Police Powers And Your Rights

[sidewazegtst]

Man I guess cops really are the same the world over. You guys have similar laws like us here in Canada.

Here, any car that has as little as a nice set of aftermarket rims tends to get harrassed. Skyline's are no exception but, as long as the vehicle is in proper working condition, has a recent emissions test then the cops can't do sh_t!

Ever since FnF came out there's been a spike in cars pulled over and it's mainly due to immature punks with they're done up Honda's that have caused problems. Leave it to the "rice" guys to ruin it for the rest of us.

Oh well, what can ya do.

[Johnny Cash]

Man I guess cops really are the same the world over. You guys have similar laws like us here in Canada.

Here, any car that has as little as a nice set of aftermarket rims tends to get harrassed. Skyline's are no exception but, as long as the vehicle is in proper working condition, has a recent emissions test then the cops can't do sh_t!

Ever since FnF came out there's been a spike in cars pulled over and it's mainly due to immature punks with they're done up Honda's that have caused problems. Leave it to the "rice" guys to ruin it for the rest of us.

Oh well, what can ya do.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yeah, bit off-topic, but Canada does have similar laws to Australia. Better, if you ask me!

...and yep, fast and furious DID ruin it for all of us!

[Nathan_G1]

DAM THAT MOVIE - wat can we do? even if all of us from n.s, sau and any other forum got together for a big rally we wouldnt get anywhere. Laws are unfortunately there for a reason no matter how insanely stupid they are. Especially here in Adelaide (defect capital). Just gota keep on keepin on and make sure we stick together and help each other out rather then flaming

[Johnny Cash]

DAM THAT MOVIE - wat can we do? even if all of us from n.s, sau and any other forum got together for a big rally we wouldnt get anywhere. Laws are unfortunately there for a reason no matter how insanely stupid they are. Especially here in Adelaide (defect capital). Just gota keep on keepin on and make sure we stick together and help each other out rather then flaming

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

What I would like to do, is for everyone who gets pulled over and harassed by police to make a formal complaint. Then chase it up two weeks later or so to see what happened, and try to get some formal written documentation from the police regarding the complaint and how it was handled or resolved.

The first hundred or so times we do this, it might not make too much of a difference. The thousandth time, people might start to twig. And once we flood offices with formal complaints, the pile will rise so high it will choke the whole ****** lot of em, and then something might happen.

If we ALL stay persistant, don't give up, and actively pursue this matter, we can make a difference. But we ALL have to be united on this front - not just Skylines forum, but all car forums, 4cyl, 6cyl, V8s, turbos, N/As, Rotaries, whatever.

And magistrates will come to eventually see a string of formal complaints being made against certain officers, and then they'll lose clout.

...but I don't doubt for a second that something can be done about all this. Gonna take a while, but it's not like we're going anywhere! And it's unfortunately not going to go away if we ignore it.

[StageZilla]

the comment about if u saw a cop drivin next to you is true, u immediately start thinking, shit they are gonna book me, or pull me up or whatever, but in a regular commodore (later model, stock as) i feel like who gives a shit and they dont even take a slight glance at me, but in my old vl commodores (which where turbo and modified) they would hassle u straight away and even when u travelling down a dual lane road and they are coming the opposite way they would chuck a u-turn and turn the lights on pull me up, and i was only cruisin along like any regular car on the same road

this is the main reason for buying the stagea sleeper and its still a skyline and 4wd also for traction.

i think cops need some more important things to do than hassle people driving normally down surburban roads for no reason.

like these Random breath testing setups they have like over 20 cops there. y the hell do they need 20 cops, when only 3-4 actually are doin stuff and the rest and just walking around doin nuthin or others sitting around, and then the occasional ones who say "pop ya bonnet" when u just think they are gonna let u go. B)

if the cops want respect than they gotta some some to the car enthusiasts first. i think some of it is jeleousy and they dont like the fact younger guys are drivin gtr's and wrx's etc when in their day they woulda been in a $200 corona or kingswood lol

cheers

Brad

[benm]

I think cops need some more important things to do than hassle people driving normally down surburban roads for no reason.

Yes the cops need something to do like... fighting crime. Speeding isn't a crime, it's a traffic offence. The RTA should be the organisation booking us for speeding not the police. They should be finding murderers or catching thieves not sitting half asleep on the side of the motorway with a laser pointed at us all.

like these Random breath testing setups they have like over 20 cops there. y the hell do they need 20 cops, when only 3-4 actually are doin stuff and the rest and just walking around doin nuthin or others sitting around...

The RTA actually "hire" the police officers to do this job, so the officers you see at RBT's would normally be sitting at home (ie; not working).

