June 12, 2006
District Seatbelt Trap Snares Blogger
We warned everyone a few weeks back — wear your seatbelt, or else. Friend and fellow blogger Rock Creek Rambler opted for the "or else," and he's not happy with the results. He writes today:
So apparently DC has instituted seat belt traps. I found this out yesterday when I pulled onto Park from 14th, and was commanded to pull over by an officer in the middle of the street. I joined the other 5 cars pulled over to the side of the road and received my $50 punch in the balls. Should I have been wearing my seatbelt? Sure, I guess, but considering I was only a block from my house and doing 5 mph circling the block looking for parking, I thought I was safe from flying through my windshield. What pisses me off more than the state charging me $50 for not protecting myself is the fact that, in this city, I'm 100% POSITIVE there is a better use of the time of three police officers.RCR, we're torn between wanting to sympathize with you and wanting to tell you that you got what was coming. You're right — you were only going 5 mph. But did the police know that you were slowly circling? Couldn't you just as well have torn down the street at 50? But you are right about this — those three cops could have been doing something a little more productive. Giving tickets for traffic infractions tends to serve the purpose of generating income for the city as much (or more) as it does in increasing the public's safety. Cops could always be used elsewhere, especially walking the streets and dealing with more pressing crimes.
We've all been in this position at some point. When we get tickets, they suddenly seem unfair, don't they? Heck, I was recently caught speeding outside Reagan Airport, and when presented with a hefty ticket, I tried to justify my obvious transgression by arguing that I was late to pick up my mother (and I really was). The cop didn't buy it, and I wasn't about to press my luck with a judge. In the end, we're all always late to pick someone up, or all slowly circling. It's never us that deserves a ticket. But at least we can sleep soundly knowing that RCR isn't going down without a fight:
I would write a letter to the mayor's office, but no one would ever read it so I'm just going to bitch about it here. Obviously I'm going to contest it, not because I'm cheap or need the money, but because I'm an obstinate asshole who fucking hates the government.Well said, and good luck.
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or he could just pay the fine and buckle up before he gets in the car next time. why waste all that mental energy on a frickin seatbelt fine?
Why don't the police institute a program where they ticket motorists who don't yeild right of way to pedestrians downtown or in an entertainment district on a Friday night? That would help safety. Why they're at it, I'm sure they could get some extra cash for the city coffers by ticketing jay-walkers and seatbelt offenders. MPD, or whoever is telling them what to do, is thinking too small.
Seatbelt laws are utter bullshit. Why do we have them?
The common answer is that seatbelt laws lower accident fatality rates. But isn't this the ultimate example of a "nanny-state" law? The following activities are harmful to my health but legal: drinking, smoking, eating McDonald's, etc. What do they have in common with non-seatbelted driving? All are detrimental to my health without posing safety risks to others (ignoring DWI and second-hand issues). Driver licensing requirements and traffic infractions were conceived to protect other drivers from your incompetence. Making non-seatbelt usage a traffic infraction (and even worse, a point-laden offense) is completely ridiculous because it hurts no one but your own dumb ass.
Another reason given for seatbelt laws is that it reduces insurance rates. The simple answer: Make all drivers sign a waver stating that if they are involved in an accident and aren't wearing their seatbelt, they don't receive a settlement for personal damages.
The most insidious part about this whole "Click-It or Ticket" campaign is that it creates yet another first-level driving offense, and another excuse for cops to search your car. There is no reason for you to be pulled over unless you are posing a threat to other drivers or pedestrians.
Yeah, they could be ticketing the f---ing double parkers in front of the churches. All stupid MD and VA plates.
What is the status of that whole thing anyway?
Eh, I'd disagree that the cops would obviously be better used elsewhere. These sorts of campaigns are manpower-intensive for a short while to get publicity and raise awareness that the laws are being enforced, but it's not a long-term sort of thing. The effect lasts for quite some time after they stop being so aggressive, I'd imagine.
Also, this is a different sort of issue from fast food consumption or something. Wearing your seatbelt is a phenomenally easy (and free!) way of reducing injuries and deaths from auto accidents, yet a huge percentage of serious injuries and deaths from these accidents are the result of people not wearing their seat belts. It's a drain on emergency rooms, too. I'll take the nanny state in this particular situation, thank you very much.
Two comments.
To the original post, about how he's not going to go through the windshield when he's going five miles an hour - right, unless another car whaps him from behind. That's the kind of thing that makes you go through windshields.
