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"I have a friend who is a bartender in Hilo who said he gets pulled over all the time driving home to Puna from work early in the morning (2-3:00). The police pretty much assume that anyone driving right after the bars close is impaired. When we lived in Keaukaha roadblocks were a constant on the weekends. Drunk driving is pretty common here, and the police know it, and they know where they can scoop up a goodly number of impaired drivers without much trouble. They also do group actions like that right around the time safety stickers registrations expire every month."
Carol,
I've lost count of the number of times I've driven from Hilo to HPP in the early hours, quite often after a long drive from the summit. My guess is I've done this a couple of hundred times now, maybe more.
I have never been stopped by the police apart from on one occasion when they had set up a DUI check point in Keaau, and that was much earlier in the night.
I know it's not a particularly scientific argument to share my own experience, but maybe the police really do only stop drivers they suspect of driving impaired during those hours rather than assuming everyone driving during those hours is impaired.
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gypsy69,
"How can one drive strait through such a mess of painted lines drunk or not?."
Most people seem to manage the drive, day or night. Maybe you should consider improving your driving skills if you are not up to it. If you can't, please get someone else to drive for you. If you can't figure out what those lines in the road mean then you are a menace to other more careful and considerate drivers than you.
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End of the month quota most likely.
Could be federal funds,not county or state funding.
Been driving over 50 years on our roads here,never been pulled over.
I am quite happy they are out pulling over drunk or impaired drivers,could also be faulty or defective equipment stops or maybe just random stops.
If you learn when shift changes are,the roads are free of police for 25 mins,3 times a day.
Easy to drive here,lines funky or not.Driving the speed limit,also very easy to do.
Good job on our local law enforcement ,the more drunks and drugged drivers off the roads,the better.
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Not likely to be end of month quotas. Quotas are pretty much a thing of the past in most forms. It could very well be a State or Fed funded project or task force taking place within a specific time period.
Such task force projects or "wolf packs" are probably more effective for their PR and preventative purposes that actual DUI arrests, although some arrests are usually made.
Yes, having such a task force centrally located would make them readily available for other calls especially emergency calls, if the command structure permits that.
If the officers involved are perceptive and not one track mind type people any occasions for citizen contacts at odd hours (actually any hours) presents golden opportunities to detect the ne'er-do-wells in action or traveling to or from their misdeeds. Even the shltbums travel the highways. Probably more burglars, thieves and warrant arrests are made from such contacts (traffic stops, etc.) by observant officers than any other method. Stop a car at a DUI roadblock at 3am and see a generator in the back seat....time to ask some questions. See a prybar on the floorboard...time to ask questions. You get the idea.
While I don't want "police harassment" any more than anyone else, I do want curious cops and if I'm doing something that looks strange at that particular time or place I'll not take offense at their interest.
Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.
Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.
Well written and much appreciated, thanks Oink. In this area with these times ahead (lava) we need more curious police. My friend had his truck stolen a few weeks back, no word yet. Generators are expensive now, gone in a few months, bought back for half at your local pawn shops.
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quote:
Originally posted by oink
Not likely to be end of month quotas. Quotas are pretty much a thing of the past in most forms. It could very well be a State or Fed funded project or task force taking place within a specific time period.
Such task force projects or "wolf packs" are probably more effective for their PR and preventative purposes that actual DUI arrests, although some arrests are usually made.
Yes, having such a task force centrally located would make them readily available for other calls especially emergency calls, if the command structure permits that.
If the officers involved are perceptive and not one track mind type people any occasions for citizen contacts at odd hours (actually any hours) presents golden opportunities to detect the ne'er-do-wells in action or traveling to or from their misdeeds. Even the shltbums travel the highways. Probably more burglars, thieves and warrant arrests are made from such contacts (traffic stops, etc.) by observant officers than any other method. Stop a car at a DUI roadblock at 3am and see a generator in the back seat....time to ask some questions. See a prybar on the floorboard...time to ask questions. You get the idea.
While I don't want "police harassment" any more than anyone else, I do want curious cops and if I'm doing something that looks strange at that particular time or place I'll not take offense at their interest.
Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.
This is exactly what they would do in Florida. Like you said it gave a "excuse" to check out folks for other crimes.
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When and if CofC Rd. is our only land route, I suspect the Park Police/CD/Military might be a bit less sensitive than their embedded County counterparts. I also assume that Federal Laws will be dealt with in Federal Courts, correct me if I'm wrong. If CD handles the area resident problem like they did in the past, with a sticker on the vehicle and a corresponding one on your house, and with check points etc, then I'd be real careful about violating any laws while on their turf. I don't know, I guess I'd like Rodger Christie to weigh in on this one.
Un Mojado Sin Licencia
Federal enforcement has been in play at the Park for a long time. The stretch of Hwy 11 from VNP a good ways into Ka'u is all inside the boundaries. One of my sons was commuting from Hilo to HOVE for a while for a construction project, and he noted the federal police were always in place in stealth mode at points where drivers were prone to exceed that 45 mph stretch that was downhill all the way going Ka'u. He saw people pulled over regularly.
Which is why when we drove through together, he told me to stay strict to the limit, because a federal ticket is no fun.
gypsy
quote:
What can the police see at night when one drives by to warrant the pull covers?
um, as long as cars have lights, not hard to see weaving and other obvious signs of insobriety, plus they don't need to see much to use radar and catch speeders.
I'm surprised you're surprised. Police watching drivers at the time people are leaving bars? I thought that was an age old custom.
Kathy
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quote:
Police watching drivers at the time people are leaving bars? I thought that was an age old custom.
That technique has been generally frowned upon for quite a few years. It was determined that the officer and agency assumes too much liability it they watch a drunk get in their vehicle and drive onto the roadway. You're expected to prevent that occurrence. If your're going to sandbag the bar you need to also take action on the parking lot. Of course all a drunk needs to do is be in the vehicle while in possession of the keys. No actual driving necessary. The cop can always lurk down the street from the bar near closing, out of it's sight, and then make your case when vehicles drive by from that direction.
Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.
Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.
That is interesting information, oink, and the liability issue makes sense.
That's not what I meant though. Ambiguous wording, sorry. I didn't mean watching people as they leave bars. I said "at the time" when people leave bars, meaning that window of night time proximate to when bars close. I was referring to enforcement on the open road such as what gypsy was talking about.
Kathy
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