BY DAN NEWMAN
Staff Writer
You see the flashing red lights in the rearview mirror and you don’t know why. You weren’t speeding, and you know that you came to a full stop at that stop sign back there.
And then you hear the reason, and you don’t believe it: you got pulled over for having a red bow on your rearview mirror, the one the dealership put on when you purchased your car, the one that was supposed to mean good luck. So much for that theory.
“When officers are out on patrol, they see things being illegally done all the time. Blowing a red light or a stop sign or passing on the right – it happens all the time,” Hazlet Township Police Detective Glen Mason said. “Even on your way to work today, you probably saw at least one person committing a traffic violation. And [officers] even see things that you may not even be thinking about.”
With 90 percent of Americans over the age of 16 being licensed drivers, there are millions of traffic offenses committed each year.
Sometimes we’re pulled over for offenses that we know we’ve committed, and we have to face the music. Other times, it’s for things that we didn’t even know were on the books (including having a red bow, better known as state statute 39:3-74, obstruction of windshield for vision, a $54 fine). And then there are those offenses that make us tighten our purse strings afterward because they cost so darn much.
“The courts in this state have been good as far as protecting the rights of the motorist.” Stephen Carrellas – N.J. chapter coordinator, National Motorists Association Among the most popular items on the hit list of motorist mishaps is speeding. A speeding ticket of 1 to 14 mph over the speed limit can result in a two-point penalty. Fifteen to 29 miles over is worth four points, and for those who are in a really big rush, a speeding ticket for going 30 mph or more over the limit is a five-point offense.
“Driving at the posted speed limit is something that we all know should be done,” Middletown Police Sgt. William Colangelo said. “It’s important enough that there are different statutes involving speeding.”
Getting fined twice the normal amount for speeding in a work zone, or getting ticketed for traveling at an excessive rate of speed through a school zone or residential or business district are just a couple of examples of speeding offenses.
Stephen Carrellas, New Jersey chapter coordinator for the National Motorists Association, says that in some cases, those who broke speeding laws were actually able to get away with it.
“I’ve seen cases where it’s been proven that the calibration equipment used in the radar guns was over a year old, and that’s too long of a time period,” Carrellas said. “Or, if there’s a technical problem with the documentation on the ticket. It depends on what you get ticketed for, and then you really need to weigh your options. Do you want to just take the points and deal with the fine, or do you want to take your chances and fight it?”
New Jersey has eight statutes concerning keeping right and passing, but only three apply to the concept of lane courtesy on multilane highways, and they all carry fines:
+ 39:4-85, failure to pass to the left when overtaking, $85.
+ 39:4-87, failure to give overtaking vehicle the right of way, $85.
+ 39:4-88, failure to obey regulations in marked lanes, $85. Safe corridor, construction zone or 65 mph area – failure to obey regulations in marked lanes, $140.
“The focus of New Jersey’s lane courtesy laws is on moving over to let faster traffic pass to the left,” Carrellas said. “If you’re being paced, there’s a good chance the car behind wants to pass.”
Carrellas also mentioned frequently checking side and rearview mirrors and using your directional signals as simple, effective methods of practicing proper lane courtesy.
Mason also said that everywhere he goes, he sees people passing on the right.
“I see it every day, and so does anybody that is on traffic duty,” Mason said. “It’s a violation that tickets are written for all the time.”
Little-known violations
Graduation tassels and baby shoes – we’ve all worn them at some point in life, albeit not for very long. After we take them off, they sometimes end up on our rearview mirrors as keepsakes, but that is a violation.
State statute 39:3-74, better known as obstruction of windshield for vision, is worth a $54 ticket. And the statute involves more than what hangs from the mirror.
“Your windshield must be unobstructed as well, aside from the wipers,” Carrellas said. “Any signs, posters or stickers on the windshield are illegal.”
Another common item that cannot adorn the rearview mirror is the handicap placard that some motorists have (when you’re parked, that’s when they’re supposed to be up on the mirror, not while you’re driving, Carrellas noted).
Also on the list of things most people may not realize is a violation, is a license plate cover that obstructs any part of the license plate.
“The courts in this state have been good over the course of time, as far as protecting the rights of motorists,” said Carrellas, who has served as chapter coordinator since 1988, and estimates that his organization has thousands of members.
The job of the police officers, in any state, is to deal with the violations. Whether you have something hanging from the mirror or your car is so cluttered with stuff that you can barely see through your back windshield, the officers are just trying to help and protect everyone.
While officers are just doing their jobs, there’s also the matter of what rights motorists have in all of this.
“Officers really don’t have much authority, other than asking for license, registration and insurance,” Carrellas explained. “As for a search [of the vehicle], they can only request it, unless they have probable cause or they have reasonable suspicion. As a motorist, you have rights, but it can be confusing.”
One example Carrellas mentioned is drunk driving checkpoints. Most motorists think they have to engage in a conversation with an officer.
“They just want to talk to you to ascertain how you’re doing, and really, you don’t have to do that,” he said. “This is almost the officer’s way of trying to perhaps make you a bit nervous.”
Mason says there are no ticket quotas for police officers, because they are illegal, but he does acknowledge that the job of somebody on traffic patrol is to write tickets.
“Over the course of an eight- to 12-hour shift, we’re going to see things that drivers are doing wrong,” Mason said. “We’re not out to cause people problems. Our job is to make sure that everything is safe as can be out there and that drivers are following the laws.”