues by asking me if I’ve been racing, concluding with my tires are as bald as his head. I told him I haven’t been, the car is not mine it’s my fathers and the tires are old. He asked me whether my father knows I have the car. I continued to patiently reply to all these pointless questions as he continues asking me questions about drugs and where I’ve been doing brake stands to ruin the tires.

45 minutes later he hands me back my insurance and insurance and says “here you go speed racer, when I catch you doing brake stands I’m impounding your car and taking your license”

I was pulled over for nothing. Harassed for 45 minutes about nonsense, and insulted in the end for him wasting my time. And for the record, I have no traffic violation or accident in my seven years of driving. Nor did I ever do brake stands in my dads baby of a car.

 

That's quite the story, but unfortunately, not a surprising story anymore. Try Montreal instead, they took it up a notch and just shoot (to kill) people randomly in parks now.
Then, they complain in the media that people call them names.

 

Does anyone have similar stories as to mine with police harassing canadian drivers?

 

Very odd, sorry to hear it. Why would a cop waste his time doing that to you?

 

I was pulled over after a guy Cut me off,,and I gave him the "peace Sign..with a Digit missing"....cop said I came close to the Curb,I asked what Curb//..he told me,and I said..UH Ya..I was pulling out of a driveway..so ya..I was Merging into Traffic..wtf?..he Told me to sign my ownership..and left.

 

I have NO idea. Given the fact that I am 22, (WHICH does NOT even count as a VALID excuse) I am subjected to this harassment. I could not believe what happened to me.

Is this a rare case to people?

 

The best protection from these jerk-offs is to get yourself a good Dictaphone and the second the said jerk-off gets to your window, inform him that the conversation will be recorded for your and his protection and will be used in a future court appearance if required. . . . . deflates most of the Jerk-offs

 

It's not a rare case. Young dude in "hot" car (despite the fact that a 95 mustang as about as much power as a current camry...) = pulled over all the time.

The "You were going 130" trick is standard cop tactics to get you to admit to 120 or so.

If a cop does start hassling you, especially if he asks you to step out of the car, ask him why you were pulled over, what offence was commited, and what evidence he has. He'll know you are not a punk, at least.

If a cop gives you rediculous hassle, ask him to have his supervisor attend the scene. It'll add a couple hours to your road side stop, but it will make the cop think 2x next time he hassles a "punk". I'm not 100% on the legalities, but NEVER open your hood/trunk/etc. without asking him to have a supervisor on hand.

I'm totally pissy re:cops and traffic enforcement today, because I have to tip toe around in my 7 (despite its "Monsterous" 160 hp), and today I followed a dump truck that nearly hit a lights-and-sirens fire truck, then ran 2 red lights before I turned off to get away from him.

Very Simple: write your MPP and tell him/her that you will not be voting for him/her until Julian Fantino is removed as head of the OPP.

 

I was pulled over a while back for trying to nail me for street racing. I was at the lights on richmond right in the core of downtown, the day right after my engine rebuild. I'm sitting at a light, and the cop sitting right behind me and me seeing him. My car always sounds like i'm racing, and the girl beside me in a g6 guns it, and i was clearly about 2 car lengths or so behind her, turns on his cherry's and pull me over. Comes up to my window and tells me that what i was doing back there was street racing and that can get my car towed. I was like racing? He's like ya you must of been going 80km/h, didn't even leave third gear at about 3krpm when he pulled me over which is right around the 50 mark. I didn't ask to show me the radar to sound like a jerk, but i think the main reason he pulled me is probably because he saw my carputer with all the guages on in my car. It was 2am so really easy to see especially when the cop is sitting in one of those vans. After a bit of talk he lets me off with a warning ... See the thing is how can they pull one person over for street racing but not the other especially if the other is clearly going faster?

I have been thinking about keeping a video camera with me at all times as my own evidence. I really need to setup my camera setup on my car.