And for those who say not wearing a seatbelt hurts no one but you - think of all the expense, work, and pain in the ass incurred by the EMTs, nurses, trauma surgeons, and poor saps who donated blood, thinking it would go to someone deserving, as opposed to your lazy, non-seatbelt-wearing butt.
True, you were only going 5mph, and true the cop couldn't have known that, but, truth be told, minor, seemingly useless infractions are some of the biggest ways police can crack down on real criminals. The average criminal with outstanding warrants is that much more likely to be commit another crime or ignore 'stupid' laws, like wearing a seatbelt, and by pulling him over, it gives police a chance to serve that warrant on someone who would otherwise be undetectible until they comitted their next 'real' crime.
True, the $50 is a hassle, but much like New York cracking down on farebeaters in the subway in the 90s, it turned up so many more criminals that even the officers themselves were shocked. So I say buckle up no matter where you're going, and rest easier knowing 5 cops who would likely otherwise be giving directions to tourists might actually be arresting a criminal or two.
Think of all the money and medical services wasted on some your lazy, smoking, drinking, fast-food eating butt.
What's the #1 killer of American's? Heart disease. I propose we institute a vegan diet for all Americans, with fines and jail time for those caught snacking on a cow leg. That would save those poor souls in the ER who have to deal with heart attacks and quadruple bypasses on a daily basis.
GhettoBurbs, seatbelt laws are justified because they keep the driver at the controls after the first impact of an accident. It's to enhance the safety of those around the driver, not the driver him- or herself.
What about the extra cost that has to be covered to rush your lazy ass to a hospital in an ambulance when you get in an accident that might not have been needed if you were wearing your safety belt?
Sure, you maybe the best driver in the world but I have seen people who look like they are drunk (or just out of it) driving at all times of the day near 14th and Park. Maybe Mommy and/or Daddy were a little too strict (or not strict enough) but it could save your life one day, or on second thought don't, then maybe one day we will be better off when we don't have to listen to you bitch.
True, you were only going 5mph, and true the cop couldn't have known that, but, truth be told, minor, seemingly useless infractions are some of the biggest ways police can crack down on real criminals. The average criminal with outstanding warrants is that much more likely to be commit another crime or ignore 'stupid' laws, like wearing a seatbelt, and by pulling him over, it gives police a chance to serve that warrant on someone who would otherwise be undetectible until they comitted their next 'real' crime.
True, the $50 is a hassle, but much like New York cracking down on farebeaters in the subway in the 90s, it turned up so many more criminals that even the officers themselves were shocked. So I say buckle up no matter where you're going, and rest easier knowing 5 cops who would likely otherwise be giving directions to tourists might actually be arresting a criminal or two.
True, you were only going 5mph, and true the cop couldn't have known that, but, truth be told, minor, seemingly useless infractions are some of the biggest ways police can crack down on real criminals. The average criminal with outstanding warrants is that much more likely to be commit another crime or ignore 'stupid' laws, like wearing a seatbelt, and by pulling him over, it gives police a chance to serve that warrant on someone who would otherwise be undetectible until they comitted their next 'real' crime.
True, the $50 is a hassle, but much like New York cracking down on farebeaters in the subway in the 90s, it turned up so many more criminals that even the officers themselves were shocked. So I say buckle up no matter where you're going, and rest easier knowing 5 cops who would likely otherwise be giving directions to tourists might actually be arresting a criminal or two.
Matt F: I'll take the nanny state in this particular situation, thank you very much.
The whole point is that you should be able to make that decision for yourself, and not force it on others.
h3:right, unless another car whaps him from behind. That's the kind of thing that makes you go through windshields.
That is completely false.
A little physics lesson. Newton's first law: Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it. Which means, your car is at rest until the car hits it from behind, driving it forward. The car would then act on you, attempting to drive you forward. You however would be applying an equal force back against your car, and getting whip lash from the back of your seat. NOT flying through the windshield.
Again though the point is that the accident is their fault and not yours. So you would be assuming that risk should you choose not to wear a seat belt. Not hurting someone else by not wearing your seatbelt.
Pete, if what you say has been scientifically validated, then I retract my stance on seatbelt laws. Ensuring driving control is a perfectly reasonable excuse to force that behavior on a person.
Meh... whatever. I belt up anyway, so no fines/points for me.
I was under the impression that as part of the national "Click-it or Ticket" campaign run by US DOT, local PDs got $$ to be used ONLY for seat belt enforcement. If so, then the three officers assigned to that detail could not have been doing anything else.
