comment A little run in with the law...

[JRJ04]

Well I need to rant/ask for your opinion...

This past weekend, my family went up to my girlfriend's lakehouse for the 1st time. Mom had never ridden on a wave runner so I happily took her out for a ride so she could get the experience. Well of course...mom wanted pictures, so i went out, and then drove back by the dock going about 10mpg so my gf could snap a few pics of us driving by. I saw in front of me a pinhead doing donuts around a buoy being a fool so I turn around to move away from him. Seems harmless right?

As soon as I turn around, I see a constable boat moving towards me and the lights come on. Guy pulls by me and says "I need you to follow me over here sir." So I idled over there nice and slow...so far so good. As soon as I get there he says (in a very stern voice) "100 feet from any object...WHAT ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO BE DOING???!!!" I calmly responed with an inquisitive tone (cause I really didnt know the answer) getting away? Well he then responds "NO YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE AT IDLE SPEED." Well that right there set the tone for everything and it really pissed me off. He then turns away and walks towards a different side of his boat then comes back and just stares. So I say...all i was trying to do was get some pictures...not trying to cause any trouble. Well appearantly I was giving him "attitude." So he says "GET OVER HERE" and proceeds to lecture me and tells me that attitude wont get you anywhere with him, tells me all about wave runner wrecks, and I am too young to have an attitue (which i am young...only 24), and tells me I need to listen more. After only givng me a warning, I apologize (which just pissed me off even more!!!!) for seemingly coming off as having an attitude...all he says is "HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I SAID 100 FEET." At that point I was so pissed off I drove off and didnt look back.

Heres my problem...If you are passionate about your job (which he was probably too passionate about it)...thats great, more power to you! However, he was just an a-hole. Theres just no reason for it. Although he never gave me a ticket, he was just an abosolue jack ass.

So, should I call to the precinct and tell them what an absolute jerk the guy was or leave it alone? Part of me just really wants to unload it on someone and let them know what kinda jerks they having working for them.

What do you think?

 

[zr1pete]

The Best Response Is NO Response!

 

[Tx_Atty]

It wont accomplish anything but can't hurt. He'll give his side and that will be the end of it.

 

[JRJ04]

Peter, I'm guessing by your user name that you're an attorney...is there any way this could come back to me and get me a ticket?

I'm just extremely pissed off that people have got to be such jerks!

Thanks for the responses guys!

 

[F350DRW1]

Well, apparently you didn't know all the rules, and you didn't get a ticket...so it could be worse. The officer could have seen some real nasty stuff and didn't want to see that stuff happen to you. I would chalk it up to experience, maybe re-read the local boating and small craft laws, and call it a day.

 

[Tx_Atty]

His opportunity to ticket you was then so, no you can't get a ticket now. At least one that would not be easily beaten anyway. But, if you make a stink and he gets griped at at work, he will remember who you are and if there is a next time, you won't get the warning. Realistically, the only thing you will accomplish is getting it out of your system. You are unlikely to have any impact. It won't be worth your effort.

 

[powerboatr]

His opportunity to ticket you was then so, no you can't get a ticket now. At least one that would not be easily beaten anyway. But, if you make a stink and he gets griped at at work, he will remember who you are and if there is a next time, you won't get the warning. Realistically, the only thing you will accomplish is getting it out of your system. You are unlikely to have any impact. It won't be worth your effort.

DITTO

if you want to get your point across
write a very polite letter thanking the officer for being such a good servant to the public and re-assuring to you the rules of the road for pwc's
and you hope his type of service is the norm.
end it politely.

if nothing else he will be brought in front of his captain and glad handed.

you got no ticket, be thankful
your alive be thankful
there are to many horses rears on the waters, these guys get hard over and it may have seemed he was a turkey, you could have easily been the 25th person that was making his day.
i have lots of law incidents since moving back to tejas in 06. GEEEEZE allot
some i was wrong some i wasn't, but i always remind myself as they walk up to the door.... they are sticking it on the line everyday and lots of em get gunned down each year, the 90% of us that are good folks, cant fix the 10% rule, so they assume we could be the 10%...i find calm tones and cool heads are the smart choice. put yourself in his shoes, how many drunks are on the waters around you...how many did he just deal with? was he right ??? who knows.
where you wrong? who knows.
could he have been more polite? maybe, could you?
I had the biggest horses rear end give me a warning, he treated me like a felon, but calm minds prevailed and i walked away unscathed.
always stand up for your rights.... but there is a time and place for everything, the water is not it.
nor is hwy 276 doing 70 mph, in a 55 at 0200 in tawakoni texas, population very little, with the JP office in the back of a liquor store. "deliverance comes to mind"

IMO say thanks and let it be a lesson.
doing the right thing is often not the easiest route to take, but its still the right thing to do.
OH yeah were you in the houston area and didnt get a ticket???? your guardian angle must have been looking out for you

 

[Tail_Gunner]

Speaker as one who himself just recently got off with just a warning, don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Let it go. Maybe he was having a bad day and was on a short fuse.

In a nut shell, you don't feel like you were doing anything wrong and you didn't get a ticket. Move on.

 

[JRJ04]

Well I called up to the constables office on the way home from work today and spoke with a very nice receptionist there. Told her what all had happened and that I was in no way arguing that I was in violation of the law and simply said that I think feedback is very important. She agreed, took down my name and number and said she would cascade it to the supervisor/capitan. Whether or not that happens...I dont know, but what I do know is that I did what I could to give feedback on how they are doing.

I gotta thank you guys again...its always refreshing to have someone elses (preferably older) point of view on things like this. I just get so ticked off when people dont treat me right becuase I try my hardest to be nice to everyone. But thats the world for ya!

Hey PB...I was on lake conroe...and yes id have to agree that not getting a ticket in Houston is nice...guess i'll take what i can get.

Thanks!

 

[BIG JOE]

Leave it alone, let it die. He is not the First, nor the Last person(s) you will encounter in life.. that will leave you with a negative (or postive) impression.

Reflect on it for a few days, take a deep breath, do a little dance (cuz you didn't getr a ticket).. and let it go.

Joe