 

i also had a cop pull me over just last friday, i was comin up to a intersection and saw a cop campin and kept my speed at 64 kmph ( max speed limit is 60) as i passed the cop.
i looked in my mirror to see if cop had turned out to follow, and as i suspected, he did, 2 seconds later, sirens came on, we pull over, he comes up to me and this is exaclty how the conversation started:
cop: you were going pretty fast back there, were you drinkin?
me: i was only goin 64-65 KMPH
cop: how much did you drank?
me: i did not drink anything

cop then asks me and my friend for our license, comes back 5 mins later
and new conversation starts:
cop: did you drank alot of alcohol?
me: no i did not drink any alcohol
cop: is there any other drug i should be aware of
me: no i have nothing
cop: if you have any drugs, its ok to tell me about it now
me: i have no drugs
cop: its better to tell me now before i find it in your car
me: go ahead and search, i got nothin
cop: your muffler is illegal, this is a warning, change it or you will get a 110$ ticket
me: thats good advice sir, will do right away

the whole conversation, the cops voice was very unhappy and angry, he kept tryin to make me think i was speedin and i drank and drove, nor did he have any manners or even show me any sign of respect by callin sir, but constantly attackin me with questions and statements that i've been drinkin.
also the second i opened my mouth to answer his first question, he immediatly puts his nose forward and trys to sniff any sign of alcohol from my breath while lookin at the sky as if i did not notice wat he was tryin to do.

this just another story:
next day, im at starbucks waitin to meet up with a friend, i see a camry parked at the side of the curb idling with the driver inside just waitin for some1, a cop comes by, parks in one of the parkin spots facin the camry, cop comes out a minute later, walks up to the camry, hands the camry driver a ticket and told him to look on the back of the ticket with some serious attitude and walked off, the camry driver now ovbiously very angry and screams out the window: i hope you show up to court, the cop still walkin away and into starbucks hearing wat the camry driver said, screams back: oh i will.

its unbelievable wat some ontario cops do and the way they act, but sovereign, wat u expirenced is just wrong, good to see you handled it nice and calm.

 

I live in a small city where the cops don't profile you. However, I have a friend that lives in Collingwood. You guys are making me scared to drive through Toronto to go visit him.

 

Thanks Zhe, I tried to keep being poise for as long as possible. but this is ridiculous, our policing has zero accountability whatsoever. is that fair?

and Mr. Meatloaf, do not stress so much, it is not as bad as it seems UNLESS you fit any type of profile (eg. young in a nice car/tuned car etc) for them having an excuse to do so.

 

I guess i can share a story as well... This is in my 85 RX Silver Rust color
Driving down Leslie coming from Aurora heading south, everything is good I'm going 75km/s and there is this ricer in some kind of Acura riding my ***, I mean it was about 9 or 10PM so it was dark no one on the road and all I see is thing guy just flooring it to catch up or what not. Then there are 2 turns that are fun (thats why I take Leslie) I slow down pull to the side of the road and let the guy pass.. He proceeded to downshift and Rice it out with the Potato launcher.

I am still going around 75 but I never slow down for the turns so I keep up, then when we get to the straight he Rices off Im still going 75ish.

This is when I see the cherries right behind me.
So I pull over shut off the engine get all my paper work and put my hands on the wheel to make the cop feel "SAFE"

2 Cops proceed to surround my car, one tries to open the pass side door while the other was walking to my door, they told me to get out of the car and put my keys on the roof.. I asked what this was about but the girl cop told me to "shut my mouth".. this is when they took the keys, all my paper work and told me to sit on the floor (if you ever drive through that area there is nowhere to sit but dirt) I said no I will sit on the car, so the guy officer came by and "helped" me to the floor.
They take about 10 min then 2 more cruisers show up they all get out of the car and proceed to harass me. (they are young new recruits)

They told me that I was Street Racing and going at least 50kms over the limit.. also that I ignored the cops previous attempt to stop me.. at this point I picked up the phone and gave my lawyer a call, he told me not to say anything and ask for the supervisor. So I did at this point the kinda backed off a bit.

After about 30 - 45 min maybe more the supervisor shows up, looks at my car looks at me and wonders off to talk to the cops, this took another 10 - 15 min..