Who, in 2006, doesn't follow seatbelt laws. They were enacted in Maryland around 1985!
21 years ago!
File this blog post under "grow the heck up."
Don
Ben- here's a scenarios that a friend went through in the 1980s.
Driving on Route 1 after U of MD football game. Oncoming car makes crazy left turn and hits friend's car at high rate of speed. Passenger thrown from front seat, injured seriously, in hospital. Insurance went INSANE. Friend's premium jumped by hundreds of dollars, unfairly, but that's life.
So friend spent lots of money for that individual's "right" not to wear a seatbelt.
Don
The police are using the seat belt check points as a legal excuse to conduct traffic stops and search cars. The goal is not to enforce the seat belt laws.
Okay, similar but different, but it's funny that this gets posted today, the same day that Ben Rothesberger (sp?), not wearing a helment while riding his motorcylce collides with a car and is most likely out for the season if not for ever....who did that hurt? Well sure it hurt him, but it also hurt the franchise and it hurts an entire group of fans....not wearing a seatbelt or a helmet is selfishness, pure and simple.
F#cking F#ck, this junk again.
Ghetto Burbs talks sense and gets pounced on by the statist good-for-you police that have made DC one of the safest and cleanest cities in the country. Why, it's so safe that fat tourists can walk the National Mall without having to fear for harassment.
Oops.
I wear a seatbelt, I smoke cigarettes (and indoors in establishments in this very F#%king city that have held out some sense) and other substances when I feel like it, I am an omnivore and I like it that way thanks.
Listen up Adams Morgan Unemployed Peace Corps Socialist Activists Local 205:
I wear a seatbelt, not because I think the MPD will ticket my dumb ass, but because I don't want to get scraped off the sidewalk. I'd rather they spent their resources SOLVING F#*KING MURDERS!!! You s#$@!d f#@ks, do you ever solve anything!! You put out flyers for your chief's lost Crown Vic!!! F#$ING FLYERS!! Like the F#@king thing was a lost puppy?!?!
Know what's not my problem? Insurance rates. What else? People who don't buckle their seatbelt. Natural. F#cking. Selection at work. Not to Mention GhettoBurbs point about giving the po-lice another excuse to look inside your car when they have no business doing so.
Meanwhile, people still die in this town routinely and their killers are never prosecuted, much less arrested. And, thanks to our political leadership, residents cannot CHOOSE the option to defend themselves in the far-out possible instance that the MPD will not save them. Your faith in a sagging, bloated, unaccountable bureacracy to protect you is laughable and scary. And, thanks to Gonzales V. Castle Rock, when they screw up and don't do their job -- they can't be held liable. Wheeeeeee!!!!
You all love the nanny state so much that you are willing to put your life in its hands. You're welcome, meanwhile I'm in the F#$K that camp. I hope in the event that I am ever killed I am killed in the State of Maryland or the Commonwealth of Virginia, as I hear they actually DO things to people who break REAL laws over there.
Peace. Out.
AF
Dear AngryDCF#*k, your lack of knowledge about how MPD works is charming....it's the DETECTIVES who investigate murders in this city not the cops on the street and certainly not the ones who are out doing the seatbelt checks....however those same MPD officers who are checking to make sure you don't get you dumba** killed by note wearing a seatbelt can also search cars that they have suspicions about and many times they come up with weapons or drugs, thus getting those folks off the street.
Love,
Adams (never been in the peace corps)Morgan
I was off-net when the result of the angry essay contest was announced, but I'm still nominating AngryDCF#*k's sweet little rant there.
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I think the seatbelt laws (for adults) are a little nannystatish, but there's a whole heap of nannystate laws I find more offensive. So I can't get too excited about it.
For those of you who are praising the pretext purposes of these laws - you people are the same sorry citizens who stand behind using the NSA to spy on citizens and toss out the Constitution, aren't you?
AngryDCF#*k, I must thank you for your... spirited... defense of my position.
Adams Morgan, while the detectives are the ones who investigate murders, their budgetary resources are still derived from the same source: MPD. Theoretically, the money spent on seatbelt enforcement could have been spent on homicide detectives. I say theoretically only because there is no proof that throwing more money at the homicide problem would solve it. DC's never met a money pit it didn't like.
Hey- if a "random" seatbelt check just happens to get the assholes from all over DC and MD and VA who come to my neighborhood to buy the herion and crack that brings the money to the drug houses which regularly shoot at each other with AK47s, so much the better I say. All you all can stand on principle, or use it as a bullet proof verst for all I care. I just don't want my partner or kid shot. Oh yeah, and it'd be nice if it were possible to walk the next block over after dark or, hell, even during the day.
hey all, only commenter who's actually done some sidewalk-scraping here.
