QUOTE(Darth Lefty @ Jun 10 2008, 12:49 PM)
No one is likely to run a red light. It was a flub. Everyone is likely to speed the very next time they get in their car. That's deliberate, ignored by the cops, and socially acceptable. Where's the line that suddenly costs $300?
The line varies. Cops like to play games, just like everyone. At one of our car club meetings, we had a regional director of the CHP talk to us. He told us that sometimes an officer will set a limit just to see how many tickets he will write for that limit. One day, it might be 100 mph. He will only write tickets to speeders exceeding a 100 mph. The next day it might be 10 mph over the posted. Now obviously, the 100 MPH limit guy isn't patrolling the freeways in downtown Sac, but open stretches of I-5 where one can be safe while cruising at 95 mph if traffic permits.
As for what it takes to not get a ticket when caught, be nice, courteous, and respectful and your chances of getting just a warning are improved. cop an attitude with a cop, and you can just about guarantee he/she ain't going to let you off the hook. I'm always amazed on those cop shows when they show clips of the driver getting irate that they've been pulled over.
I had a friend that told us about one ticket where he was written up for all kinds of things, including "defective windshield wipers". In court, he said the judge looked at the charges and commented (I see we had an attitude problem). My friend admitted he was belligerent.