Garda Tailgating

Senna · 10-11-2007 12:19am #1

Was on my way back from the shops tonight and just as i came off a roundabout and was maybe 200yr up the road, i seen a car speeding up behind me and sit on my bumper. It was a 50kph zone in a fairly built up area.
I just assumed it was some idiot in a modded saxo or such wanting a race (i drive an MR2), so i just continued driving at the speed-limit. (its a big wide road and most do break the speed-limit by 10-20kph)
anyway the car stayed right on my bumper for the first KM of the road then backed off to a normal distant.
At the top of the road i pulled off into my house and seen in the mirror it was a garda car.

My question, is this not entrapment, forcing the car in front to speed up and then writing them a ticket when they do so. My partner is a Learner driver and once when i was with her, she started to speed up when she was being tailgated. I told her not to, but as she was only starting out and it was nerves that make her speed up. She is a fair better driver now, but I'd hate to think of her getting a ticket from a garda driving recklessly.

p.s this is not the first time its happened.

Fooz · 10-11-2007 12:21am

Might just be a twat of a Garda. Some of them are not the best drivers.

Wishbone Ash · 10-11-2007 12:22am

Senna wrote: »

My question, is this not entrapment, forcing the car in front to speed up and then writing them a ticket

How can you be 'forced' to speed up? A tailgating motorist would make me slow down.

I'd say it was a Garda with deteriorating eyesight running a reg check!

mick.fr · 10-11-2007 12:25am

Surely such a behavior is stupid and dangerous.
No wonder why they do crash so many cars.
And of course for a cop pushing somebody like this to actually commit an offense is certainly not legal.

Oilrig · 10-11-2007 12:30am

Wanker Cop.

Well known tactic. I got done by a 405 on the N7 in this way many years ago. Mate is in the Traffic Corp and confirmed (confessed?) over beers one night that this is an unofficial tactic.

Traffic Taleban ****. :mad:

DannyBuoy · 10-11-2007 12:31am

I have seen this a number of times, especially down south on the Watergrasshill - Fermoy bypass. Generally unmarked car will sit at your bumper until they either get bored or you speed up. Highly dangerous practice I would have thought. One would expect more from those who are charged with enforcing traffic rules.

Senna · 10-11-2007 12:34am

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

How can you be 'forced' to speed up? A tailgating motorist would make me slow down.

I'd say it was a Garda with deteriorating eyesight running a reg check!

Yes, i didn't speed up and if anything i would slow further just to annoy them. But I've been driving for a good few years, a learner driver or inexperienced one may speed up. i've seen it happen.

never though of the eyesight thing. but if his/her eyesight is that bad, i'd say the criminals of Letterkenny can sleep safe in bed, they'll never be spotted doing anything wrong.;)

yayamark · 10-11-2007 12:36am

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

How can you be 'forced' to speed up? A tailgating motorist would make me slow down.

I'd say it was a Garda with deteriorating eyesight running a reg check!

agreed that what i think as well

mick.fr wrote: »

Surely such a behavior is stupid and dangerous.
No wonder why they do crash so many cars.

How many cars do they crash i looked for figures couldnt find any?

Fooz wrote: »

Might just be a twat of a Garda. Some of them are not the best drivers.

ya there trying to get them all to do the car course asap

jimmycrackcorm · 10-11-2007 1:57am

Senna wrote: »

My question, is this not entrapment, forcing the car in front to speed up and then writing them a ticket when they do so.

Nobody is forcing the driver in front to speed up. After all it's their own choice to do so.

Senna · 10-11-2007 3:09am

jimmycrackcorm wrote: »

Nobody is forcing the driver in front to speed up. After all it's their own choice to do so.

Of course.
So is it acceptable for garda to do this?

ArseBurger · 10-11-2007 4:47am

Senna wrote: »

My question, is this not entrapment,

It wouldn't matter if it was. Entrapment is not illegal in Ireland.

White Knight · 10-11-2007 5:11am

Senna wrote: »

At the top of the road i pulled off into my house and seen in the mirror it was a garda car.