* Fuck you, we could've used the ambulance for something else.
* Fuck you for turning an ambulance call to one involving the squad, two engines, and a helicopter.
* Fuck you for turning a pull-over into somethiing that effs the entire Beltway for two hours.
* Fuck you for using up all that donor blood and the bed space. You don't pay for all of either, and both are limited.
* Fuck you for killing the other people in the car, and for making yourself triage priority one above the other suffering people.
* Fuck you for making us drive down the wrong side of the road at 70 mph.
* Fuck you for waking me up.
Of course, the only morons who blither about this being an individual choice are invariably those who have never been in a serious crash, so while your grisly death won't remotely impact only yourself, at least *I* will think it is *hilarious*.
If you could get a MedicAlert that said "libertarian", we would be cool. Until then, you send in your Goddamn ticket with a "thank you for teaching me about what I'm too dumb to do for myself" written on the bottom.
hey all, only commenter who's actually done some sidewalk-scraping here.
* Fuck you, we could've used the ambulance for something else.
* Fuck you for turning an ambulance call to one involving the squad, two engines, and a helicopter.
* Fuck you for turning a pull-over into somethiing that effs the entire Beltway for two hours.
* Fuck you for using up all that donor blood and the bed space. You don't pay for all of either, and both are limited.
* Fuck you for killing the other people in the car, and for making yourself triage priority one above the other suffering people.
* Fuck you for making us drive down the wrong side of the road at 70 mph.
* Fuck you for waking me up.
Of course, the only morons who blither about this being an individual choice are invariably those who have never been in a serious crash, so while your grisly death won't remotely impact only yourself, at least *I* will think it is *hilarious*.
If you could get a MedicAlert that said "libertarian", we would be cool. Until then, you send in your Goddamn ticket with a "thank you for teaching me about what I'm too dumb to do for myself" written on the bottom.
Ghettoburbs wrote:
GhettoBurbs, I drive a race car for fun, not professionally (SpecE30 Mid-Atlantic #59). The first thing that they teach you in a car control clinic is that the primary purpose of your 3-point seatbelt or 5/6/7/8-point harness is to keep you in a position where you can control the vehicle; keeping you from vaulting through the windshield is just an added benefit. (Preventing serious injury requires airbags or an SFI 38.1-certified head and neck restraint system.)
I'm really sick and tired of this juvenile "I want to rely on the public for all sorts of services and needs, but I want to do whatever the hell I want and just f' you all if you don't like how that plays out for the rest of society."
Wearing your seatbelt helps you maintain control of your car. And seeing as how I don't see the waiver clause coming down the legislative pike in the near future, in the meantime I'd rather not absorb the costs of you being a total moron.
What is it with the "loveable asshole" niche in the blogsphere anyway? RCR's blog tales of indifference around bad behavior have at times veered into the territory of sociopathic. And then there's the DC Bachelor's misogynistic crap. And DCist has made connections to them both. Maybe it was sort of funny at first, in some nostalgia for Dan Fielding kind of way, but ultimately I think you've got better things to be doing than giving publicity to people celebrating such craptastic behavior and attitudes.
They run those seatbelt checks in my neighborhood (ie: where you got ticketed) in the hopes of catching someone up to something worse. The seatbelt is the probably cause that lets them pull you over. Then if you're drinking or have a gun in the seat, or a bag of coke in the back, they've got you.
Hope you are one day cured of your entitlement disorder. Just follow the rules like everyone else.
I pulled away from my home and drove two blocks before getting pulled over by DC's finest. He comes up to my car and says, "Did you just put your seatbelt on? Because when I passed you a block ago you did not have it on."
I replied, "I am not sure when I put it on...I just pulled away from my house." He fired back at me, "Well then, are you intoxicated if you can't remember putting your seatbelt? You must think I am a real idiot to say that you cannot remember putting your seatbelt on." It was ridiculous-maybe I put my belt on immediately that morning and he was mistaken - maybe I put it on the moments after driving away from my car - I couldn't remember. But this guy would not let it rest. He berated me for 15 minutes only to give me a warning because he didn't have any real proof I guess. DC cops like this guy give cops a bad name.
