MR> What i mean is, i've seen officers at a red light, turn on their
 MR> lights go through the light, then turn off their lights and procded at
 MR> the speed limit with no other reason of running the light other then
 MR> they didnt want to wait.
That would not be true. There are many types of calls that lights and siren
are not used all the way to the call, and a full emergency response is
actually not reasonable, but there is reason to get there as quickly as
possible in less than full emergency mode. An example would be a domestic
call escalating to possible violence. If you ever have a doubt about why the
officer used his lights to go through a red, get the car number, call it in,
and ask. If there was no reason, the officer would be disciplined. There are
numerous calls that this tactic would be quite proper. There are also many
types of calls where sirens are not used within a certain distance from the
call to keep from warning the bad guy that we are coming. An example would be
a burglary in progress, a bank robbery, and many other types of calls where
advertising your arrival would be really stupid. 999 chances out of a 1000,
the officer was on a valid call and using a proper tactic. This is another
good example of an excellent comment or question, one where there should be
more communications between the police and the citizens to explain valid
procedures. Police vehicles in nearly all jurisdictions have huge numbers on
them that identify the car. That number is there for a reason, to make the
officer accountable for what he does with the car. If in doubt, call it in.
If there is no valid reason for the driving tactic, file a complaint. A
valid driving complaint against an officer is usually much worse than a
traffic ticket to a citizen.
Tom Rightmer - A Victims' Rights Advocate
... Sick Pay: Ill-gotten gains.
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