At What Point Does it Become Legal to Break the Law?

pixiedustboo

pixiedustboo

Redfidelboo
Oregon Attorney Slaps Cop With Illegal Parking Complaint

Sat Apr 19, 5:59 PM ET

PORTLAND, Ore


An attorney who watched a police officer park illegally in front of a restaurant, then wait around while his meal was prepared, issued the officer a series of citizen-initiated violations.

Eric Bryant said he was sitting at the restaurant March 7 when Officer Chad Stensgaard parked his patrol car next to a no-parking sign and walked inside to wait for his food, the Portland Mercury reported Thursday.

Bryant told the weekly paper that when he asked Stensgaard about his car, the officer asked Bryant, "If someone broke into your house, would you rather have the police be able to park in front of your house or have to park three blocks away and walk there?"

Bryant filed a complaint as a private citizen alleging several violations, including illegal parking and illegal operation of an emergency vehicle.
Stensgaard was issued a summons to appear in traffic court in May. The fines could total $540.

"Citizens should be concerned that he used his status as an officer of the law as justification for breaking the law," Bryant said.

Cathe Kent, a spokeswoman for the Portland Police Bureau, said Stensgaard would fight the complaint in court, "as he rightfully should."

Parking is limited on city streets, especially with many construction projects downtown, she said, and officers remain on duty even when they are picking up food.

"We are emergency responders and need to be ready to take an emergency call," Kent said Saturday.
 
I can see that going both ways. He needs to park closer so he isn't having to run four blocks to his car, if needed. But they should state what is ok to do when that situation arises. Our police are always speeding around here, when not needed. Some of them do abuse the law, but most don't. So, the question comes... why it is ok for them but not us?
 
Citizen's Arrest! Citizen's Arrest!
wallys_McCoy%20barn.JPG
 
Peddler said:
. Our police are always speeding around here, when not needed. Some of them do abuse the law, but most don't. So, the question comes... why it is ok for them but not us?
Click to expand...

And just how in your infinte wisdom do you know exactly what those units are doing or responding to? Ya got a calibrated crystal ball? Not all responses dicate a response using emergency equipment. But they may dicate a speedy response without the use of emergency equipment for various reasons.

Most municipalties do not require marked in service police, fire, EMS units to observe no parking no standing markers. Because they are in-service and the Officers, Fire Fighters, Paramedics may need to respond to emergencies therefore they should be in proximety to their vehicles.

This is just a lawyer playing look at me. I'm a lawyer.
 
03USMC said:
And just how in your infinte wisdom do you know exactly what those units are doing or responding to? Ya got a calibrated crystal ball? Not all responses dicate a response using emergency equipment. But they may dicate a speedy response without the use of emergency equipment for various reasons.
Click to expand...

Are they using their flashing lights? If they're not, then they shoudn't be allowed to speed. I've seen Police cars cruising at easily 20 over the limit, no lights. (I know it's about 20 over the limit because every car was doing the limit.)
 
I don't mind when the cops around here speed, because if I see them speeding I know I can match 'em without getting pulled over.
 
Peddler said:
I can see that going both ways. He needs to park closer so he isn't having to run four blocks to his car, if needed.

Our police are always speeding around here, when not needed. Some of them do abuse the law, but most don't. So, the question comes... why it is ok for them but not us?
Click to expand...

+1, this is why I posted it. I too am in the middle of the road.

I get very annoyed when I see police cars just around my town and they never use their blinkers, plus they are almost always going over the speed limit - never with their emergency lights on. Is it really something that is such a big problem that the lawyer had to pull this? Maybe there weren't any parking spots near...if there were though, is the lawyer in the right?

However, they are supposed to be up-holding the law, not using their status for perks.
 
The Other Guy said:
Are they using their flashing lights? If they're not, then they shoudn't be allowed to speed. I've seen Police cars cruising at easily 20 over the limit, no lights. (I know it's about 20 over the limit because every car was doing the limit.)
Click to expand...

By policy I can exceed the speed limit by 20 MPH while enroute to a call. Without using my emergency equipment if by doing so I can safely manuver in traffic. However if I do not have my emergency equipment activiated I must obey traffic signals (traffic lights, stop signs etc.).

There are various reasons we might not run lights and sirens. We might not want the bad guys to know we are coming. Alot of motorists don't pay attention to the pretty lights and woo wooo's behind them anyway. Or if they do they slow down to well past the posted speed limit and don't yield the right of way any how. Thus slowing my response time. Alot of the time I don't use my lights and sirens unless I'm pulling a vehicle, approaching an intersection, traffic is heavy or it's a high priority call. Because I can get there faster without every other bonehead behind the wheel freaking out when they see me behind them and slowing down to 25 MPH and impeding the flow of traffic...and my response time.

