Do you SERIOUSLY think we are that stupid?

[South Texan]

So I am working the desk for initial traffic ticket appearances. Fairly simple. People come in and either say they want to work something out, show proof that they had a driver's license or insurance (just not on them at the time of the ticket), show they got the car registered or inspected within the grace period, or say they want to go to trial and get assigned a trial date.

A guy comes in and hands me an AllState card that on its face looks legit. Except it is a photocopy and the dates of coverage are not the same font as the rest of the information. The prosecutor sees this and immediately calls AllState. Yep. Not only was the coverage canceled at the time of the ticket, the guy had made no attempt to reinstate the policy since getting the ticket.

The State Trooper was more than happy to escort the man out in nice, metal bracelets.

Not two defendants later, a well dressed man hands me a State Farm card that looks like no other anyone has ever seen. A quick call to State Farm confirms the card is a forgery. The State Trooper is standing behind the man in a few seconds. The man starts crying as he realizes he is toast. The prosecutor then rubs salt into his proverbial wounds by telling him that if he had purchased insurance after the ticket, he could have kept the charge off his record by keeping the insurance current for six months and paying a two hundred dollar probation fee. Now he will have to face a felony charge.

He soon is sitting with the AllState man in a small room with bars.

I cannot tell you how many people come in and try to pass off forged, phony or altered insurance cards. I understand that the prospect of paying a few hundred dollars is scary, but is it really worth getting charged with a felony for passing forged documents to a court?

[Getpowned]

thats why texas is awesome

i really dont know how many times i ve done that old trick but people need to be smarter than that. GOSH

[LillFilly]

People try making their own handicap parking cards and hanging them in their car windows all the time where I work. I've seen b&w photocopies, color copies but on 8X11 paper, color copies with the 2-sides taped together (you can see through them and the print doesn't match-up), and my favorite was a red temp card that they cut the date out of and spliced the top to the bottom. These people throw the biggest fit when they get a ticket!

[draggar]

I cannot tell you how many people come in and try to pass off forged, phony or altered insurance cards. I understand that the prospect of paying a few hundred dollars is scary, but is it really worth getting charged with a felony for passing forged documents to a court?

because they think they'll get away with it or else they wouldn't have tried.

People try making their own handicap parking cards and hanging them in their car windows all the time where I work. I've seen b&w photocopies, color copies but on 8X11 paper, color copies with the 2-sides taped together (you can see through them and the print doesn't match-up), and my favorite was a red temp card that they cut the date out of and spliced the top to the bottom. These people throw the biggest fit when they get a ticket!

My wife is handicapped but we're only allowed one dangler and it is a pain for her to switch it between the two cars. So we use last year's in one car and this year's in the other. No issues yet. (crosses fingers).

[Broomjockey]

My wife is handicapped but we're only allowed one dangler and it is a pain for her to switch it between the two cars.

I'm sure you've thought of this, but I thought I'd throw it out there anyway. Does she have a purse or bag that she always takes with her? If so, why not just place the dangler in there? That way, no matter what car she's in, she's got the current dangler. I only mention because that's how my grandmother did it when she was still going out.

[jackfaire]

Fairly simple. People come in and either say they want to work something out, show proof that they had a driver's license or insurance (just not on them at the time of the ticket),

Yeah uhm my friend got out of a ticket that way once the funny thing is if the cop had pegged us for the fact that we were speeding and had evaded him (it was high school and I told my friend to drive we could ditch him we didn't) then my friend would have had to pay. However because a ticket for invalid insurance was bigger he pegged my friend with that which was promptly thrown out when he went down with his Insurance card.

[JustaCashier]

Well, at least Mr Fake Allstate Client, and Mr. Fake State Farm Client have each other....



Mike

[Seshat]

i really dont know how many times i ve done that old trick but people need to be smarter than that. GOSH

Just as mod note here:

Don't do this, folks. Don't ever bring forged documents to a courtroom. Whatever country you're in.

Thank you. Move along. Nothing to see here.

[draggar]

I'm sure you've thought of this, but I thought I'd throw it out there anyway. Does she have a purse or bag that she always takes with her? If so, why not just place the dangler in there? That way, no matter what car she's in, she's got the current dangler. I only mention because that's how my grandmother did it when she was still going out.

