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Flashing Headlights as speedtrap warning.


OSUGT

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I have been flashing my headlights to warn of police for nearly the entire 14 yeras i have been driving.... never been pulled over, probably saved many-a-driver getting a speeding ticket... Karma has repaid the favor several times as well...
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Yep, always do it. I've never heard of anyone ever getting successfully cited for flashing brights.

 

It's dumb as hell that they'll spend taxpayer money to defend their actions, thereby creating incentive to write more tickets to make up for their losses. God forbid they write tickets to actually PROTECT the public vs. be a nuisance.

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I never do it, but I'm an asshole. I figure I'm not responsible for stopping someone else from getting themself in trouble.

 

Anyway, since other drivers will slow down after being warned - the end result is the same as if they were ticketed. However, it can be argued that the slow down is only temporary whereas being ticketed would likely have a longer duration of that driver lowering speed.

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I have done it for the 12 years I have been driving! Hope I have helped a few along the way.

 

though this guy is a little extreme

According to his suit, Kintner was home Aug. 10 when he saw a deputy park along a street and pull out his radar gun. Kintner then got in his car, drove a couple of blocks away, parked and pointed his vehicle at oncoming traffic and began flashing his lights
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Yep, always do it. I've never heard of anyone ever getting successfully cited for flashing brights.

 

It's dumb as hell that they'll spend taxpayer money to defend their actions, thereby creating incentive to write more tickets to make up for their losses. God forbid they write tickets to actually PROTECT the public vs. be a nuisance.

 

Well this guy took the extra step to stop and park, and continually warn everyone, which is why he got cited I imagine...

 

And it was a civil lawsuit, so they 'had' to go through litigation of some sort... probably hardly more money than settling out of court I imagine...

 

And it really bothers me when people complain about police/hwy patrol that set up to stop speeders.... Its an important part of the job. if they didnt, and there was zero fear of getting speeding tickets, the law would be broken by many, and it has been PROVEN increasing patrol, or police presence REDUCES the number of fatal car accidents, significantly.

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^ finally someone with brains that knows and respects the ideas behind it :)

 

I think a good portion of the frustration also comes from the perception that cops *only* ticket for speeding. As drivers we see other people engaging in unsafe and inconsiderate behavior at legal speeds and there never seems to be any action taken by the police. Left-lane hogging, driving slow/erraticaly while on the phone, headlights off in low visibility conditions, etc.

 

Granted, it's possible the police are doing something about this also, but the *perception* is that they aren't. I believe that if the police were to do more to target the people who frustrate the rest of us (especially left lane hogs), their public image would improve greatly. Just look at the youtube vid of the officer pulling someone from the left to the far right lane and how it went viral with unanimous cheers from the viewers. That's very good PR.

 

I think if the police had a better reputation with the public, stuff like speedtraps would be more accepted.

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I guess my question is, can you get a ticket in Ohio for flashing?

 

you cant approach oncoming traffic with your high beams on.

 

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:sfQENM9hw-YJ:codes.ohio.gov/orc/4513.15+ohio+revised+code+hi+beams&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

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Like Sturg said not suppose to use them. I will say if you flash them and a trooper sees youll probably get one for sure :lolguy:

 

I guess I dont get this. Is a trooper's goal to generate revenue for the state or get people to slow down and stay safe. If I get someone to slow down, why would they ticket me?

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I guess I dont get this. Is a trooper's goal to generate revenue for the state or get people to slow down and stay safe. If I get someone to slow down, why would they ticket me?

 

slow down for 1 mile, pass the cop and speed up again isn't really effective.

 

tell you what, flash your lights and get pulled over by OSP and see what they'll say. Ask them if you can be an official deputized civilian and ill bet you get a little sheriffs star with your ticket.

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I think a good portion of the frustration also comes from the perception that cops *only* ticket for speeding. As drivers we see other people engaging in unsafe and inconsiderate behavior at legal speeds and there never seems to be any action taken by the police. Left-lane hogging, driving slow/erraticaly while on the phone, headlights off in low visibility conditions, etc.

 

Granted, it's possible the police are doing something about this also, but the *perception* is that they aren't. I believe that if the police were to do more to target the people who frustrate the rest of us (especially left lane hogs), their public image would improve greatly. Just look at the youtube vid of the officer pulling someone from the left to the far right lane and how it went viral with unanimous cheers from the viewers. That's very good PR.