You have 3 mirrors on the car that should be in constant use - could you not see straight away that it was a Garda car?

Same thing happened me few years ago and they followed me right up in to my driveway about 2 miles from where they started tailing. Supposedly they had seen me rush through an amber light but im not so sure!

Senna · 10-11-2007 5:40am

White Knight wrote: »

You have 3 mirrors on the car that should be in constant use - could you not see straight away that it was a Garda car?

It was night, i.e. Dark. all i could see was two head-lights.
Interesting, 3 mirrors you say, must look for them tomorrow:rolleyes:

White Knight · 10-11-2007 5:47am

Senna wrote: »

It was night, i.e. Dark. all i could see was two head-lights.

ah you should have said it was night

Senna wrote: »

Interesting, 3 mirrors you say, must look for them tomorrow:rolleyes:

so I have been told! dont quote me on that .. oh too late

did not mean to come across condescending!

Senna · 10-11-2007 5:52am

White Knight wrote: »

did not mean to come across condescending!

Na mate, not at all, just messing.

Wishbone Ash · 10-11-2007 8:35am

Oilrig wrote: »

Traffic Taleban ****

If you are going to insult particular sectors of society, try to use the correct spelling.

Otherwise, you will come across as an idiot!

Anan1 · 10-11-2007 10:32am

Senna wrote: »

It was night, i.e. Dark. all i could see was two head-lights.
Interesting, 3 mirrors you say, must look for them tomorrow:rolleyes:

You've told us that you were 'coming home from the shops in a fairly built-up area' In my experience it's poor observation rather than speeding that gets one penalty points.;)

MarkN · 10-11-2007 11:28am

Lads put your high horses back in the stable. OP this happened to me 4 years ago driving a brand new Golf GTI, a guard in a navy Corolla followed me from the Spawell to Nutgrove more a less the whole way up my arse. At the Yellow House lights, I'd had enough and gunned it and when he caught up the blues came on, I was actually relieved as it clearly wasn't some lunatic anymore, I ate the head off the guard, told him a guy driving a new A8 had been approached by lads with baseball bats only the week before on his driveway in Rathfarnham and that if he had a problem he should've pulled me over 5 miles back. Completely saw my side and told me to slow down and that was it. I suppose you wouldn't get away with it being a patrol car.

faceman · 10-11-2007 11:38am

ArseBurger wrote: »

It wouldn't matter if it was. Entrapment is not illegal in Ireland.

Entrapment is permitted in ireland, however evidence acquired via methods that are considered entrapment/controlled are not admissable in court.

The scenario the OP described was not entrapment and he did the right thing - obeyed the rules of the road

Anan1 · 10-11-2007 1:14pm

MarkN wrote: »

Lads put your high horses back in the stable. OP this happened to me 4 years ago driving a brand new Golf GTI, a guard in a navy Corolla followed me from the Spawell to Nutgrove more a less the whole way up my arse. At the Yellow House lights, I'd had enough and gunned it and when he caught up the blues came on, I was actually relieved as it clearly wasn't some lunatic anymore, I ate the head off the guard, told him a guy driving a new A8 had been approached by lads with baseball bats only the week before on his driveway in Rathfarnham and that if he had a problem he should've pulled me over 5 miles back. Completely saw my side and told me to slow down and that was it. I suppose you wouldn't get away with it being a patrol car.

Ah now come on! If it had been an unusual unmarked car then perhaps, but a navy Corolla? On another point, if you were running from a Corolla in a new Golf GTI on the basis that he was a lunatic, then how did he catch up with you?:)

tenchi-fan · 10-11-2007 1:34pm

(refusing to get on a high hourse because that's exactly the kind of thing that would happen to me) I don't think the guard did anything wrong by speeding up, he could easily say road conditions permitted it and it is you who actually broke the speed limit.

Only a bad driver would be intimidated to speed up, if some one was driving that close to me I'd have slowed down to spite him, and allowed him to overtake (eh well actually i'd probably have speeded up when he tried to overtake and that would get me in more trouble, but a "good driver" should let people overtake!)