Its not that sturdy and would break in there.

[Broomjockey]

Its not that sturdy and would break in there.

Dang. They make them flimsy there. oh well

[Android Kaeli]

I haven't had a ticket or anything like that yet, but I'd be more willing to pay the fine if I had to, then have a felony on my record. Don't know what these people were thinking of. o.o

[Polenicus]

Why do people compound stupidity with stupidity and think it will somehow work out?

I've actually gotten dinged for this. I was driving my roomie's van. Except she neglected to tell me the registration had been lapsed since December (It was now April) and I got caught by the cops. She also had the insurance papers in her room, NOT in the car.

I was not pleased when I got home.

And you know how I weaseled out of the ticket and black mark on my record? I DIDN'T. I paid the ticket, accepted responsibility for having not checked these things before getting in the vehicle. I got my roomies to cover the ticket cost, we got the van registered, and y'know what? The world didn't end. I pay a touch more for my own insurance, and likely will for a while, and roomie has learned not to incur my wrath.

I also didn't go to prison, or end up with a criminal record.

[Ben_Who]

People will forge insurance cards when they find themselves uninsurable. I kept thinking, "Well duh, why didn't they just update their insurance?" before remembering that when I was younger and stupid about money, my current insurer refused to insure me because I'd been so crummy with the bills. I had to scramble to find a new insurer, and the new one charged an arm and a leg until my credit repaired itself over the year. It was seriously something like four times what I'd been paying. (I now pay my insurance in its entirety at the beginning of each term.)

So some of these people might have actually had the presence of mind to phone up their insurer only to discover that said insurer wouldn't put up with those dishwater excuses any longer and had dropped the policy entirely, or were at least demanding the balance up front. Others may have known damned well that their insurer wouldn't touch them with a barge pole and tried to fudge things as best as they could.

My roommate was carted off to jail for no other reason than he'd let the bookkeeping on his car go untouched for so long that the issues kept compounding. Hauled up for not keeping his plates up to date, the officer noticed that his sticker had expired. Cited for both, he missed a court date and was informed by mail that his license had been suspended. By the time they caught him, he actually had a warrant out for his arrest and had to pay hundreds of dollars in fines. And since they don't pull you up for just the sticker, it all could have been avoided if he'd just paid his $35 registration fee.

Stupid me, I'd not only driven his deteriorating car with expired plates, but allowed him to drive my beloved Metro with his suspended license.

Love, Who?

[Jester]

because they think they'll get away with it or else they wouldn't have tried.

Yes, we do. No, that is not a typo. I said "we," not "they." Because at one time, I was one of these idiots. Many years ago, I actually altered my truck's license plate. I won't go into the details, but suffice it to say it was due to a combination of intentional ignorance and laziness, and it ended up costing me more than fixing it would have. I believed I would get away with it.

You know how I got caught? Someone broke into my truck and stole some shit, and I found a cop. When they investigated, one of them--the one who knew me, no less--noticed the altered plate, and called it in. And I was SO busted.

I did a lot of stuff when I was younger that I am not all that proud of. Much of it illegal. Most of it amazingly stupid. The above is not the stupidest.

A few years ago, I made a point to try to get everything right and legal with my life. I get pulled over now? There is nothing I am going to get busted for other than what they pulled me over for in the first place. Having gotten busted numerous times in numerous places finally taught me a lesson. The last time I got arrested for criminal stupidity in '03, I made a vow that that would be THE last time I would get arrested. And it was. And I only ever came close to screwing THAT up once.

(For those who are wondering, all my arrests were non-criminal. Just stupid driving shit. The above plate-altering incident I was merely cited for.)

My wife is handicapped but we're only allowed one dangler and it is a pain for her to switch it between the two cars. So we use last year's in one car and this year's in the other. No issues yet. (crosses fingers).

Stop crossing your fingers and start having your wife do it the right way. Yes, it is an inconvenience. But if she gets popped for it, it is going to be even more inconvenient for her. I speak from experience.

[Plague*Star]

Well, at least Mr Fake Allstate Client, and Mr. Fake State Farm Client have each other....
Mike

"Name's Bubba. You're in good hands. Now, let's see your Ned Beatty impression."
P*S