Is this Legal/Ethical?

[Something Amyss]

It's within the boundaries of the law.

It's harsh, but it's their discretion.

 

[CrystalShadow]

Cop was in the right.

Neighbor was in the wrong.

/thread

so, umm, why do you question it? He should have just left earlier. You need to be prepared for this stuff when you have such a responsibility.

It is not "fair" per se, but it is the law.

So my neighbor, who is 16, a new driver was driving home on a Friday night. He arrived in his driveway at 12:03 to find that a cop had tailed him all the way back to his house. As the curfew was midnight he was technically violating it, so the cops suspended his license until he turned 18. thats just under 2 years for 3 minutes past curfew. So i was wondering, are cops allowed to do this. And if they are, do you agree with it. Explain.

*Also, i would like to note that this isnt a hypothetical, it happened next door to me, i mean the house DIRECTLY next to mine.

It's legal, there's nothing really unethical about it either. Honestly, your neighbor should have left sooner and planned to be back with time to spare. Just because you have a reasonable expectation of getting away with your crimes doesn't excuse them when you make a slight error.

If the cop tailed him home and asked to see his vehicle inspection, found it expired, and ticketed him, I'd think the same thing.

I'm sorry, but this kind of thing sickens me.

This turns the law from sonething meaningful into an excuse to abuse people for trivialities, and in my opinion undermines confidence and respect for the institutions of law.

Laws as a concept exists to serve a purpose, not as an entity unto itself that should be tolerated just because.

It genuinely drives me nuts that people support these kind of things.

 

[likalaruku]

Ther'e scurfew fr a reason. You think you can push you luck by being a little past it. If you get away with it, you try being later & later. The police are just putting a foot down on it. Although the length of the suspension is harsh; reminds me of the #1 thing I hate about America; punishment in access....rediculously long jail sentences for misdemenors (while real criminals get off on technicalities) & the over-the-top amounts of money people can sue for, often the rich suing the poor.

 

[DarthFennec]

Yeah, that's not cool. Although the cop had every right to do that, that's not cool at all. 2 years for three minutes? I know for a fact that there were probably much more important and constructive things that cop could have been doing with his time then following some teenager around, waiting for him to stay out past curfew. That's ridiculous.

 

[Choppaduel]

Take it to court, get reduced by a year.

 

[Kortney]

Police officers are given discretion specifically for moments like this. It's a real shame this police officer acted like a dick. I'd protest it if this happened to me. It might not work, but it's worth a try because 3 minutes could come down to the accuracy of the clock and the police have a civil responsibility to act in accordance with fairness and equity. If you take this to court, I'd expect you'd get a lesser suspension. I really do.

The driver broke the law.

The police officer did nothing wrong.

If you cannot understand that, best we stop the conversation here, least it turn into an argument.

For someone who was once arguing in favour of incest, claiming that the legal side of the issue was wrong - you are remarkably brainwashed into thinking the law is always right. Cognitive dissonance? Just a bit!

 

[sagacious]

The fuck? enforced curfew?

Beyond the fact that the mere idea of a curfew-by-law makes me cringe, 3 minutes?! what if his watch was 3 minutes slow?! what if he got a flat tire? what if he had to stop and go to the bathroom on the way home?! hellllloooo! this is retarded. your neighbor literally did nothing wrong.

that's my two cents anyway.

 

[FallenJellyDoughnut]

SNIP

The driver broke the law.

The police officer did nothing wrong.

If you cannot understand that, best we stop the conversation here, least it turn into an argument.

Talking in lines like this

Isn't helping anyone

And frankly it's stupid

Also, are you the guy who wrote RoboCop's standard procedure?

 

[SovietSecrets]

Thats just seriously a dick move on the cops part, but like people have been saying the law is law for some cops. Other cops are pretty chill, but most aren't and do things like this.

Also cops pull this shit to meet a quota of some sort. I got ticketed $40 for parking too far from my own curb in a dead end street that no one goes too and I live at the very end of it.

 

[Ameter]

Depends on where you live. You might check further into the whole "curfew" thing. Where I live, while there is a curfew from midnight to 5:00 AM for drivers of that age, it is expressly stated that the curfew doesn't apply when going between school, work, or HOME or when accompanied by an appropriate person.

