By Charles Topher Crime, Law, Police, VideosJanuary 3, 2015

Watch: Law Student Shuts Down Off-Duty Cop’s Power Trip In Under 30 Seconds (VIDEO)

A law student in South Carolina was traveling in the fast lane when the car in front of her, which she said was impeding traffic, refused to move out-of-the-way.

When she had the opportunity, she moved to the right and passed him, flipping him a “friendly bird.” The man was an off-duty cop in an unmarked car.

He sped up, tailgated her, then flashed his lights and pulled her over. In the video she immediately recognizes that he’s off-duty. The cop walks up to her window and asks “are you trying to be smart?” She asks if he’s off-duty, to which he replies “we’re always on duty.”

After asking the power-hungry cop with the bruised ego several times if she was being detained, the cop answers “no, you’re not being detained.” She waves at him, tells him goodbye and drives away.

At which point the cop declares somewhat threateningly:

I’ll be seeing you around.

After she got home, the woman in the video called all of the police and sheriff’s offices in the area, whether they had jurisdiction or not, and inquired about the man. Nobody had any idea who he was.

If he was, indeed, a cop at all, he was clearly off-duty and most likely out of his jurisdiction, pulling the woman over for no reason other than he was irritated that he got called out for his crappy driving skills. Those “keep right except to pass” signs are there for a reason.

But this cop thought he was going to harass this woman and make himself feel better. Unfortunately for him it didn’t work out that way.

Watch…this woman knew her rights.

H/T: The Free Thought Project | Image: Screengrab from YouTube

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Charles Topher

Charles is a lifetime lefty liberal from Lowell who has managed to migrate (legally) to the backwoods of Maine. He writes from a 1 acre progressive bubble where Nobama stickers on pickemup truck bumpers are common.

Latest Posts By Charles Topher

Terri Hemker

Wow! She’s got more ‘balls’ then most people I know! Good for her! (Although I don’t recommend flipping anyone off in traffic because you don’t know, these days, if they’ll just blow your head off!)
- Nexus926
  
  That’s why I flip off other drivers below the window, where they can’t see. Makes me feel better while not endangering my continued existence.
  - Terri Hemker
    
    Lol! Good idea! Me, I just tend to grip the steering wheel a little tighter and mutter obscenities through my clenched teeth!
  - Swede760
    
    Wimp! I will flip off anyone I choose to!
    - Nexus926
      
      You don’t live in LA, do you?
      - Swede760
        
        Nope and never plan on going there. I like a Civilized Environment.
      - Nexus926
        
        Then I say, flip away!!!
      - Swede760
        
        may live in Kangaroo County but I get my way eventually. Sheriff’s Dept. is now Banned from the Marina I live in and this is where thy used to keep their boats
      - Ray
        
        The sheriffs department banned from the Marina (or anywhere else, for that matter)? Yeah, I don’t think so…the police can go wherever they want to, they can’t be banned from anywhere.
      - Swede760
        
        Well they can always buy their fuel at another Fuel dock but the closest one is 30 miles away, yeah they are not allowed to harass moorage tenants anymore and not allowed to walk the Docks unless called. It’s called Leverage.
      - David Noah Parker
        
        LOL such a glimps into the other half
      - Rhino84
        
        I guess that’s why you go around flipping off anyone you choose, it’s civilized.
Kirk Halgren

In Maryland, there is no legal requirement to pass left and cruise right. About 8 years ago, the legislature tried to pass a bill to that effect, but failed. Unfortunately, in both DC and VA those rules do exist, and if you are in the left lane and someone signals (lights or horn) you are required to give way. Note, however, that tailgating does not constitute a signal.
tblackmon

if he is an officer someone needs to take a very hard look at his state of mind and mental stability for the job.. If not he needs to be arrested for impersonating an officer of the law.
- https://www.facebook.com/janusz.sztyber?ref=tn_tnmn John Styber
  
  There are no mentally stable cops. Just make a note of this.
  - Dot
    
    Please stop being a bigot. There are a lot of good cops around who actually live in the community that they police, and get to know people. Don’t make blanket statements. It lowers you to the same level as the racists and the bad cops.
    - Johnny 5
      
      Bigot? Being a cop is a choice, not a race. Stop being a moron.
      - Michael Cashaw
        
        While Dot’s use of the word bigot is technically correct, most people do only use in a racial context.
      - v2787
        