Unless you have access to a scanner and know the unit number. You have no idea what those cars are or aren't doing.
 
That's true 03USMC... One time a cop was speeding up behind me with the lights and siren on. I knew I wasn't in the wrong, so I pulled to the side and kept going slow. So the cop passes me and the guy in front of me stays right in the middle of the lane going exactly the speed limit. Big difference, huh?
 
Like I said... we might as well spend 12 years learning all our laws. Or at one point or another we'll all end up breaking the law.
 
In my opinion, those who are assigned to uphold the law should be held more responsible for being seen to obey it.

That may be fine in theory but it could be highly impractical in achieving maximum efficiency, so,.... we have to make allowances within reason, the same as in many jurisdictions where the Police on the beat have the authority to make judgements on whether an offender is arrested or merely given a warning.

This is where it all becomes very sticky,.... who is good enough to draw that line. Don't ask me!

I guarantee that those who criticise the Police, if put in uniform for a short time, would soon learn that it is not quite as simple as it seems.

It is vital that we obey the law, however it must be administered in a practical way.
 
Last edited:
My father has been practicing law in NY for almost 40 years. When he started his practice being a lawyer was a extremely prestigious career. Then the ABA started to lower the standards of who was admitted to the bar allowing the corrupt, megalomaniacs, or egomaniacs into the bar who resort to wasting the state's time and money with such pointless lawsuits such as this.

Its exactly these cheap tactics that have sullied the legal profession.
 
agreed, i mean something of this manner i can see as being acceptible, but other crap is just bs, like them turning on sirens to go through red lights
 
senojekips said:
In my opinion, those who are assigned to uphold the law should be held more responsible for being seen to obey it.

That may be fine in theory but it could be highly impractical in achieving maximum efficiency, so,.... we have to make allowances within reason, the same as in many jurisdictions where the Police on the beat have the authority to make judgements on whether an offender is arrested or merely given a warning.

This is where it all becomes very sticky,.... who is good enough to draw that line. Don't ask me!

I guarantee that those who criticise the Police, if put in uniform for a short time, would soon learn that it is not quite as simple as it seems.

It is vital that we obey the law, however it must be administered in a practical way.
Click to expand...

I'll say this. I think the officer who did it, made a bad judgement call. He should have found a different resturant or used a drive thru. Me I bring my lunch from home mainly because if I didn't I'd probably pack on about 300 pounds. But most Cop's know (or should know) that we are under the microscope on duty.

At my department we've had the following "lunch" related incidents in the last 6 months.

1. Citizen complains that he observed a Deputy at lunch in a resturant for 35 minutes (we get a 30 minute meal break) he knows cause he timed him. Further he is a tax payer and he feels that deputy has breached the public trust and defrauded the tax payers and should be disciplined.

2. Citizen complains that they observed two county units at a resturant at the same time, AND WHO IS PROTECTING THE COUNTY if they are at lunch together. The officers in question were in an in service training class that had broken for lunch not on-duty and subject to call.

3. Deputy on evening shift is observed at dinner with his wife and child. It's the childs birthday and daddy is working so they met him for dinner.
The citizen felt it was unseemly that he should be having dinner with his family in public and on duty. Never mind that a evening shift officer in my Dept generally only sees his family on his days off. The citizen was upset.

So I bring my lunch. Park my vehicle in a State Park eat my lunch catch up with the paperwork and BS with the Ranger. Because I know that out there somewhere is some no life SOB who would begrudge me my meal break or somehow take offense to the amount of time I took (never mind how many meals I've left half eaten and responded to a call),where I ate or what I ordered.
 
Yeah, you have my sympathy. I have a mate who was a Firefighter in our Metropolitan Fire service, they had the same problems 30 years ago being reported for taking the firetruck to pick up a snack whilst they were on duty. What wasn't stated was that the truck was due to be taken for it's run which is required when not used for the 12 hour shift. All of the crew must go with the truck incase of a turnout whilst this is being done, and it was in a dedicated mealtime so what they did was just the safest and most efficient use of time and money.
 
Well this is a first but I really can't choose a side in this discussion, I can understand why he did it and people that have so little in their lives that they felt a need to report this guy really piss me off but on the other hand I have no doubt that if it was me or anyone else here that had done this we would have been given the fine and told off for breaking the law.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top