[echelon9]

Hmm, the only thing I have found so far is the Police Act 1892. However, that's pretty outdated, I think there would be SOMETHING new by now. Will have a look later on.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That would most likely still be the current statute. Generally they keep the name (which contains the year) they were first enacted. Of course they would of been amendments, changes etc since.

I'll have a look through my Law textbooks when I'm home from work and see if I can pull up some more Acts for WA. I remember I had some links when I fought a dodgy traffic infrigment.

[LuzTeTT]

Hey, can someone do NT? I don't know much rules about here. People seem to lie and make up there own stuff just to scare people off the roads.

[gdogzgtr]

Well as a member of vicpol I find this sight interesting. We do have the right to pull any car over at anytime for a random check. This seems to be a lot of people complaining about their treatment. What you should know is our discresionary power helps you, that means there is a good chance that you will be let off with a warning when you could be fined. I bet nobody has any complaints about that.

My advice is be polite and friendly.

If you did commit an offence and are asked be HONEST if you lie you will definitely be fined and probably defected. That's not the police fault your the one that lied.

Yes Jap import drivers are picked on but 90% of them can be put off the road for some defect or EPA issue that's a good strike rate in anyone's language.

Generally if you haven't being driving like a @#$%head and are polite 99% of police will be polite. Most police except Traffic cops mainly give warnings.

Edited December 28, 2005 by gdogzgtr

[Johnny Cash]

Good to see some police involvement on this thread, and I agree with you 100% that police discretion can work in a drivers favour, but for motoring enthusiasts, this not unfortunately the norm.

As for defects of EPA issues, you have to bear in mind that many of these cars are well built and tuned, lots of money invested into their proper operation and smooth power delivery. There are some people out there who modify their cars poorly, drive like maniacs, or use inadequate parts, and they rightfully should be defected or otherwise pursued. Furthermore, there are people driving in the wet on tyres that could be best described as slicks, and brakes that don't brake anymore. Defect these people and you won't catch me, or any man of good sense, complaining.

However, it is these cars that often fail to attract police attention, despite conversely being much more unroadworthy and in contravention of EPA legislation. However, their lack of attention let's them slip under the radar, so to speak.

So, that's mainly where I see the Skyline community, and to a more general extent, the WHOLE car communities, beef coming from. That, and while someone's getting defected for something stupid like an atmospheric blow-off-valve or pod filter, there are real criminals lurking about free of pursuit. That really gets under our skin

This all said, I think it's the best turn in this thread yet, because if (and I think it's possible) police and motoring enthusiasts can co-operate rather than 'bang heads', I think we can all go a lot further. Such a turn will require a change in mentality from both sides, and I thank you for your input.

Keep up the good work!

[ossie_21]

Ever since I got my skyline in May I haven't been pulled over or had any problems from the police. One yelled at me & told me to slow down when leaving from a booze bus, I was like WTF? :lol:

From a post up the page a bit, I see a cop or I don't, I drive the same. On the freeway a couple of weeks ago, everyone was doing like 80, I just stayed at 100 & went into the right lane, a minute later & the cop car wasn't even there any more. Last week up the freeway was right next to a cop. Traffic was slow in general, I stuck to 100 & changed lanes a few times, did nothing wrong & again no problem. I'm not going to be intimidated when driving my car.

[someonestolecc]

It also helps to be able to display an ID that makes them think twice about fronting in court to question your integrity.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Can't help but wonder ... Defence, DFAT... judiciary?

[george.bryant]

on he whole estimated speed check thing, are they allowed to do a pace check? thats what they do here in nz

[Style32]

What bothers me the most is there is next to no disciplinary action in my experience with police that have done wrong, for example i was at outside a party one night in my brothers S14 a policeman walked over and began questioning me as to how i got the car and what i was doing here, after a long arguement the one of the 2 policemen stormed of and said im going to get my defect book. he came back and began searching inside the cabin with his flashlight. after asking him to remove his light from my eyes he turned it over and struck me across the the forehead. i asked for his name and badge number and he straight up refused. his partner then said to move on and keep out of trouble. i made a formal complain to the supervisor at the police station that night about the "assualt" by the police officer to which his reply was "we can only treat it as a minor offence and have a talk to him" i said to him calmly i gaurantee that if i struck the policeman it would not be treated as a minor offence. i also asked that he call me and inform me of what the policeman had to say for himself he agreed and sent me on my way.

i never heard anything from the supervisor, but by coincidence the suprevisor and offending officer were parked outisde my street a week or so later and pulled me over and requested to search my car. to which i agreed because i had nothing to hide, they found nothing and went on their way.

sorry for the long rant but i have not had good experience with police in the ACT

semo

[madbung]

Well as a member of vicpol I find this sight interesting. We do have the right to pull any car over at anytime for a random check. This seems to be a lot of people complaining about their treatment. What you should know is our discresionary power helps you, that means there is a good chance that you will be let off with a warning when you could be fined. I bet nobody has any complaints about that.