        Bigotry is bigotry, no matter where, to whom, or to what it’s directed.
      - Michael Cashaw
        
        Not debating whether bigotry is bigotry. My argument is whether one can be bigoted towards police. I say not bigoted, but prejudice is more accurate.
      - Dot
        
        Racism is racial bigotry. Making blanket statements about a group of people is bigotry. Not all cops are bad. In fact, most of them are good, but they don’t often make the news. Not all men are lying sacks of excrement, even if I was married to like that once. Not all women like to shop. Not all teenagers are nasty, sex crazed pot smokers. Not all New Yorkers are educated. Not all Kansans are Republican. Not all Scottish people are cheap. Not all Jews are rich business men. Not all Irish like whiskey or Guiness or drink at all. Not all Asians have a high IQ and make good grades. I have a Black male friend who claims there is one thing true about Black men, but his wife just rolls her eyes and shakes her head, and he hates watermelon. Not all fat people are stupid. Not all tall people can or want to play basketball.
        
        Do you get my point. All of these statements have been used to describe all members of a particular category of people, be it race, age, nationality, body size, etc. That’s bigotry, and you should work hard to try and get past it. I have to work hard to not assume a person with a southern accent is a racist, uneducated hick. I always try to give individuals a chance to show me who they are, not judging them by any stupid standard I apply to a group.
      - Robert Zraick
        
        I totally agree and think the concept needs to extend to all various religions and belief systems. If someone commits a crime, that is reason for punishment, but belonging to a group should not be punished, if a person does not break the law.
      - Blank Reg
        
        But there IS that “driving while Asian” thing…. /s
      - Blue M Perry
        
        That is a racist stereotype, not quite the same, but very close.
      - Blue M Perry
        
        Again… I don’t hit my wife and I would stand up to any man that does. You are colored by your associations, and by refusing to fight the problem, those “good” cops show themselves to be as bad as the “bad” cops. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”
      - Swede760
        
        Until the so called Good Cops start Busting the Bad Cops they are all Bad.
      - DaleC
        
        Bigotry doesn’t require race.
        
        Stop being a moron, you say?
    - Midel Cashflow
      
      Where are these “good” cops that you talk about? Are they the ones that hide in fear behind the blue wall, even when they see corruption, abuse of power, racism, etc?
    - Native Born American
      
      ALL cops break the law, especially Constitutional law. Therefore, all cops are bad. End of story.
    - http://robsblog.moronika.com/ Robert Davidson
      
      Being a cop means enforcing revenue-generating “laws” without thought, judgement or even common sense. They get paid using money stolen from others, and claim “rights” (including the initiation of force) that no person has any natural right to claim. There may be some cops who aren’t total assholes all the time, but there is no such thing as a “good cop.”
    - Rothbardian Slip
      
      I’m sorry I have to be the one to break the news to you. There is no such thing as a good cop.
    - Blue M Perry
      
      Serpico was a good cop, he stood up to other cops and called them on their shit, rather than side with the bad ones in a us vs them mentality. Cops made a choice to do a dangerous and thankless job. Nobody lied to thm that it would be easy or they would be safe all the time. There are factory workers dealing with even more dangerous situations on a daily, if not continuous, basis that don’t whine as much as these guys do. A good man stands up to his friends when they are in the wrong, even when he may lose those friends,
    - Frank Bartushock
      
      The fact that you even have to say “not all cops are bad” is an indictment of the police.
  - Billy Farmer
    
    DOT is right, there are many good cops and sadly many bad cops. Every profession has its good and bad ! The statement is not fair ! As for the cop in the video. I think this video will be the cops undoing if he indeed did break laws by pulling her over while off duty and for driving in the left lane slow ! That is as dangerous and dumb as someone flipping the bird, Both made bad choices in how they acted and handle it !
    
