Interestingly, Boston.com Has on the front page of its website this little story. The story is actually from 2013 according to the byline, but it is really too good a story to pass up.
In my last two postings, we spoke about defendants who make statements to law enforcement. This is a tale about a gent who, not only apparently made a full confession to the officers, but went so far as to make sure they had enough evidence to convict him of any Massachusetts motor vehicle crimes.
Must be one of those “law and order” types…kinda sorta.
Norwood police say that they stopped the unnamed gentleman (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) during a particular driving spree. The spree included driving more than 100 miles per hour in a 45-mile-per-hour zone on busy Route 1 on a Friday night.
The Defendant was pulled over at around 10 p.m. . He is said to have told police that he knew he was being pulled over for speeding and that he was going “at least a buck’’ (a/k/a100 miles per hour).
He apparently also explained that he was using one hand to drive and one hand to capture video of his speedometer to show how fast his car could go to potential buyers
For some reason, perhaps because the officers were bewildered in disbelief, the Defendant was not arrested on the spot. Instead, he was summonsed to court to face charges of speeding, impeded operation, and reckless operation.
The Norwood Police Department posted about the event on its Facebook page. Under the title, “File Under Speeders Say the Darnedest Things,’’ the posting read, “Now more than ever: Drive Defensively – Watch Out for the Other Guy.’’
In an apparent reference to the fines the man may have to pay after his court appearance, the posting said, “The asking price of the vehicle may go up accordingly.’’
Well, that’s one way to look at it.
Attorney Sam’s Take On Statements, Videos And Criminal Behavior
First of all, I must tell you that the Defendant was very lucky that he was never arrested. I can only guess that the officers’ disbelief was so strong that it overwhelmed any sense of frustration at whatever chase took place or the clearly dangerous behavior.
“The story says that the Defendant was simply looking at fines…not jail time. Is that why?”
It could be, although the Defendant was charged with arrestable crimes and could have been charged with more. In any event, the officers could have arrested him. Under such circumstances, you would be surprised how easily things can be escalate to resisting arrest or assault and battery on a police officer.
The other consideration could have been the level of cooperation the officers apparently received by the Defendant. This, in itself is an important lesson for you. Always cooperate with law enforcement when they stop you…in terms of following their orders and not questioning their authority.
I would not add “making full confessions” to that list, by the way, although it seems to have worked out for the Defendant…at least before court.
Where this left the Defendant in terms of his driver’s license or criminal record we do not know. The fact that his gamble paid off in terms of being arrested or worse at the scene does not mean that it did with the Registry of Motor Vehicles or the local district court.
Incidentally, I wonder if the officers, after giving him a citation, let him drive himself home in that impressive auto of his.