From what you have described, I think 2 years is a little harsh. Can you predict getting stuck behind a train or in a clogged intersection? 3 minutes is really not a lot of time when it comes to time margins. Especially with the 5 minute differences between everyone's clocks and watches.

Which is why any intelligent person would give themselves a buffer in time, instead of cutting it down to the last second

 

[TrollOgerElf]

not all teenagers are irresponsible fuck ups
but this cop however is a dick

must not have met or was getting a head start on his tickets quota

 

[Zhukov]

Legal?

Yes.

Ethical?

That's relative.

Dick move of epic proportions?

Absolutely.

 

[PeePantz]

I'm sure he'll get it overturned and will be able to keep his license. Cops like these to to be regulated and destroy the true nature of law. They are there to protect and serve, not destroy lives and bust people because they can. Nabbing a kid for three minutes over curfew is pissing on what that law is meant for.

 

[Cogwheel]

WTF is this curfew?

They don't have that in England. That's beyond ridiculous. Setting a curfew for drivers just because of their age.

Agreed, more or less. I'm still astonished to hear about this curfew thing. What are the details and what sort of places have it? I thought these things mostly belonged in Orwell novels and nations that take inspiration from them.

 

[Patrick Dare]

Wow... I am very surprised at all of the people siding with the cop.

The cop may have been technically justified to do that he did, but I consider it to be rather ridiculous. The kid was even on his way home, so I consider it to be a jerk thing to do.

And two years? That's just too strict for three minutes past midnight. That's too strict for even an hour over, in my opinion.

That police officer must have either been really bored or in a really bad mood.

I'd like to note that I definitely don't think that what the cop did was illegal. I just don't think that it was really necessary. I guess that it's really about the cop's intentions; is he just looking to exercise his power because he can (which many cops enjoy far too much)? Or does he think that he is doing the right thing?

Really, I think that he was just being overzealous.

Basically this. It's just a fucking curfew, it's not like the kid was hurting anyone or putting them in danger. God and king save us from the unruly teens driving 3 minutes past curfew!

 

[The Stonker]

That's just wrong bro.

Cop tailing you?
Speed up and think it's grand turismo.

 

[bl4ckh4wk64]

Being a 16 year old driver who just broke curfew for the first time tonight. It's not fair, but your neighbor was wrong. He should have left earlier, just like I should have. The cop was in the right, but that doesn't mean what he did was ethical. Same thing happened to my cousin except it involved a cop following him out of a bar and getting him with a DUI. You want to complain, talk to him. He got 3 months community service, a night in prison, and he's charged with a felony. All because he was .001 over the legal limit. My cousin was in the wrong legally. Morally, he was correct as he wasn't the least bit buzzed and he made it home before the cop arrested him.

Also, what area are you in where the curfew is 12:00? Mine's 11:00, and I think in most areas it's 11. If it is in your area, than your neighbor is a retard that doesn't deserve to drive.

Edit: Just because he can make a legitimate excuse for it doesn't mean it's right or he should be let off easy. "Oh, there was a person in the way of my bullet." You could be at a range, or hunting, and this might happen. However, it is not an excuse for manslaughter. Just because you weren't planning on breaking the law, doesn't mean that you're not actually breaking the law and deserve to be punished. Most states also have a zero tolerance attitude towards minors, which leads to harsher punishments in order to protect the population.

 

[Patrick Dare]

WTF is this curfew?

They don't have that in England. That's beyond ridiculous. Setting a curfew for drivers just because of their age.

Agreed, more or less. I'm still astonished to hear about this curfew thing. What are the details and what sort of places have it? I thought these things mostly belonged in Orwell novels and nations that take inspiration from them.

I'm not sure of the perversity of this but we had this here in New York (I think it's a state law anyways, they have it in the part of NY I live in). If you were a driver under 18 (I think it was 18, maybe 17) you couldn't drive between certain hours unless it was for work and if so I think you actually had to get something from your job and they'd mark it on your license. There was also a curfew put into affect in a town near me where I used to hang out a lot as a teenager. I don't think anything really bad ever happened, they just got sick of kids being out late. You could still be out after the curfew but you had to be walking, no standing still allowed.