 

I think if the police had a better reputation with the public, stuff like speedtraps would be more accepted.

 

It's about fatalities and serious accidents... The number of accidents from things like "lane hogging" (where things like road rage comes in), driving while talking, and headlights... PALE in comparison to accidents caused by a speeding motorist. Their job is to PROTECT the people, that protection is significantly improved when speed laws are enforced.

 

If cops were trying to be dicks and just ticket people for speeding, everyone going 1-4 MPH over the speed limit would be ticketed, and everyone knows that is not the case.

 

I regularly pass police going 5-7 mph over the speed limit and the officer wont even blink. I have been TOLD by many officers and hwy patrol as long as I keep it under XX, I will be fine. One of these being a highland heights officer on i75 (they patrol the shit out of that stretch of 75), that as long as I kept it under 70mph (the speed limit is 55mph there) no one would ever bother me. (he even let me off with a warning that night). And guess what, I have proven that point many times.

 

In general, police will NEVER have a good reputation when it comes to traffic law, because 90% of people will complain when they get a traffic ticket. And the excuse is usually always hte same "why dont you after real criminals" guess what? they do that was well.

 

 

PS, I say that as someone who has had their licence revoked for pts (13 pts) all due to speeding, and has been pulled over more times than I have fingers and toes. And while it sucks every time I get a ticket, I STILL respect the officers position.

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slow down for 1 mile, pass the cop and speed up again isn't really effective.

 

tell you what, flash your lights and get pulled over by OSP and see what they'll say. Ask them if you can be an official deputized civilian and ill bet you get a little sheriffs star with your ticket.

 

Dude, I get it. Your little sheriffs star comment was cute.

 

My stance is that I see no harm in flashing my lights. There is no rational excuse as to why a civilian should get a ticket for doing so. I guess they could call it a distraction, but is it any more of a distraction than 6 million LED lights on a cruiser coming the other way? Nope.

 

Getting someone to slow down for a mile or 2 is certainly better than having them stay at speed until they meet the cop.

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It's about fatalities and serious accidents... The number of accidents from things like "lane hogging" (where things like road rage comes in), driving while talking, and headlights... PALE in comparison to accidents caused by a speeding motorist. Their job is to PROTECT the people, that protection is significantly improved when speed laws are enforced.

 

If cops were trying to be dicks and just ticket people for speeding, everyone going 1-4 MPH over the speed limit would be ticketed, and everyone knows that is not the case.

 

I regularly pass police going 5-7 mph over the speed limit and the officer wont even blink. I have been TOLD by many officers and hwy patrol as long as I keep it under XX, I will be fine. One of these being a highland heights officer on i75 (they patrol the shit out of that stretch of 75), that as long as I kept it under 70mph (the speed limit is 55mph there) no one would ever bother me. (he even let me off with a warning that night). And guess what, I have proven that point many times.

 

In general, police will NEVER have a good reputation when it comes to traffic law, because 90% of people will complain when they get a traffic ticket. And the excuse is usually always hte same "why dont you after real criminals" guess what? they do that was well.

 

 

PS, I say that as someone who has had their licence revoked for pts (13 pts) all due to speeding, and has been pulled over more times than I have fingers and toes. And while it sucks every time I get a ticket, I STILL respect the officers position.

I did not say they should stop with speed traps. And I'm not saying "go get the real criminals".

 

What I am saying is that if the police were more visible at reducing the daily annoyances of driving, public opinion would rise and acceptance of things like speed traps would be more forthcoming. I think part of the issue is that people don't perceive cops as being any benefit to their daily lives, and are only a detriment. It's a public image issue.

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It does not help when you hear Police openly talking about meeting ticket quota's outside their department. Let's use downtown Gahanna for example. Is it necessary to have 3-6 patrols cars circling downtown Gahanna to catch people going 5-7 mph over in a 25 zone? The speed traps in the area have nothing to do with ensuring people are staying safe and more about generating revenue due to their location.

 

One big thing that drivers of modified cars have in Columbus, is that they do not have to get their car to pass a safety check, deal with rolling check points for exhaust sniffing, or reconstruction permits for modified cars. In my old area, if your car was even slightly dropped, you would get fucked with.

 

At the end, yes the speed traps for profit are a joke, but it balances out with not getting harassed daily due to minimal mods done to a car.

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