    She should had just went around him with out flipping him the bird. Road rage is dangerous and i think both had road rage in different forms but she did indeed have balls of steel !
    - Native Born American
      
      The cop broke the law. The girl was within her rights. Good girl, bad cop. Period.
      - Robert Zraick
        
        I tend to agree. I would like to see those “good cops” step in and arrest the bad ones when they are breaking the law. That would do everyone a world of good in my opinion.
Charles Consaul

The question that no one has ever answered to my satisfaction is: If I am doing the speed limit, and the vehicle behind me is not flashing emergency lights, how can I possibly be impeding anyone’s progress? I realize that other cars may enjoy going over the posted speed limit, but I enjoy the added safety that being in a lane with no intrusions into the left side of my vehicle, which is also most people’s blind spot. If I am going less than the posted speed limit by even a mile, I can understand, but since there is no inherent right to pass a car that is doing the legal limit, how could I possibly be impeding any other citizen’s progress?
- Vergent Bill
  
  Do you have a current calibration certificate for your speedometer? Do you know that your speedometer can read 5mph fast if your tires are worn? Idiot! Pull the f*ck over.
- Adam Lee
  
  Just move over and let us pass. Thank you.
- PoodleSheep
  
  You are not law enforcement. Stay to the right or get off the road. If you are doing the speed limit while the majority of other people are driving faster than the speed limit, you are the one who is putting people at risk. You know what has happened to accident rates when places have raised speed limits? They’ve either stayed the same or gone down. Excess speed is not the primary cause to even half the of fatal accidents.
  
  And how could you possibly be impeding anyone’s progress? You’re going slower than them.
  - Moss_back
    
    This really depends on individual state laws, which can vary widely. For example: in WA state it’s only legal to exceed the speed limit when passing a vehicle traveling below the posted maximum speed on highways with only one lane of travel in each direction (RCW 46.61.425); otherwise, if a driver exceeds the maximum posted speed limit, even when in the passing lane of a highway with more than one lane of travel in each direction, they can be (and frequently ARE) cited accordingly.
- JJewell
  
  Charles Consaul: The deal is THIS: YOU are in the “passing lane”. Regardless of your speed, if someone wishes to pass you and you are in the “passing lane”, YOU are impeding their progress. YOU are OBLIGED to move right and not obstruct the “passing lane”. The words, “Slower Traffic Keep Right” have a meaning. The “comfort” you feel/enjoy in “the added safety that being in a lane with no intrusions into the left side of YOUR vehicle” does NOT give you the right to obstruct the “Passing Lane”, regardless of the posted speed limit. You are NOT “traffic enforcement” not are you driving the Indianapolis 500 “Pace Car”. SLOWER TRAFFIC KEEP RIGHT. Did your driver’s license come as a prize in a box of Crackerjacks???
  - Buck Wheat
    
    Wake up in all states all lanes are considered passing lanes . They changed the law years ago.
- Middleoftheinterstate
  
  Charles, You should not be on the road. Period. In this country we “Stay to the RIGHT” unless you are about to pass ! You are THE problem.
- Roger Barton
  
  Obviously, you’re not impeding the legal progress of anyone. Unfortunately, since the cops and legislatures realize the futility of actually enforcing a speed limit, many states have passed laws designating the inside lane for “passing only”. This allows the cops to ticket people for driving the speed limit in the passing lane, and allows other drivers to go well over the speed limit without being stopped. After all, if they’re going fast enough, they’re ALWAYS passing someone. I foresee that this will remain the case until we start installing more systems that ticket automatically for speeding and tailgating… but I suppose that would be considered socialist, and an infringement on the right of the people to violate the laws in whatever way seems best to them.
- Brook123
  
  If you are travelling slower than the rest of the traffic, you ARE impeding the flow of traffic. Stay out the passing lane unless you are passing. As for flashing emergency lights, not all emergencies require flashing lights, some just require driving right up to the speed limit to get where they need to be. If you are in the passing lane you are impeding their progress.
  
  Basically, you’re just being a self-entitled jerk,
- Kelli Crackel
  
  Charles, the rule of thumb is to keep up with surrounding traffic or get in the slow lane. Not only is it the polite thing to do, it’s the safest thing to do.
- CheLoco
  
  Typical narcissistic “American” response. You’re old enough to know that “keep right except to pass” is a universal rule-of-thumb in the US. That’s why the LEFT lane is known as the fuc*ing PASSING LANE, you idiot. It’s the PASSING LANE…get it? It’s not there for you to “enjoy added safety.” People like you encourage road ragers to shoot people (but only in Uh’merca.) If you aren’t passing someone, stay the fu*k out of that lane. The mere fact that you have some convoluted justification for your prick-ness confirms you are a total dick-wad.
  - Diane
    
    If you don’t like the typical narcissistic “American” response go back to whereever you came from. Then there will be one less angry person who obviously doesn’t like Americans but like our money. Feel free to climb back under your rock. And there is absolutely no reason to spew your anger on Charles. Have a conversation if you want but no need to be so nasty.
- CheLoco
  