Then he comes up to me, explains to me that they were informed of a car traveling at a high rate of speed (AHH the Acura) and that the officers believed that it was me. While he talks to me they all disperse (not even going in the direction of the acura) he tells me to "keep my nose clean" gives me my paper work back then gets in his car and leaves. When I tried to get the name of the woman officer that talked rude to me he closed his door and just left!

Thats it.. They wasted about 2 hours of my time.. Did not charge me with anything.. my *** is full of dirt and thats it.. I Was late for work.. Got deducted $$ for being late and got a warning..

AND the guy that was speeding just got off..

lesson learned


BUY AN ACURA!!!

 

This is not geared specifically to anyone, just the thread in general.

Keep in mind that a routine stop is a perfectly valid reason to be pulled over. You would be amazed how many stolen vehicles, stolen plates, lapsed licenses, no insurance, drugs, weapons, drunks, people with warrants, etc. are found this way. It's truly impressive and thus, routine stops are a valuable part of police work.

That said, it sounds like some of the officers mentioned here are real douchebags. There's a few in every crowd. However if you run across such an officer, there is a procedure to follow. Write down their badge number, their supervisor, and file a formal complaint. Officers who receive complaints are dealt with. If more then a few complaints are filed, they will no longer be officers.

I always carry a digital camera with me and in today's atmosphere with crazy laws open to wild interpretation, plan to use it any time I am stopped. As soon as the officer approaches he/she will be informed that this is being recorded, thus handing power over the situation back to me.

 

Are you serious?

 

I disagree that a "routine stop" is a perfectly valid reason to be pulled over. What do you consider routine? Cops like to harrass and being pulled over if you haven't been speeding, have clean plates, ie not stolen, not racing, no suspicious activity is complete and utter BULLSHIT. Your dad must be a cop or something....

 

^A "routine stop" actually refers to a regular stop for a minor infraction, ie:speeding, obvious safety issues, etc. I think what Aaron should have said is a "random" stop. Much like random searches at customs, it is a surprisingly effective way to catch people doing illegal things, like carrying/using drugs/drinking, illegal weapons, people driving without insurance or valid licences.

I myself was pulled over in a small town near Barrie by the OPP soon after getting my G2. His excuse, my plates were going to expire..... the NEXT month. Keep in mind I was driving my moms Saturn, with 2 other friends. Basically he saw some kids that seemed too young to be driving and after seeing my licence he needed a better reason for pulling me over. They do it, its part of the job.

 

In your example up in Barrie...the cop had a reason if he "thought" (although they can say whatever they want!) the driver was underage. That is perfectly valid. To pull you over even partially because a tag expired the NEXT month is harrasment. Thats one example of bullshit.

I live in Peel Region (unfortunately) and the cops here are THE WORST. Yes I'll say it again...the worst. They have a name everywhere....Metro, Halton, York. I've met cops from all of those regions and regular civilians and they all know whats up with Peel cops. Not all but most are corrupt young ******** trying to make a name for themselves.

 

I got pull over several times at downtown around Yonge and Collage area while I was giving a lift to my colleague back home after work........... They search my FD once for drug or sth, but I ain't got no drugs, so I just let him search, pull me over for nothing again!!!!

 

Any small reason could trigger a routine/random stop. Maybe the tires are a little bald? Maybe there is a cracked lense? Perhaps the car went over the line a little bit while turning? Something made the officer want to pull that vehicle over. However it is human randomness so we may never know the exact reason why someone is pulled over at random. What I do know is that huge amounts of illegal stuff is found that way.

What I don't agree with are the douchebag officers who harass and make up excuses when they pull someone over. There's absolutely no need to try and intimidate someone, accuse them of something they obviously weren't doing, generally be a jerk or hold them for a stupid amount of time when they have obviously done nothing wrong. A routine/random stop should be just that...a stop. Shouldn't last more then a few minutes as papers, stickers, plates and such are checked unless the officer has a reason to suspect something. Those officers need to be reported to prevent this from happening to someone else in the future. There are some ******** in every organization.

