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21 February 2008

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Is there a law or a policy that says that CHP vehicles that are (primarily?) used to issue traffic tickets have to be marked?

I'm not sure, but I thought i heard some news report about a ticketee in marin getting off because the police used an unmarked car.

We've had unmarked chargers up here in Ontario (Halton regional police) for a little bit. And

I'll vouch for the fact that they are terrifyingly hard to spot.

I got to see a brand new black and white California HP HEMI Charger pull over a 911 Turbo for going 120 mph yesterday. the cool things about the unmarked cars is that they aren't crown vics which SCREAM Cops!

The Truth About Cars did a hands-on review of the police-spec Chargers in September:

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/reviews/dodge-charger-cop-spec-review/

maybe its cause they get better than 12 MPG's???

the bast I saw was a pimped out Escalade had some pocket rocket stopped on the hiway here in MN. must of been a seized car.

THOSE Chargers are not for vechicle enforecement. They are the admin cars (Capt) and UNDERCOVER cars used for auto theft. The CHP however is aquiring additional Chargers which will meet Vehicle code requirements for vehicle code enforcement.

Just because you have pics of the parking lot in Sac, you need to notice that is the side where they park the UNFINISHED cars. Note the crown vics do not have spots, lightbars, or decals yet. ASSuME.

CA State Law states that only fully marked police vehicles can be used for traffic enforcement. An officer in an unmarked car cannot issue a moving violation. I don't have the CVC statue in front of me, but as I recall, to be used in traffic enforcement in CA, a police vehicle must have at least the front doors painted white with identifying agency logos, or if the front doors are not painted white, the fleet of police vehicles from that department must all be similarly marked (Former Visalia blue cars, Tulare, are two that come to mind)

The CHP does not use unmarked cars for enforcement. These unmarked cars go to the management of the CHP. Have you ever seen a CHP patrol car that was not black and white, or white? They always have markings. Even the pickup trucks are marked. Whoever wrote this article jumped the gun! You wont see enforcement Chargers out there that are not marked. They may be slick tops, but are marked for enforcement.

If you're not doing anything wrong,then you should'nt have to worry whether they are marked or not.

I want to share a story about my encounter with the dark force of the CHP. Last Sunday night/Monday morning around 12:30 a.m. I was on motorcycle heading home when out of nowhere I passed by an all blacked out Charger like I was standing still, and I was doing about 75mph. So like any hoodlum worth his nicks and scraps I went in pursuit. I caught and passed the Charger at about a buck 135 and then the lights came on. It was a cop?! As I made my way to the left side of the highway I became pissed not only for getting caught but because I felt that he was breaking the law way before I was. Two cops get out, both wearing different uniforms that I didn't recognize as either CHP or local sherif's dept. The driver proceeded to tell me how fast I was going and I replied with the question, "That's how fast YOU were going?". I told him I didn't know they were using Charges and I thought that when a cop was running at those speeds they had to have their lights on. He told me they didn't. I replied that I thought it wasn't safe to run an all black car at over 120 mph in the dark. He asked me for my license and then told me to slow it down. They got back in the car and proceeded to BLASTED down the freeway. I kept it at a respectable 75.

Was I breaking the law? Damn right I was. But how can the law only go one way and still be the law. So Kiddies, watch out for these stealthy bastards and always question authority. You never know, you might get away with it.

V

BP,

Law enforcement officers are allowed to speed at all times . . . You are not a law enforcement officer; therefore, you are not allowed to speed. When some sicko has your wife and children terrified and they call 911, I would hope that you would understand that the police will speed, I would hope that you would want them to speed to 200mph to save your family. To you, speed is enjoyment; to them, it is a requirment in order to stop or prevent crime from occurring.

WRONG!!! " Law enforcement officers are allowed to speed at all times..." .

This issue has been raised on numerous occasions and all courts have always ruled that Police ARE required to follow the law, just as any other driver.

When a GENUINE emergency actually requires an "Emergency Vehicle" (be it ambulance, fire-engine, etc., as defined in the Motor Vehicle Code) to travel quickly - insofar as safety allows - to respond to a genuine emergency, THEN speeding is "allowed".Cops have never been granted legal license to speed at will, for any reason whatsoever.Even in cases where Police are notorious for violating the law for no reason, you can be sure that no presiding Judge will ever issue a blank check to the Police by ruling otherwise.Some (not all) Police simply break the law because they have found that they generally get away with it; this is NOT sanctioned behavior!

the CHP does use unmarked cars...They're primarily used for truck commercial enforcement since truckers sit high and have the CB radio to help ID the bears..the CHP has all white patrol cars known as polar bears and I've seen all white camaro's with low profile light bars on the roof. They're very difficult to spot until you see the hidden red light on his rear view mirror. I think they should have unmarked cars or at least stealth like to confuse the crazy drivers in california

I was travelling on the Northbound 210 freeway yesterday. I kept seeing an older brown colored Crown Vic with regular plates (not Gov't) pass me and then hang back. The car had a single red light on the dash board in the windshield. The driver was a CHP officer in the blue uniform. He ended up pulling someone over around the area of Hansen Dam. The CV did not have any yellow, blue, red lights in the rear. It just seemed really weird to me because I have never seen that car setup before.

Very nice cars. I am not an expert at cars but I hope one day to buy my dream car and enjoy it for a ride in BC mountains.

THanks for sharing, it has inspired me today :)

Manny

Saw one today in Anaheim. You definitely know it is CHP "ONLY" after it lights up its armada of red and blue flashers...

Yes, it has inspired me as well!
It is oh so sweet!

R. Rincon
California Vacations

I GOT A CHARGER AND LOVE IT BUT WHEN I SEEN THE FULL BLOWN CHP VERSION I DONT THINK MINE STOOD A CHANCE AGAINST IT. WONDER WHAT THEY GOT UNDER THE HOOD, NO ITS NOT STOCK.

In response to the first comment...

NO WAY! in California every single department in the area(from what i can see) have many unmarked cars of a wide range of vehicles from expeditions to crown vics and those new Ford 500's. A department near us even makes traffic stops with an unmarked WHITE toyota Camry Hybrid. They think they're sneaky, but any car with tint and some "weird looking dotty things" in the grille will catch my eye for sure. There is no law that says police must make themselves visible while radaring or doing anything actually. they can set up as a homeless person and have a hole in a sign where the radar goes then radio ahead to people(actually happened in new york and other places, google it).

Police can do what they want because honestly, its you speeding and breaking laws.

On Hwy 50 near Sacramento I saw a motorist getting a ticket by an officer in full uniform that was dring a completely black compact or subcompact. The officer's car had a small strip of lights at the top of the rear windshield. I cannot remember if any lights were on top of the car. I am a transportation attorney and one of my clients reported seeing the same thing. Anyone else viewed something similar?

Those things look sick. Much better than the Crown Vic Atrocities. Make the cops probably happy to go to work.

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