Who Says Policemen Are Honorable?

It all started last Wednesday. I got pulled over on my way home from tutoring Daniel. I may or may not have been speeding (I won't admit to anything incriminating unless I'm sure I was partaking), but not horribly so, because I was WAY too close to the State Police post to do anything wrong.

So when I saw the trooper's car slow down, and then turn around, I experienced a moment of panic, and, I'll admit, some indignation as well. The speed limit is 25 and I was going maybe 30, 32 at most, and I was within sight of the 35 mph speed limit sign. I kept driving, very carefully, rather than pulling over right away, because I wasn't positive he was intending to pull me over. Then his lights went on. I pulled over. He got out and approached.

I got the usual: "Hello, ma'am. Do you know why I pulled you over?"

"Um, no?" I said, fairly calmly, I think, especially considering the fact that I was in a minor panic. I'm a "good kid." Always have been. So when I am accused of doing something wrong, I get scared. Even more so if I'm not aware of exactly what I did. My voice may have squeaked a little.

"You're not wearing your seatbelt."

Okay, so it wasn't speeding. But I looked down to find that I was distinctly wearing my seatbelt, albeit not properly. See, the damn thing doesn't fit. I'm bigger 'n the average bear, and the part the shoulder strap clicks into is broken on my car, so while the seatbelt works, that part spends most of its time slid down and buried in the seat, which ensures that the seatbelt has to stretch even farther. Besides which, I'm short, so the shoulder part hits me right across the neck and chokes me even with seatbelts that fit fine. So what I do is slide the shoulder part across my back, leaving just the lap part functioning, and click it into place. But I WAS wearing it!

"I am wearing it," I told him, indicating the securely fastened clasp.

"That's not what I saw," he said. "I could see both straps next to each other, telling me that you weren't wearing it."

"They're that way now, and I am wearing it," I told him quietly. "I'm not trying to be disrespectful, but I was wearing it."

"Don't lie to me."

"I-I'm not lying. See? I'm really sorry, I don't mean to show disrespect."

"Then don't lie to me."

"But-I'm-I was wearing it. I'm not going to argue with you." Shit. Wrong thing to say. What I meant was "I'm not going to argue with you because I can't see what you saw, nor can I prove what you saw, so I will bow down to your authority." What it sounded like was, "Obviously I'm right, so I'm not going to argue with you." You know, the way a parent tells a child that he or she is not going to get dragged into an argument.

"I mean, I can't prove what you saw. So there's no point in arguing, and I will just pretend whatever you say is the truth. But I promise you, I was wearing it," I told him.

"When was the last time you were pulled over?"

"Um--I guess it was about a year ago. I had just gotten this car and there was a burned out headlight that I got pulled over for a few times. I never got a ticket, though."

"And have you ever had a ticket before?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"I don't know, maybe three years ago."

"What for?"

And now in a very quiet voice: "Not wearing my seatbelt." I cleared my throat. "But I really wasn't wearing it that time!"

"Have you ever been arrested?"

"No. Never."

"Are you sure? If I look it up, that's what I'll find?"

"Yes!"

"You've never been arrested for possession of drugs?"

"God, no!"

"Do you have any drugs in the car now?"

"No, of course not."

"And you've never been arrested."

"That is correct."

"All right, then. Let me see your drivers' license, registration, and proof of insurance."

So I leaned over and got out my registration. I already had my license ready. But the proof of insurance? Shit.

"Here. I--um--I don't have my proof of insurance. I mean, I have insurance, and I have the proof, it's just at home because it came in the mail a couple days ago. It just takes effect today. So the one I have here is expired." I cringed and awaited my fate.

"You have to have insurance, you know."

"Yes, I know. I do. I just don't have the proof of insurance with me."

He went back to his car. I sat paralyzed with fear for several minutes. He finally came back.

"Okay, miss. Here." He handed me my things back, along with a ticket. "I wrote up a warning for the insurance. Bring your proof to the court house within ten days and show it to them and that will be dismissed. As for the ticket, I wrote you up for improperly wearing your seatbelt. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. It'll cost less--maybe 25 bucks. And it won't go on your insurance. Let me see." He looked at a pad of paper. "I can't find it on here--but I think it's like 25 bucks." he repeated. "Get that taken care of." And he was gone.

I slowly and carefully drove away. I wasn't happy, but it went better than it could have, right? Okay, fast forward to today, just over a week later.

I gathered up my proof of insurance, made sure I had some cash on me, and went down the fines office at the court house to take care of it. I showed the girl behind the window my ticket, she dug out the original, and asked to see my proof of insurance. I showed it to her, she made a copy of it, and everything was okay. Then, the ticket. "$65," she told me.

"Are you sure? The officer said it would be less because he just wrote me up for wearing my seatbelt improperly."

"He did what? That's not--we don't have a $25 fine for anything. Um--let me check." She typed something on her keyboard, looked at her computer screen, and looked back at me. "I don't know what he was talking about. The code he used just came up as not wearing your seatbelt. There is no other code. There's no such thing as improperly weaaring your seatbelt. $65."

"Oh. He--he lie--that's not what he said."

"I'm sorry. That's all I can do is charge you for that. Do you want to accept?"

Near tears, I couldn't think of anything else to do. If I did not accept, that would mean a court date, and who knows how that would go. Could just be bad, with me looking like I was desperately lying, how word against mine. So, I signed it and made a payment of $25, the rest to be paid next week. I left in tears. Tears of anger.

Now I just have to decide what I'm going to do. Pay it off and let it go? Get the officer's name and file a complaint? And I'm one of the good kids! Ugh. I don't have the energy for this.