Yes, my father was a police officer. He's retired now but as I recall he was on the force for 35 years. When I was young, I would often hang out at the police station. Many of his friend were/are cops. I believe that I have a bit more insight into how the police work then most people who post here. For the most part they are trying to be good people but you rarely hear of the good ones. Also before this new street racing law was passed I just viewed police as people trying to do their jobs. Now I'm far more cautious when I see a cruiser out on the road. I think that's a disturbing and fundamental change that a lot of people are experiencing. This law gives the bad officers a massive excuse to do things to a person which could be financially crippling for years.

Well, there you have it. The police in Peel Region are the worst. So it's safe to say that only a small fraction of us have to deal with this "harassment".

Indeed, the only time I've ever been pulled over has been:

1. Headlight out. Officer mentioned it to me, I told him I noticed earlier and would fix it the next day when the parts store opened. I was speeding considerably at the time. He said "have a nice night". I fixed the headlight the next day.

2. Expired sticker on my beater. The OPP officer asked me why the car was not in my name, I explained there was a delay changing the registration due to a safety certificate, showed him proof of insurance, and he advised me to change the sticker before month end. No big deal.

Both were perfectly valid reasons to be pulled over.

 

I read this with a smile on my face. When I was a kid growing up in Oshawa I used to get pulled over once a night. The police would search the car, check for infractions, warn me to behave and let me go. Once the officer slit the seat backs looking for drugs (anybody who knows me knows what a joke that is) after finding a glass bottle of Octane Booster and giving it a sniff. The smell almost knocked the policeman's head off and he got pissed and started slicing.

Profiling (or whatever the latest name is) has gone on for as long as young people have been driving cars. The difficult thing today is that there are a lot more rules governing behaviour of the Police and drivers and you need to be a Lawyer to navigate the situation. When I was a teenager I rationalised it as being payback for all the times I was not caught driving like a hooligan, a cost of doing business so to speak. My car at that time stood out and it was easy for the cops to see me and make an example.

I can tell you that it is unjust and a pain in the a$$, but we all go through it and if you take note of the positive reactions stated above like being polite, gathering as much information as possible and asking for a Supervisor to be present if things are getting out of hand, you can take control of the situation. If you are clean all it costs you is a some time and the Officers do get reprimanded by the Supervisor at the end of the shift. This is not a perfect solution, but it is the best that young people can do. At the very least you get some great war stories to brag about.

If you think it only happens to young people think again. You should talk to Al Balinsky about his stories and I was followed for about 6 blocks by a Peel Regional Cruiser, waiting to pounce on me driving my Jag about 2 months ago. I was just getting ready to stop and ask him what his issue was when he pulled past me with a long searching look and took off. It happens to us all, its not right but it happens.

Eric

(Old Enough to Know Better)

 

Good story. I absolutely can't stand peel cops. There corrupt (most) and the worst cops around I've ever encountered or heard about. When I was a teenager I used to get pulled over just to "find out" where I was headed. No ******* reason at all. ******** with nothing better to do.

 

I always get worried about driving in the Citys when I read threads like this.

So far I have only been stopped in Bracebridge a few times, walked the line once.

But I have actually never been pulled over in any of my RX-7's.
Two summers ago I drove the car in my Avatar as a daily driver. It was fully rally prepped with cage, harnesses and seats, with an exhaust that had set off a car alarm on two occasions.

I was expecting to get hassled with it at some point but never did.

My goal is to stay up North when I am done school.

 

I've had both good and bad experiences, but mostly they were all valid.

I think the same as Eric as far as "a cost of doing business". I mean seriously, everyone is bitching about being pulled over and doing your stint with a douchebag in a badge for an hour.....................but think about any other time you've done something even remotely illegal in your car and what would've happened if the same guy was behind you (or off to the side of the road in front of you) when you did it. Count your blessings as they say

I'm not trying to say that anyone complaining is a dangerous driver or nut behidn the wheel, but we've all lit the tires up a few times or done soemthing that you're not supposed to on the road - even if its a dark, unpopulated country one. So if you're behaving and the cop is giving you a hard time, just laugh to yourself about what the poor ****** missed out on.....