July 18, 201412 yr 2 or 3 of the speeders mentioned in the article were officers from counties other than Fayette. They were speeding in the construction zone in Fayette County. I'd say it is safe to assume that they weren't responding to a call.
July 18, 201412 yr Because they technically don't have the legal authority to do so on many calls they respond to but the caller/victim still wants the police there fast, I guarantee it. I don't doubt people want them there fast, but it seems like police should be allowed to run lights and sirens if responding to a call, regardless of the call. As with any situation, they would have to use judgement on how fast to drive and when.
July 18, 201412 yr I don't doubt people want them there fast, but it seems like police should be allowed to run lights and sirens if responding to a call, regardless of the call. As with any situation, they would have to use judgement on how fast to drive and when. Minor traffic crash that escalates when the driver's exchange words. Doesn't require lights and sirens, but does the officer need to get there fast? Shoplifting suspect has been confronted by the store manager and is attempting to leave the store. Doesn't require lights and sirens, but does the officer need to get there fast? Babysitter calls in a complaint of a prowler around the house at night. If you come with lights and sirens, the prowler runs away and isn't caught. But does the officer need to get there fast? Suspicious person sitting at the park watching kids on the playground with binoculars. Doesn't require lights and sirens, but does the officer need to get there fast? Silent bank alarm. It is the policy of most departments NOT to make their presence known, especially with lights and sirens. 4-year-old kid is missing in a neighborhood. Parents are frantic. Doesn't require lights and sirens, but should they drive 25 mph to get there? The list is long. So is the list of officers who speed when they aren't responding to calls. But the notion that police officers should use their lights and sirens when responding to urgent calls is wrong.
July 18, 201412 yr Minor traffic crash that escalates when the driver's exchange words. Doesn't require lights and sirens, but does the officer need to get there fast? Lights and sirens. Shoplifting suspect has been confronted by the store manager and is attempting to leave the store. Doesn't require lights and sirens, but does the officer need to get there fast? Lights and sirens. Babysitter calls in a complaint of a prowler around the house at night. If you come with lights and sirens, the prowler runs away and isn't caught. But does the officer need to get there fast? You can run lights an sirens until you get so close. Suspicious person sitting at the park watching kids on the playground with binoculars. Doesn't require lights and sirens, but does the officer need to get there fast? If he has binoculars, how do you know he's watching kids? Silent bank alarm. It is the policy of most departments NOT to make their presence known, especially with lights and sirens. Again, lights and sirens to a certain distance away from the call. 4-year-old kid is missing in a neighborhood. Parents are frantic. Doesn't require lights and sirens, but should they drive 25 mph to get there? Who said anything about driving 25? Just don't speed... The list is long. So is the list of officers who speed when they aren't responding to calls. But the notion that police officers should use their lights and sirens when responding to urgent calls is wrong. In your opinion... IMO, all of the above you mentioned other than maybe the kid missing, I would have lights and sirens going as reasonable.
July 18, 201412 yr Basically, again IMO, if they are responding to a call and they feel the need to go over the speed limit, they should be running lights and sirens. After all, what are the lights and sirens for?
July 18, 201412 yr Basically, again IMO, if they are responding to a call and they feel the need to go over the speed limit, they should be running lights and sirens. After all, what are the lights and sirens for? You are missing the point Deuce. Many times you still need to get there fast but you do NOT have the legal authority to use your lights and siren and/or there are times (silent bank run or burglary in progress) that although you may have the legal authority it is counter-productive.
July 18, 201412 yr G, Would it be safe to say one of the top complaints the police receive are response times to calls? I'd say that's the reason every department tracks response times...due to complaints. Not where I worked, we had a lot of factors in our favor and our response times were consistently excellent.
July 18, 201412 yr 2 or 3 of the speeders mentioned in the article were officers from counties other than Fayette. They were speeding in the construction zone in Fayette County. I'd say it is safe to assume that they weren't responding to a call. And I am sure all those other county residents want their law enforcement officers back in their own county as soon as possible. I am not excusing their behavior, I am stating fact. Residents/citizens want lots of police and they want then now. At least when they want them...
July 18, 201412 yr You are missing the point Deuce. Many times you still need to get there fast but you do NOT have the legal authority to use your lights and siren and/or there are times (silent bank run or burglary in progress) that although you may have the legal authority it is counter-productive. I understand the bank runs and robbery calls. That makes sense. Anything else, they should be running lights and sirens, IMO. If it's a legal matter as to why they can't, then I think that should be changed.
July 18, 201412 yr I understand the bank runs and robbery calls. That makes sense. Anything else, they should be running lights and sirens, IMO. If it's a legal matter as to why they can't, then I think that should be changed. It is a legal/policy matter.
July 19, 201412 yr I'm certain some police speed for no reason. They are human...put any one of you in a police car and I'm sure you'd do it too. Does it make it right? No. But it's not exactly a huge issue either. They better be able to explain their speed if it causes an accident...because they will still be held responsible if they cause a crash and hurt someone. The report seemed like something out of a tabloid or entertainment news. They even had rumors of police targeting them at the end...don't need to confirm it...just report it.
July 19, 201412 yr Just a couple of things to consider... -Surveys show that from 70 to 90% of people on interstates admit to breaking the speed limit, while less than 1% receive speeding tickets. -When police officers drive the speed limit traffic backs up for miles and miles behind them because no one will pass a police officer driving the speed limit. -Speeding for the sake of speeding is wrong but there absolutely are times when they need to hurry up but Lights and Sirens aren't needed. If the police used Lights and Sirens on every call there would be a lot of people complaining about getting woke up at all hours of the night by the police.
July 19, 201412 yr I don't doubt people want them there fast, but it seems like police should be allowed to run lights and sirens if responding to a call, regardless of the call. As with any situation, they would have to use judgement on how fast to drive and when. There are different reasons why you may not run lights and sirens. One may be responding to a burglar alarm, once the officer is close he doesn't want to alert the suspect they are in the area so do not use lights and sirens etc.
July 19, 201412 yr Just a couple of things to consider... -Surveys show that from 70 to 90% of people on interstates admit to breaking the speed limit, while less than 1% receive speeding tickets. -When police officers drive the speed limit traffic backs up for miles and miles behind them because no one will pass a police officer driving the speed limit. -Speeding for the sake of speeding is wrong but there absolutely are times when they need to hurry up but Lights and Sirens aren't needed. If the police used Lights and Sirens on every call there would be a lot of people complaining about getting woke up at all hours of the night by the police. If the officers are driving the speed limit on the highway and no one will pass them is traffic really bawling up? Wouldn't that mean everyone was complying with the law? How well do you think it would go over if I tell the officer that I was just trying to keep from backing up traffic if I get pulled over for speeding? How about the officers in the article that were not even in their county? Should they be speeding in a construction zone?
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