What constitutes just a warning?

[Phantom135]

In what circumstances are warnings given over a ticket ? For example, someone has a tag light or any other light out, missing tag, etc. If I've posted this before, sorry. Just trying to remember all that I've posted before on here and another police site eludes me. :o

[jeffIL]

Depends on the officer. We can give warning for pretty much anything or we can issue a citation for pretty much anything. up to the officer to decide the proper course of action.

[SgtScott31]

It varies from dept to dept. My agency and several others in the area don't have "written warnings." A warning is given verbally. If you get paper, it's a ticket, no mistake.

Minor non-moving violations that you mentioned do not automatically constitute a warning. Especially the a**hats that drive with around with their high-beams on, and moreso the clowns that drive with their high beams on because they have a headlight out. They get two tickets. One for the high-beams, and another for a headlight out. ;)

[pkagel]

Had a VA Trooper come on my ship one day and tell us that if we see him and we were speeding that was our warning.

[Bodie]

Driving record and attitude nothing more nothing less

[AnGardaSiochana]

whats been said, on our computer system we have a section marked 'offender status'. Its where you put whats happening, ir charged and proceeding commenced, proceeding finished, summons or we put in 'caution' which is great because it means you can let something slide and give the guy a break but if he is an ******* and thinks 'ah sure they all say that' and gets caught again, well baby, now your toast.

[deputy x 2]

Attitude is everything :D

Just because you are stopped, doesn't mean you automatically get a cite. However once the ticket is written, there is nothing that can be done.

[Hinged]

It all depends on the officer and the State/commonwealth/city/town rules and regulations. In the department I work for its "Officer Descision". If you get pulled for a Civil Motor Vehicle Infraction it's all on the officer and what he/she would like to do. Driving record,attitde, etc can make a difference as well. Once the citation is issued then you may appeal it if you feel you did nothing wrong and the clerk magestrate will have a hearing with you and a representative of the department. In our city we go when they appeal because it is considered "overtime". =]

Have a Good Day.

[HardBall]

Sir-

There are a number of factors that play into an officer's discretion as to whether a summons or warning is given

1- The #1 factor is probably severity of the offense
2- driver's attitude
3- will negative aspects of the enforcement outweigh the positive
4- what else is going on at the time
5- offender explanation

In many cases, especially with equipment violations, the officer will avoid writing a summons in hope you will spend the $$ on fixing the equipment rather than paying a fine.

[klarkkent44]

violation plus history divided by attitude equals outcome

[HardBall]

Sir-

It can be argued that driver history should play no part in the decision making process...
Here's an example..
You stop a 23 year old (40 mph in a 25 zone) with 10 points on his license. Sounds like a candidate for a summons.
But he is a 23 year old with a job and a wife and a kid who got a whole bunch of points as a stupid 17, 18, 19 & 20 year old. If you use his history as a critirea(?), he will alomost definately get the ticket. If you use his current standing in society you may be a little more lenient. By using his driving history as a factor, he may never get out from under the deeds he did as a stupid teenager.

[hounddog]

It varies from dept to dept. My agency and several others in the area don't have "written warnings." A warning is given verbally. If you get paper, it's a ticket, no mistake.

Minor non-moving violations that you mentioned do not automatically constitute a warning. Especially the a**hats that drive with around with their high-beams on, and moreso the clowns that drive with their high beams on because they have a headlight out. They get two tickets. One for the high-beams, and another for a headlight out. ;)

Man, is that the perfect answer. I do exactly the same thing to those too stupid to live fail to dimmers.

[klarkkent44]

Hardball

Thanks for your opinion. You are assuming I would give somebody with a bad record a ticket. Maybe I would lean towards a warning to give them a break. Maybe I would give the person with a clean record the ticket because they could "afford it". (for lack of a better term)

That being said. History does play a part in my decision.

[e-man]

Reminds me of a joke about stop signs, wanna hear it? Great , here it is...
Cop pulls over an {Ill paraphrase above} ***** hat for going through a stop sign. Cop asks he didnt stop for the stop sign, *****hat says, BUt officer I slowed down and didnt see anyone coming. COp says OK Reaches in his car and pulls the guy out and starts to beat *****hat about the head. Cop says "DO ya want me to STOP beating you, or just SLOW down" :eek:

[t150vsuptpr]

In what circumstances are warnings given over a ticket ? For example, someone has a tag light or any other light out, missing tag, etc. If I've posted this before, sorry. Just trying to remember all that I've posted before on here and another police site eludes me. :o

Warnings are given by me when I make a stop and don't write a ticket usually. Some days I give warnings on small stuff, some times I issue tickets. There are some things that call for arrest, and then I arrest.

If you get into a situation in which state law specifically says you will bring one before a magistrate, or take into custody, or simply issue a summons, then that is what you do.

Know your code. :)

[DaveinUtah]

Attitude is everything :D

Just because you are stopped, doesn't mean you automatically get a cite. However once the ticket is written, there is nothing that can be done.

I agree. I have given out citations to people I was going to give a warning to, and vise versa, based on attitude.

I had an instructor in the academy tell us that you should always make up your mind before you approach the vehicle whether you are given out a warning or not. That is BS. No way do I give a warning if the person I pulled over is being a total jerk.

[sureshot015]

Attitude, Record, and having your info in order. I'm so much happier when people have everything current and the know where it is. There is nothing that ****es me off more then when you blue light someone, and the stop in the middle of the road then provide you with 2DL's, 3 Expired Registrations, and 4 out of date Insurance cards.