Stanley - He was likely waiting for you to slip and say "Yes, I just put it on now" or "I only had one beer" so that he could give you the ticket/DUI. Police get a surprising amount of incriminating information willingly turned over to them by some people. It's always hilarious on Cops when they ask "Mind if I look in the trunk?", the guy says "Sure" and then realizes that the cop is probably going to see his trunk full of weed.
DDOT and MPD are doing enforcement for folks who don't yield to pedestrians:
Police to Stake Out Intersections Where Pedestrians Are at Risk
washingtonpost.com
Thursday, June 8, 2006; DZ06
Here is welcome news for pedestrians in the District of Columbia: The D.C. police and Department of Transportation are teaming up to provide more education and law enforcement at intersections where there have been problems with pedestrian-vehicle accidents.
DDOT will announce in advance a location to be targeted, and police will dispatch six-person teams -- including undercover pedestrians and officers in chase vehicles -- to cite motorists who fail to yield to pedestrians. The fine is $50.
Dr. Gridlock has received so many letters over the years from frustrated pedestrians who feel they are taking their lives in their hands in a crosswalk. Motorists turning right and left head straight for them, as do red-light runners.
This is the first police crackdown I can remember involving pedestrians. So many motorists don't seem to know or care about the D.C. law -- D.C. Code 50-2201.28 (b) -- that states: "A pedestrian who has begun crossing on the WALK signal shall be given the right-of-way by the driver of any vehicle to continue to the opposite sidewalk or safety island, whichever is nearest."
Police also will be ticketing pedestrians who violate laws that say:
· A pedestrian may not suddenly leave a curb, safety platform, safety zone, loading platform or other designated place of safety and step into the path of a vehicle that is so close it is impossible for the driver to yield ($10 fine).
· Where sidewalks are available, a pedestrian may not walk on or along an adjacent roadway ($10 fine).
· A pedestrian may not start to cross the street in the direction of a "don't walk" signal ($20).
It's this last one that most galls motorists and leads to shouting matches. Motorists want their turn; pedestrians don't want to be hit.
George Branyan, the DDOT pedestrian program coordinator, will take your phone call and e-mail complaints about certain locations and will dispatch police there, he said. You can call Branyan at 202-671-2561 or e-mail: george.branyan@dc.gov
So, all of you folks who complain about limited time to get across, say, Connecticut Avenue at Van Ness or Tilden street NW, call George.
Police will be looking at problem intersections all over the city, with continuing attention to the top 20 intersections in the District with the most pedestrian-vehicle accidents, as surveyed between 2002 and 2004. They are:
Nine accidents -- Alabama Avenue and Stanton Road SE.
Seven accidents -- Seventh Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, 12th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW.
Six accidents -- 16th and Lamont streets NW, 18th Street and Columbia Road NW, Florida and Georgia avenues NW, Benning Road and Minnesota Avenue NE, Bladensburg Road and New York Avenue NE, Mississippi Avenue and Wheeler Road SE, Chesapeake Street and Southern Avenue SE, North Capitol and K streets NE; North Capitol Street and New York Avenue NW.
Five accidents -- 14th and Spring streets NW, 14th and Taylor streets NW, 15th and I streets NW, 17th and K streets NW, Connecticut Avenue and L Street NW, Georgia Avenue and Irving Street NW, First and K streets NE, Fourth Street and Rhode Island Avenue NE.
what a fucking crybaby. you fucked up; instead of whining about how you're oppressed by your evil government, how about just admitting your mistake and wearing your seatbelt in the future, douche?
This is somewhat on the subject, but another pet peeve of mine is that no one ever seems to do anything about people taking illegal turns during rush hour. Everyday I drive home on Wisconsin and there is ALWAYS a car waiting take a left turn (usually DC plates, I check) while the big "no left turn" sign is lit. The block the entire left hand lane for an entire light cycle because of course during rush hour they won't be able to take the left until the light turns red. Meanwhile there is almost always a police car parked on the next corner. (Which is not one of those security posts like at the VP's house) They never do anything. Boy that is annoying. Several cars are repeat offenders. After a couple of years I recognize some of them. God forbid I ever see their car parked on a quiet street....
Whoa whoa whoa, wait a minute. The fundamental question here is this: What kind of fucking idiot doesn't wear a seatbelt?
Marcus: I think you and I have met in the alley.
DC VoterBoy: good news all around. Pedestrian fines should be higher, though. Especially for out of District folk ;)
Come on, you guys: tons of comments here, and no one yet has pointed out to h3 that being "whap[ped] from behind" is NOT what makes a person go through the windshield. Physics, people!