My advice is be polite and friendly.

If you did commit an offence and are asked be HONEST if you lie you will definitely be fined and probably defected. That's not the police fault your the one that lied.

Yes Jap import drivers are picked on but 90% of them can be put off the road for some defect or EPA issue that's a good strike rate in anyone's language.

Generally if you haven't being driving like a @#$%head and are polite 99% of police will be polite. Most police except Traffic cops mainly give warnings.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Good post, being a victorian who's been driving modified cars for many many many...probably too many years I agree re:driving, attitude and honesty... It's generally the manner in which the car is driven that'll get you pulled over not the car itself unless ofcourse you've got a blatantly obvious defect like you're so low you're dragging your rails on the road or extremely loud. I've been let off for many tickets mainly I guess because of my demeanor at the time, the one time I did get treated harshly was all my own doing. I'd been pulled for speeding and it was a fair cop, but I was admittedly having a bad day so I gave the cop a fair old fashioned spray (couldn't help myself) and copped another ticket for tailgating and having a big mouth. On the opposite side I was driving like a mad man running late to work one morning (a day after being warned re: tardiness) got pulled explained the situation and was waved on in a rush with the advice "set your alarm earlier nxt time and goodluck with the boss" while I took off flat changing up the hwy

In summary keep your car legal and in r.w.c, drive sensibly and remember police are doing a very important job for society, it's usually not personal unless you've made it that way.

Do the opposite, drive like a tard, drive a restricted vehicle or mod your car beyond the legal guidelines and have a knobbish attitude you'll get all you deserve.

[thrtytwo]

would be good to see this thread turned into a "what are your rights when your pulled over ?" type handbook. just to let you know what cops can and cant do, and what you can and probably shouldnt ask them in a situation

[AMS]

In regards to the estimation of speed - in NSW, they can estimate your speed to be whatever the hell they want. But they can only book you for 'under 15km/hr over' regardless of their estimation...

[Johnny Cash]

Sorry boys and girls, I'm arranging all my gear for shifting off to Mildura, so I won't be able to watch this post like I should. I agree with the earlier comment that I should turn this into a 'what are your rights when you get pulled over', because that seems to be the recurring problem.

We have heard some harrowing and sobering police accounts though, and I think that unfortunately, a decent grasp of the law is not going to help many of you. It seems the problem is worse than I first imagined. The scenarios that many of you have brought to my attention are improper and illegal, and warrant some serious reconsideration of police powers nationwide.

[[200]]

Abuse of power.

Even if you know your rights (being a Law student i pretty much do) the police officer ALWAYS wins. That's a fact.

They can always "fabricate" the truth to their advantage and if things do end up in court, i doubt a magistrate would make a big issue about a cop being too strict or abusing his power on some "P Plater import driving hoon"

IMO, the best way to stay out of trouble with the cops is to co-operate.

If you act like a smartass with the "accroding to section bla bla bla" it just pisses them off more.

If you comply with them, i think you'll find that a lot of cops can be nice guys. If you challenege their authority, that's when you end up with a canary, in most instances the cop would have let it slip, UNTIL you thought you'd go all smartass lawyer on him.

Smile, be polite and you'll come out in a better position.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

f**king pole smoker.

Police are allowed to RANDOM DEFECT ANY MOTOR VEHICLE! THEREFORE IT IS NOT AN ABUSE OF POWER!!!!

f**king law STUDENTS piss me off!

[madbung]

,3 Jan 2006, 02:43 PM]f**king pole smoker.

Police are allowed to RANDOM DEFECT ANY MOTOR VEHICLE! THEREFORE IT IS NOT AN ABUSE OF POWER!!!!

f**king law STUDENTS piss me off!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Harsh 200 but I understand your ire.

Even if you know your rights (being a Law student i pretty much do) the police officer ALWAYS wins. That's a fact.

They can always "fabricate" the truth to their advantage and if things do end up in court, i doubt a magistrate would make a big issue about a cop being too strict or abusing his power on some "P Plater import driving hoon"

In saying the police always win and they can fabricate the truth you're painting with some pretty broad and unsubstantiated strokes there fella. You might want to run those ideas and the way you've expressed them past one of your lecturers and get some feedback on how your progressing with your studies.

Edited January 3, 2006 by madbung