[DaveinUtah]

Attitude, Record, and having your info in order. I'm so much happier when people have everything current and the know where it is. There is nothing that ****es me off more then when you blue light someone, and the stop in the middle of the road then provide you with 2DL's, 3 Expired Registrations, and 4 out of date Insurance cards.

You are not kidding! I love it when I walk up to the car and they have their license, CURRENT insurance card and CURRENT registration all ready to go. MAJOR POINTS towards my decision to cite or warn.

[Centurion44]

In what circumstances are warnings given over a ticket ?

It's totally officer discretion. Me, personally, I look at a person's attitude. Don't BS me, don't give me poop for doing my job, and don't act like you didn't do anything wrong, and chances are (unless it's a gross violation) you won't get a ticket.

[operator81]

Showing skin works everytime...j/k. When I stop a car I know before contacting the driver if I will give a warning or a summons with a few exceptions. The exceptions are as follows:
No seat belt is a deal breaker, I write for everything I can.
Suspended/revoked/no dl/dui/warrant/drugs, also a deal breaker.
If I give roadsides, I give ticket(this is recent in that I had to do a full report(yesterday) on a gal I gave roadsides to and did not issue a summons whose boy toy filed a complaint).

I have to date not given an attitude ticket. I have told several people that if I wrote tickets based on attitude, they would be getting a ticket.

I do not discrimiate against age, oldest wrote, 82, youngest given a warning, 16, had his license for a day.

If I am fishing for a dui or warrant, I usually don't cite for the violation until I have found what I am looking for.

[trooperden]

I had a very simple way of operation: When my lights come on, my pen came out. I didn't stop people to write warnings, I seldomed stopped anyone for driving less than 20 over the limit, and I never stopped someone for a speed warning

[Mike11]

[QUOTE=operator81]Showing skin works everytime...j/k.

FINALLY, if that wasn't mentioned I would question everyones honesty, of course the attitude that goes along with it matters as well.

[mrwax]

You are not kidding! I love it when I walk up to the car and they have their license, CURRENT insurance card and CURRENT registration all ready to go. MAJOR POINTS towards my decision to cite or warn.

i haven't been pulled over yet. but the way i figure it, i wouldn't be moving around in my car too much looking for my insurance and registration and such untill the LEO were to get to my window.. i thoght it might make the officer uneasy to see me swayin aruond, reaching for stuff in my car. but no?

[Soon2Be]

In regards to having your info in order, which is better?

Pulling someone over, and as you approach the vehicle, you see them reach into their pocket, and into the glovebox supposedly to get their info (but you're not 100% sure...)

OR

Pulling someone over, and as you approach the vehicle, you see that their window is down, and both hands are on the steering wheel. You then ask for info.

Not that I plan on getting pulled over! I was always just curious about this. Last time I was pulled over, I ensured the window was down all the way, removed my sunglasses, and turned the stereo off, then kept both hands on the steering wheel while I waited for the officer to approach.

[Mike11]

In regards to having your info in order, which is better?

Pulling someone over, and as you approach the vehicle, you see them reach into their pocket, and into the glovebox supposedly to get their info (but you're not 100% sure...)

OR

Pulling someone over, and as you approach the vehicle, you see that their window is down, and both hands are on the steering wheel. You then ask for info.

Not that I plan on getting pulled over! I was always just curious about this. Last time I was pulled over, I ensured the window was down all the way, removed my sunglasses, and turned the stereo off, then kept both hands on the steering wheel while I waited for the officer to approach.

The second option........but you see the first situation more than anything else. Usually from the folks that seldom if ever have been stopped before.

[MTMCSCop]

Answer: My mood.

It's really that simple. :)

[VA Dutch]

I was not big on writing tickets - especially for minor equipment violations. It sure was good PC for a stop, and you could discover other things based upon that. I asked myself how I would want to be treated by an officer and if I would want a $50 slap for a burned-out bulb that could just have happened earlier that day. Same goes for a faulty exhaust or a minor crack in the windshield; lots of discretion applies.

Now, an expired county tax decal, a lapsed state inspection or registration was a sure-fire way to get a summons. No points on DMV record, fairly low fine and no worry about much of a "gray" area. The sticker is either valid or not valid. If it was someone else's car, that was one thing......but I think I only saw that one time and let him off with a warning. Few folks came to court for being written for stuff like stickers & plates; most prepaid the fines.

Other "common" things for which you can write 'em up involved outrageously loud exhaust systems, clutters of crap hanging from the rear-view mirror and missing front license plates required in VA. Then there are the clowns with blue fog lights, although I never saw any when I happened to be working.
:confused:

Certain judges also like equipment tickets more than others, and some will admonish an officer for packing the dockets with "chicken sh*t" tickets rather than worrying about more important stuff - like serious moving violations.

But again, the attitude goes a long way. It is possible for some people to talk themselves out of a mere warning and into a summons.

[LeeRoy]

I work as a traffic officer so I give very few warnings. If I take the time to start up my bike and chase you down I'm writing a ticket. When folks ask for warnings I tell them my job is to write citations for moving violations for my entire 10 hour shift. That typically shuts down the begging but not always. I wish there was a violation I could write for the folks that beg and plead for a warning without stopping all the while I'm writing the cite.

I do make an exception for a certain class of people. Ugly girls. Let's face it they don't get enough breaks in life. If I haven't stopped her before the typically get a break provided the violation I stopped her for wasn't particularly heinous.

What constitutes just a warning?

I heard this a good reply when someone asks for a warning. I wish I could get away with this: "I'm warning you not to do that again or I'll give you another citation."