How did the interaction go?

I had gone in in the early evening to assist and  get about 12 hours of work done in 8 hours, it was pretty low stress, I was compensated very well, I got to work with a former colleague who is outstanding at their job, I was off going to be off the next four days, etc.

But, this means I was driving home at like 2:30 in the morning.

I had turned onto a road, normal stuff, had dropped the lid of my Gatorade, grabbed it, came around a corner, saw cruisers with blue lights on either side of the road, well off the road. Let off the gas, hadn’t even been turned on the road long enough to hit the speed limit,  A beat old truck was on the other side of the road, well off the shoulder with no damage, and a guy talking with a cop next to it, and also well off the shoulder on the other side the other cruiser shining his light up and down on the beat up truck looking at it or maybe waving me on.    It looked like they had stopped for a guy with a breakdown, no accident, or maybe he was a traffic stop with the driver asked out for something.  Whatever, kind of thing you slow down some and drive past every so often.   I drove past, soon went around another corner, and was driving along.

Then I saw blue lights behind me.  Coming up 15 mph  or so over the speed limit, not floored or reckless, no siren.  I thought, well, I was not speeding, did I swerve when I grabbed the lid, no, that was around the corner from  them, no siren, I guess he just wants to go by, and enough random opposite way traffic can’t pass.  There was not much shoulder, I hit my signal, and about 30 seconds later pulled into the entrance of a closed business full off the road.  He pulled up behind me.

Now, I do look kinda sketchy.  Like, beefier 50 year old Danny Trejo kinda sketchy.  70s biker porn star/80s B action movie villain type.  And… I’m in like an 8 year old medium sized SUV, that, while well maintained with a little over 100K on it is not police auction debadged cruiser or older rimmed out Maxima vibe, it’s certainly not executive or neurosurgeon late night at the office or hospital shiny new Lexus LX or G-wagon kind of ride.

So, I’m stopped well off the road with room to get behind me off the road, put window down, put reading glasses on, turn dome light on, get license, registration, and insurance in my hands which are both in full view on top of the steering wheel.  I don’t go looking for a reason to make a lone LEO on a two lane country road at three in the morning antsy.  And Inlegitmately don’t know what’s up because there should have been no swerve, broken stuff, speeding, etc. seen for a stop.

Guy calmly comes walking up to the back of the drivers window, gets a better look at sketchy at first glance guy who now has on reading glasses, pens in his shirt pocket, and an ID badge hanging from his neck.  

He states, in a normal firm voice-
I am position/last name from the named department.  I stopped you because you drove past a driver check point I was signaling you to stop at.

I’m briefly like WTF?  No barriers, no hazzard or red lights, that did at all look like a check point.
Holy shit- he could have came up on me floored with lights and sirens at three digits mph pissed and walked up mad an hot about running through a checkpoint.
I simply state-
I apologize.  I thought it was just a broken down truck on the side of the road or a traffic stop.

He says,
OK.  Hand me your -license please and wait here.

He looks at it, walks to the back of my vehicle, looks at my plate, walks back,
Hands me the license, and says-
Ok, you can go.

I’m like,
Thank you.  Again, I’m sorry I didn’t know it was a stop.

And that was it.

I only take the time to do this, because as many bad examples as get posted-
A LEO that could have justified driving crazy unsafe, being mad and confrontational, etc. simply treated it as routine and was calm and professional.

12 pages?

Checkpoint?

Fishing.

Get a civil rites attorney and sue!

You need to start every paragraph with,  "so". That'll juice up the story some.

Yeah I got a problem with that. But since I wouldn't want to spend the night in jail I would have probably been very polite as I always am with police on stops

Cool story bra! No one bladed at 45? I am disappointed.

Sounds like government intrusion.

Shit man I hope someone can get ahold of lawyerup!

I'da hopped out mad and lookin for trouble...

TLDR

Was it a Reality_Checkpoint?

Things that never happened

You rolled down your window?

Checkpoints are a blatant assault on your civil rights. You did good not stopping and playing the game with the man.

Was this supposed to be a story that gives us hope that not all cops are shit heads?

If you talked to the cop as much as you type, I would have let you go ASAP too!😁

Checkpoint Nazis

“I waved at you”
I stop for red and blues, which is required and mentioned in every driver’s license handbook

He failed to mention he was in East Germany last night.

Really? Because a lot of places have blue lights only for police.

You are right, but cops love them where they can get away with it,

If you don't mind OP, please post a pic of yourself.

Whatever, TJ Hooker.
I’ve never been to the place you run checkpoints
I don’t pull over for waves, spotlights, or tailgaters.

