We drove back from Chambersburg today. Don't think I mentioned previously, that the time we went up to the Lehigh Valley zoo, we got a ticket for not being in the right hand lane. Linda had been in the center lane but for some reason moved over to the left lane and that's when the cop "got her". Not sure what they are teaching these policemen these days but this officer asked us where we were coming from, where we're going, what we were gonna do there and what we do for work. Not sure what any of this has to do with the price of eggs but he was pretty intimidating. He asked her what her driving record was like and we both said it was excellent. In the five and a half years I've known her, she's never gotten a ticket of any kind. We thought that might weigh in her favor when he went back to his car and did whatever cops do during this time...could have been reading the sports page for all I know. But alas...no...apparently it didn't mean anything that she's a good driver, cause he presented her with a ticket. When Linda tried to ask the officer a simple question he said he "wasn't gonna hold court along the side of the road...she could have her day in court" and walked away from the truck. All of this ran through my head as we drove through this same area today and saw all the cop cars pulling people over. Well, Linda will have her "day in court" soon...she will contest the ticket and the fact that he was only following her for 1/2 a mile when he deemed that she was breaking the law. We'll see how that pans out.
Seems there is a problem with many law enforcement officers today in that the sense of power they have has gone to their heads. One of our tenants started talking to Linda about traffic tickets and she told him about our encounter with this officer. This gentleman is African American and told her how he had gotten pulled over once in the early morning hours on his way home from work. He was pulled from his car by police officers and thrown to the ground and the officer put his foot on his neck. They trashed his car and when they found nothing they told him he could go. He had not committed any crime and was never given a ticket but he got pretty roughed up. He asked for a warning from the officers so he'd at least have the officers names and badge numbers but they wouldn't give him one. The partner of the officer who got physical with him told him he was sorry for the way his partner was acting...apparently he was new on the force and "trying to make a name for himself". They might want to do a little more training on the proper way to handle suspects so they don't find themselves being sued so much. I don't have alot of respect for people who have taken an oath to "serve and protect" when they violate that trust with unwarranted violence towards innocent people.
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