Honesty is rare.

Honesty really does go a long way.  Case in point...

I am driving northbound on our main drag at about 1000 hours.  I am in the number two lane.  In my driver's side mirror, I see a vehicle with a burned out headlight in the number one lane, about 100 feet behind me.  I slow down to about 25 miles per hour.  The speed limit is 45.  I will do this from time to time to see what the person in the car looks like.  If they look like a gang banger or are from a drug area, I will pull them over.  They may have drugs/guns on them.

This person slows down to match my speed.  The car is still 100 feet behind me.  This goes on for about 20 seconds.  The vehicle then turns left in to a parking lot.  So, I pass a major intersection and make a u-turn.

I am now headed southbound.  I see the same car headed northbound again.  Shenanigans!  This person is trying very hard to lose me.  That ain't happening.  I know this city way to well.  So I make a quick left turn eastbound, turn an immediate right into an alley and another right back on to the main drag headed northbound.  I am now behind the one-eyed evader.

At this point, I am a little amped up.  Is this finally going to be my first pursuit?  Is this person smuggling anti-aircraft missles?  What the hell are they hiding?

So I light 'em up and they pull over to the right, almost immediately.  Game is up, I win.  I unholster my weapon and walk up to the car with my weapon behind my back.  I am ready for the worst.  As I clear the backseat occupants, I see a 1 year old baby girl and a teenage boy.  Hmmm.  In the front driver seat is a young mother and a teenage girl.  What the?  Not exactly the hardened criminals I was hoping to find.  I re-holstered my weapon.

I ask the driver, "Excuse me, ma'am.  Could you step out of your car and come talk to me?"  I really did not want to dress her down in front of her kids.  So I escort her to the front of my vehicle.  I hand my partner her identification and I say, "So, lets list this out.  You have expired registration, your headlight is out and your license is suspended.  Think carefully before you answer.  Now, why you think I pulled you over?"

"Because I was trying to ditch you.", she says.  I couldn't help but laugh, "Ma'am, that is absolutely correct.  Your complete honest, short, concise answer is the reason you will be leaving here tonight without a ticket."

I explained to her that if she had just drove past me, I would have seen her and her family in the car and that I would not have pulled her over.  But since she tried to ditch me, I assumed the worst.

I ended up giving her a notice of her license suspension and told her to call a licensed driver to come pick her and her kids up.  I told her not to drive again until she got her license renewed and her car problems fixed.


Yup...MIND=BLOWN.