CSB

Bonus points for describing yourself as "kinda sketchy.  Like, beefier 50 year old Danny Trejo kinda sketchy.  70s biker porn star/80s B action movie villain type."

Probably.


Last time I was pulled over was a complete fishing expedition. Was 10PM on my way to work for graveyard. Cops were facing the opposite direction, light off. Pulled in behind me with light off then turned on the roof lights with the headlights following.


They tried to look for everything they could. I fell asleep on them they took so long.


Moral of the story is working graveyard sucks and you'll never catch up on your sleep.

Should have told him you weren't driving, you were traveling

Lt. Dangle. Please get it right.

Papiere, Bitte

Are you writing a fuckiing novela? What’s with all the descriptive adjectives and shit… all for nothing, thanks for wasting my time! Are you that bored

when I was younger, I would toy around with the checkpoints, reek like hand sanitizer, non alcoholic mouthwash, you have anything to drink tonite? yea, I had a few waters, I have a gatorade right now, and I had a coffee 4 hours ago. they dont like that....

now, I just dont do dumb shit.

GSP, the city police and Sheriff used to do “safety checkpoints” ~1/4 mile from the road that went to my neighborhood. There was always a trooper or city cop sitting on that road waiting for people that turned off. Got pulled over a few times.

Lol. Last i got pulled over was late night headed home from hospital in scrubs and officer let me know i had a light out. But he was fishing for a dui.

Are you sketchy looking? You didn’t mention it.

You’re white.  You have a clean record. You didn’t act afraid or nervous.

That is clearly an “out” .gif.

Lol what?  I live in this state too.  The last thing I want to do passing a TX traffic stop at 2:30 AM, is pull near the officer and stop.  Slow down, yep.  Move over, yes, and that is the law here?  But stop for a traffic stop that isn't mine?  Seems like a great way to get the officer going from 0 to 100.

(Edit, rereading what you wrote, I'm not sure what you meant.  The DUI checkpoint in Maine was very clearly marked as such.  Austin or Hays County---sounds more like Hays, really---had a sign a bunch of years ago one time, with the "safety checkpoint!" writing on it.  And pulled over everyone who exitied off 35 to avoid it.  I forget how it turned out.)

Then again, we don't have checkpoints here.

FWIW, parachute guy did everything exactly as I do on stops.  Get everything ready---though they usually have evidence of the proof of insurance or lack thereof already---lights on, hands on the steering wheel, everything to indicate that I'm not the droids he's looking for.

Again though, TX Arfcops:  what do you want as regards the license to carry thing?  Declare it?  Keep it to myself until asked?  The actual weapon is sitting in a holster that I'm going nowhere near, but as far as the declaration, I've tried both ways, and both ways pissed the two separate cops off.  Shrug.

"I never saw you waving at me, I was too busy making sure the road was clear, hard to see with all the flashing LEDs, especially for us old farts".

or...

"Checkpoint? If I'd known that was a fucking STASI checkpoint I would have rolled down my window and flipped you cocksuckers off when I drove by!"

Bullshit

I wouldn't let 'em get by with that shit. They'll fucking run all over you if you let 'em. How does that boot leather taste?

Ha

Here’s the M. Night Shamlamamamalaladingdong twist…

THE ONE POSTING IS REALLY THE COP WHO PULLED OVER THE OP…THE OP WAS PROTECTED AND SERVED…HARD!

No today Mr. Officerman! NOT TODAY!!!!

I almost hit a cop at a dui checkpoint one time. About midnight, pitch dark 2 lane road, and they had set up just after a blind curve. They had those fucking billion lumen LED light bars going so it blinded the shit out of me and I didn’t see the cop standing in the middle of the road until I was basically next to him.

Idiot.

I don’t disagree.
But the law of the land where I live makes noncompliance an issue of significant consequence.  

I have seen them with saw horses with red lights on them, and just cop cars with orange cones.

This, I have been stopped at once before, was just cop cars.
But it was way more obvious it was a stop point.  Like, in a slow part of a small town with some street lights, etc.

This just looked like a cruiser on each side of the road talking with a guy with a broke down truck.  Or, in retrospect, a guy on the other side of the road about to get a field sobriety test.

Checkpoint?

Is this like papers, please?

We used to live in a society.

The cops at the CHL classes in the county say have your hands easily seen, lit, window open, and with the stuff ready.

The law of the land where I live requires showing license, registration, and insurance at a traffic stop.

I may not be in agreement with a citizen traveling lawfully must stop and show papers to the man-
But not enough to get cuffed and brought to a police station over it.