[Old-old-Ivy]

One week ago, the engine in my Saturn died, so while waiting to get that taken care of, I am borrowing my dads pick up truck. Two days ago, in a parking lot, a small Pontiac Sunfire backed into the truck when I was not there, and smashed the tail light because his trunk lid was open. They guy had a kid, and was all shaken, and I told him that we could just settle with cash since it was just the light. So he gave me $50, and the lights cost $40 according to car-parts.com if I buy it at a local savage yard.

So last night, I am driving with a broken tail light, because salvage yards are not open on the weekend.

A few bands that my friends are in were playing a show in a town 20 minutes away last night, I was at that show for most of the evening and had ONE beer. Around 2AM I was driving into my town, right off the ramp to go into town is a side street that takes me right to my house. While driving down the main street, and just before I turned onto this side street, I passed a police officer driving the other direction. Let me point out the distance here, from the start of the side street, to the end of the side street when I would turn again, I DID NOT see an officer following me, this street is roughly 1/3rd of a mile long. As I am driving down the other street, about another 1/4 mile from that intersection, I see some headlights approaching me at an insane speed. They were BOUNCING up and down, this cop was going so fast.

So I pulled in, right outside of my house, and get out of the truck to go inside, and the officer shines the spotlight on me, and informs me to get back in the truck. I asked him why, and he told me just to get back in. A few minutes later, he walks up to my window, and asked to see my license and registration, I provide it. I ask him again, why am I being pulled over. He tells me, I have a broken tail light. I told him what happened with the Pontiac in the parking lot yesterday, and he insists is should still be fixed regardless. I reminded him that salvage yards are not open on the weekend. Then he proceeds to ask me where I am coming from, I told him where... then he asked if I was drinking, the real reason for being pulled over. I told him I had A beer that evening, which is true, I had a nice pint of Blue Moon a few hours earlier, and nothing since. He then said "How many?" and I said "A beer, as in one, as in not a few". He then told me he was tired of listening to me, and that I was giving him an attitude. So he told me to wait in the truck, and he would be back. He also told me to turn my cell phone off, because I was texting while this was all going down.

So when he goes back to his car, ANOTHER police officer rolls up. A few minutes later, they both come over to the truck and ask me to step out. I get out and he is going to test me, so I blow into the thing, and then he tells me to stop. He just stands there looking at it. I said "What is it?" and he told me ZERO, not .01, or .02... ZERO. Just as I told him. At this point he is majorly pissed, and tells me to get back in the truck, because I am still getting a citation. A few more minutes pass, and he gives me the ticket. Finally I am allowed to get out of my car, and walk inside. Before I do though, I stopped the officer and asked him a few questions...

"Why would you need to go nearly 100MPH to catch a person with a broken tail light?" It's not like I was driving in some strange manner, or speeding or something, it was simply the tail light.

"Why did you need to pull in surrounding me?" "What was the need for the second officer in the first place, why pull two officers away from real duty?" "Don't you think you are letting actual drunk drivers go by wasting time with my tail light?" "Did you really care about my tail light, or were you hoping to snag a DUI tonight?"

He had very little to say about it, he told me that people were giving him attitude all night, so he was just going to start ticketing everyone! He had nothing to say to defend his speed when coming up behind me, or about how real drunk drivers may have received a free pass tonight because of their wasted time.

The thing is, I am pretty sure I do not have to kiss his ass, I can be all kinds of snappy with the guy as long as I am not resisting, or threatening. He came to be as a dick right from the start. Why did I have to get back into my car, like a drug dealer, with two cops with spotlights on me, surrounding me... when all I had was a broken tail light?

This is far from over, I am going to the city hall on Monday and speaking with the chief, and perhaps even speak to a lawyer. He did not cite me for any driving issues, so he had no reason to think I was drinking. He made me look like some street thug in the middle of the night around my neighbors who came out to see what was going down, because of the sirens and the lights.

As of today, I really, really think I hate police.