MarkN · 10-11-2007 1:40pm

Anan what part of being a guard do you think gives you the right to drive like that? I have a lot of time for them but you seem to take it to a whole new "they are God" level.

He caught up because when I started to pull away he stuck on the lights and that made me stop.

I'm older and wiser now and God help any guard that does that to me now, I'd be onto his/her Super staight away to report them for dangerous driving if they did it for no reason whatsoever which was the case when that happened and I wouldn't let it go. I'm not having the back of my car destroyed because of some guard on a power trip and I'm sure if you thought about it logically you'd feel exactly the same.

I actually have a number of family members who are guards so I know what their jobs entail but you have got to apply a bit of common sense when defending them too.

Anan1 · 10-11-2007 1:47pm

I don't know where people are going with the high horse thing recently. Speeding up because one is being tailgated is stupid. It's doubly stupid if it's a red or blue Mondeo/Vectra/Avensis/Corolla, triply stupid if it's a fully kitted-out squad car. A minature donkey could see this.

Seth Brundle · 10-11-2007 1:50pm

White Knight wrote: »

ah you should have said it was night

Senna did

Senna wrote: »

Was on my way back from the shops tonight ...

Anan1 · 10-11-2007 1:53pm

MarkN wrote: »

Anan what part of being a guard do you think gives you the right to drive like that? I have a lot of time for them but you seem to take it to a whole new "they are God" level.

What are you talking about? I'm not a guard, and have no time for tailgating.

MarkN wrote: »

He caught up because when I started to pull away he stuck on the lights and that made me stop.

Eh, this isn't quite what you said last time:

MarkN wrote: »

and when he caught up the blues came on

MarkN wrote: »

I'm older and wiser now and God help any guard that does that to me now, I'd be onto his/her Super staight away to report them for dangerous driving if they did it for no reason whatsoever which was the case when that happened and I wouldn't let it go. I'm not having the back of my car destroyed because of some guard on a power trip and I'm sure if you thought about it logically you'd feel exactly the same.

And i'd be right behind you (no pun intended). It's good to hear you've learnt your lesson.:)

Wishbone Ash · 10-11-2007 1:55pm

I'm at a loss to understand why people feel the need to speed up when being tailgated!

Do these same drivers slow down if a vehicle following them slows down?

Anan1 · 10-11-2007 1:58pm

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

I'm at a loss to understand why people feel the need to speed up when being tailgated!

Do these same drivers slow down if a vehicle following them slows down?

MarkN · 10-11-2007 2:28pm

Anan1 wrote: »

What are you talking about? I'm not a guard, and have no time for tailgating.

Eh, this isn't quite what you said last time:

You're nitpicking.

I didn't say you were a guard, I said what part of BEING a guard would give them the right to tailgate.

There was no lesson learnt thanks, I was happily driving along minding my own business and if it happened again and I was unsure as to who was driving the car, I wouldn't hesitate in planting the foot and heading to the nearest station.

Senna · 10-11-2007 5:54pm

Anan1 wrote: »

triply stupid if it's a fully kitted-out squad car. A minature donkey could see this.

It was a fully kitted-out squad car, but it was pitch dark. My car is very low as standard (not lower) all i could see was headlights. And they didn't have their blue strip light on.

Tabnabs · 10-11-2007 6:04pm

What goes around comes around.

The mrs was on the bus home the other night and as the bus passed by the scene of a two car accident, the car in front had been rear-ended by, you guessed it, a garda car...:rolleyes:

Stark · 10-11-2007 6:13pm

Anan1 wrote: »

I don't know where people are going with the high horse thing recently. Speeding up because one is being tailgated is stupid. It's doubly stupid if it's a red or blue Mondeo/Vectra/Avensis/Corolla, triply stupid if it's a fully kitted-out squad car. A minature donkey could see this.

With the dark evenings these days, it's fairly hard to see what kind of car is behind you if they're tailgating you. Had a car on my ass going through the Phoenix park before with its mains on so I was dazzled while driving and for all I knew, it was some boy racer before he finally overtook and I could see that it was a Garda car.

Garda Tailgating

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