MikeyTX

So I get stopped again for no front plate. This time in Hillsboro, TX Not speeding, just plodding along in the right lane. One of the rare times I choose to take I-35 out of Waco instead of the old two lane. This is going to be fun. There are 7 courts I can appeal this through before I run out of options. It will be interesting to see if the trooper shows up for each and every one of them once this moves past the county level and gets transferred to a court down state.

zdeckich

Why not just put on your plate and not worry about the ticket? Or if you don't want the plate on just pay the ticket.

ben dover

Tx front plate law is ridiculous. Let us know how you make out.

RC4G

I agree, if you have the time and resources to fight the ticket then by all means do.

Front license plate tickets are nothing more than revenue generation mechanisms for state and local municipalities.

Curious, what law enforcement org stopped you? Local police or sheriff? DPS?

Good luck with your efforts.

MikeyTX

Note to self. Must be logged in to post lol

MikeyTX

dps

MikeyTX

Not going to happen

zdeckich

Then why are you crying about it? If you don't have a front plate just pay the ticket and be done. You don't have to start another thread on the same topic complaining about it. Its the price you pay for breaking the law. I dont have a front plate and if i ever get a ticket ill pay it, I wont start a thread complaining about how i got a ticket for breaking the law, no matter how stupid the law is.

wjnjr

This was a ticket, not a warning, right? How much $$?

MikeyTX

Excuse you .......... I was not crying about it. No where in my original post did I bitch or whine. In fact, I made the statement that this ought to be fun.

MikeyTX

Don't know yet. It will take at least 48 hours to show up in the Hillsboro municipal court system. Soon I hope as I want to know how much front money I will need for the appeal bond. My attorney told me that as soon as the court discovers that I intend to appeal, they will offer to lower the fine in an effort to keep it at the local level. Once it goes above the local court, they never see a dime of fine money. And, as this is a non points citation, there is no incentive for the officer to continue to appear past the initial hearing.

OmenSpeedWorks

I love a guy who exercises his right to a fair trial. It's not about your guilt, its about them proving it in a court of law and following procedure. It's on the state to meet their burden, not on the public to roll over and pay. Fight like hell! I'm with ya.

MikeyTX

That is my plan. Once a month, The DPS will saturate that area for 2 days with overlapping shifts. It is all about revenue for the municipal court. They work on the law of averages. I got stopped because I drive a Corvette. Daily, I see many vehicles without a front plate that never get stopped going through that area. The city of Hillsboro, TX has a population of 8,400 people ! Yet, their ETJ on the interstate, extends several miles north and south. This allows them to cover both legs of I-35 north of the Ft. Worth/Dallas split and south to the new state travel centers.

MarkRx

glad to see this place hasn't changed

MikeyTX

Nope, never will.

Tom/99

It's not worth the concern every time I take the car out.

NealB

Good luck and let us know how it works out.

Apparently DPS has nothing else to do. I was stopped several times by DPS on Hwy 377 outside Granbury.

Once, a trooper did crazy unsafe stuff to make a Uturn to apprehend me. I was 3rd in a string of 6 cars doing 15mph under behind a bozo. The trooper almost caused the guy behind him to T-bone him when he pulled his stunt.

That was when all they could give were warnings.

MikeyTX

Looks good on their proficiency report. One of my m/c riding friends is retired DPS. No front plate is one of the items on their list of required must have stops. As mentioned early on, it is a money generator for either the municipality or JP's court. Because it does not put points on one's dl or affect insurance rates, deferred adjudication or the safe drivers course are out the window.

OmenSpeedWorks

We've seen a VERY obvious rise in revenue generation/taxation on the public over the past 20 or so years, with the police. I say this from the perspective, not of a random citizen, but as a former employee of a small police dept in Pa. I could go on for days here...

In western Pa, the area is very blue collar, lots of small biz, etc. One of the most common biz is landscaping, small construction, etc. Lots of blue collar guys trying to make their own money on the side. Small trailers are abundant in the area, and every family has a 4wd truck, some maybe multiple.

The state police would promote DOT training/certification and would "loan" 2 DOT officers to a department for a couple weeks and would directly pitch to the chief, "let us show you how much DOT certified officers can generate". They'd loan two rabbid dogs to our dept and they'd go to town on the locals. These small biz guys wouldn't leave a traffic stop with less than 1k in fines. I'm talking the smallest of details, taken to the bank.

THEN, the officer that writes it all tells the defendant to request a hearing, where the officer is paid 4hrs of court time for each case. Figure if a guy works 2nd shift, and court is in the am...if he has 4 cases, he's getting 16hrs of OVERTIME in the span of maybe an hour. The entire system was built for personal gain.

I was a paramedic for several years. We used to have to write our reports very specifically in wording so we could bill insurance companies and hope to be profitable. We had to be VERY specific...could say just "IV" in the report, had to state "IV start procedure". Insurance wouldn't pay for the equipment, because they said the hospital replenished us, so we needed to bill for the procedure, etc. Point is, EVERY person we took on a ride, typically had insurance (non emergent) and we struggled to make our bills/maintain our vehicles.

Then you have the police...buying surplus tanks, Dodge Chargers with LED bars, computers on board, etc. When you have major auto manufacturers building entire police cars, factory direct...not just your old Crown vic with some better brake pads and a spotlight, you KNOW that the market is ripe to capitalize.

I know a police chief who upon taking his seat, couldn't wait to buy new toys, change the color of the cars, buy new guns...it's like a free for all on the backs of the locals. Keep in mind, this isn't a financially rich area, these are low income blacks/whites, and people all typically making under 50 a year combined. You hit someone with a myriad of tickets, you could foul their budget, drop their credit score, even put them in foreclosure over some bs like that.

I know a cop who pre-writes his citations (location and all) because he has the system DOWN. He has made more than the chief for 8+ years running...the dept will buy him whatever he wants...motorcycles, SUV, Corvette, you name it. He's a money generator.

The police LACK OVERSIGHT...period. And I say this from a formerly internal perspective. I worked with guys who were a danger to others, each other, and should NEVER have been employed.

/rant

Floridasky

Last Sunday was out for a day cruise on TX 114 west of the Speedway in a 55 zone doing probably 60 and all of sudden saw a 45 sign and trooper setting behind it. As soon as I passed the lights came on and he pulled out. Surprise he snagged a red C6 going slower than me but had no front plate. I believe having a front plate saved me a ticket.

If you can't follow the law pay the fine and move on!