  Take off the stupid Greek fisherman’s hat…even Greek fishermen don’t wear it. It doesn’t make you look cool, just stupid.
- kate
  
  You must be a Connecticunt. They never pull over. Biggest douchebag drivers on the east coast.
  - Nancy Alborell
    
    Michigan’s the nation’s #1. Every lane in MI is a passing lane. Sometimes even the roadside is a passing lane. Running a string of cars bumper to bumper down the freeway at 70mph is Michigan’s version of gladiatorial games.
  - PoodleSheep
    
    NJ drivers are also bad at that.
    - Blank Reg
      
      Same with Washington state. Those guys have no concept of the “fast lane”.
      - Moss_back
        
        Blank Reg, you’d be surprised at the number of drivers in WA who aren’t FROM WA…
- Dot
  
  But what then is the problem of her passing him on the left? I am assuming that this was a divided highway and two lanes, so she wasn’t passing him on the median. In many states it is illegal to drive exclusively in the passing lane; it is grounds for a ticket. You are suppose to drive in the right lane, unless you are passing someone. This prevents people from driving in the left lane, then suddenly deciding to get in the right lane at the last minute to take their exit. Also, those going over the speed limit should get a ticket, but many people drive slower than the speed limit, so thats why there is a passing lane.
- Johnny 5
  
  There is no right to drive, period, it is a privilege. And the law of the land is that you can actually go over the speed limit to pass people by 10 to 20 miles per hour, depending on your locale. Slower traffic must keep right, by law, and you are in point of fact impeding traffic and causing an unsafe condition.
- kaylamcfly
  
  It’s illegal to cruise in the left lane. If you aren’t passing anyone, the law requires (in most states) that you go back to the right lane.
- cattnipp
  
  and you mostly enjoy being able to control said car and driver behind you by refusing to allow them to pass, it make you feel righteous…
- NC_Dolfan
  
  One way that I can immediately think of is maybe your speedometer and the speedometer of the person who is behind you aren’t perfectly synchronized. So maybe both of your speedos read the same speed, but one of you is traveling slightly faster. Any added perceived safety is more than negated by the frustration you cause other drivers to feel as you unnecessarily obstruct their progress.
  
  Secondly, it’s called being a bully. If you weren’t wrapped in 3000+ piece of metal, you wouldn’t dare act the way you are acting when you run block on the left lane. How about join the rest of society, and play nice with others.
Chris Frye

I Love it when this happens, and you don’t Have to be a law student! I always tell ppl, know the law. It’s not a hindrance, its your weapon
- Swede760
  
  Unless you live in Kangaroo County!
Tom Walker

You can still get a ticket for impeding traffic even if you are going the speed limit. The flow of the traffic and the basic rule apply.
William Russell

Power trippin’ cops always gotta be flexin’ them little couscous’s they call nuts.
peterdocherty

haha what a girl.
emeraldeyes24

She’s got a video of the guy so she should send a copy to whoever monitors police, or her publicly elected representative and have him identified. If she was male and black, the outcome wouldn’t have been so uneventful. Sounds to me like he was purposely spoiling for a fight. Driving is a privilege, not a right and anyone travelling 100 miles an hour having a meltdown or an ego blowout shouldn’t be wielding a deadly 2000 lb weapon. Take your ego and go home!! What drove me crazy in the US, especially in the northeast was that it seemed every hour you could be in a different state - and traffic laws are different in different states. Courtesy should be the first rule of the road and driving in the far left passing lane ”at the speed limit” when other vehicles want to pass is not courteous - and this guy knows you don’t cruise at the speed limit in the passing lane. There’s definitely something wrong with this idiot. I congratulate her.
Quiggs J Desjarlais

Sounded like he turned the siren on or am I mistaken? I’m just not sure that was really the end of that.
mcgtrinsofla

one more badge(or wannabe badge) with a side of bacon,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
RodSerlingsGhost

Presidential wanna-be Mitt Romney, when he was in college, used to put on a uniform and pull people over in traffic. It gave him some kind of sick thrill.
- Kimberly B Stone
  
  Ugh. I didn’t know that. Hate him til they crate him!
- Robert Zraick
  
  Is that really true?
  - avdrdr
    
    Yes, according to many sources. He even had a flashing “cherry light” that plugged into the cigarette lighter.
- Garcia Loca
  
  Isn’t impersonating a LEO a felony in most states?
William Cocorochio

I would never flip anyone off now a day, this guy definitely has some issues.
bailey78

I want to see the video of fifteen minutes after this. Just to see what the other cops said.
al_irish

Too bad she didn’t get the license plate of the vehicle. If she in fact called all the surrounding jurisdictions and nobody claimed to know him, the other possibility is that he was a civilian impersonating a law enforcement officer. If that is the case, that is a crime unto itself and makes the guy all the more dangerous. Even if he was a real cop, he quite clearly needs, at a minimum, some days off without pay . . .
Kriquette

She best be careful, Cops have what they call in my home town a “puke list” This cop for sure has written down her DL license plate number and gotten all her info and posted it to every cop in the state! P.S. how I know this is my dad was a cop!
- scriptspring
  
  This seems a misuse of power and information, don’t you think? What can be done with a puke list? Anything if the person on it isn’t doing anything wrong? Arbitrary pullovers?
  - Kimberly B Stone
    
    Arbitrary pullovers at a minimum. “Can I search your car?” turns into an opportunity to plant drugs or weapons. Etc.
xero42

south carolina has the worst drivers in the country (like officially) so it dosent suprise me at all this cop was driving like an ass
jamaise

I would read here more if it weren’t for the infomercial/tabloid affiliate crap that cover your pages. What, you don’t think your readers are intelligent enough to click on banner adds outside of boobs and celebrity gossip?
Brenda Smith

She did more than I would have. I wouldn’t have pulled over. If a car came up behind me flashing lights, I probably would have thought it was some crazy person. If they didn’t stop I would have called the police on them.
weslen1

I’ve lived in 8 states at various times in my life, and have met many police officers in most of them. I’ve never met a “bad” cop in any of them, and only dealt with a couple who were really dumb. The problem is that when something occurs, the good cops, if they turn in the bad cops, are the ones most likely to be fired by those who make the decisions. What we NEED, badly, in this country, is a nation wide review board to hear all cases where a bad cop is involved, taking the burden off fellow officers, who may be friends or relatives of the bad cops, or who may be retaliated against by their superiors for telling the truth. We also need to test men and women for psychological problems and bigotry before they can get the job.
Police have to deal with all people, good, bad, and everything in between, and all races and classes, and treat everyone the same. If they are not capable of that, they have no business being in the job.
sanlass

Why would you make such an assumption. He’s right. Most accidents are caused by driver error or distraction, not speed. In this case by driving slower in passing lane, it forces other drivers to try to pass the slow car on the right and creates added potential for accidents.
scriptspring

It’s a shame that all of us can’t know our rights the way a law student or lawyer can. Seems to me that being treated fairly shouldn’t be determined by how well you know the law, but it is for the rest of us.
- cattnipp
  
  YOU knowing your rights does not matter—- the SCOTUS just ruled that we only have rights IF the police officer acknowledges that we have them— that the police can deny you your rights and later claim they did not know you had any rights and not even get so much as a stink-eye look as punishment.
Kimberly B Stone

Nah, she’d be dead.
Kimberly B Stone

She missed the opportunity to get his badge number. But on the whole, getting away from him vs. getting a better identification of him, she made the right choice.
Midel Cashflow

And to believe that there are still some of you who do not believe in White Privilege. Can you imagine a person of color getting away with this? And could you imagine the comments that would be on here after the cop called for backup and they killed them on video. all we would be reading is: “He/She should have just done what He/She was told.”
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dblari

“We’re always on duty” means he could never sleep or drink alcohol without violating department policy.
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reeblite

if she were so smart, why didn’t she demand his badge, name and number to properly report him? he might not have been a cop at all. i agree with terri. flipping anyone off these days is risky business.
Virginia Liberal

Good for her!!! She sure knocked his “ego” in the dirt!
John Berg

Two blocks form my house, later at night, my kid needs to get to the bathroom. I roll the stop sign. 5 mph or so. No one around, but the cop. Asks me in a tone, do I know what he pulled me over for. I said yes I do. He asked me why. I said to collect for the village and the new expensive administrator. Sure as shit, I got the ticket.
http://sashaundercover.blogspot.com Sasha

I am unable to find the place where he shows her his ID.
Swede760

Unless it is a MARKED Police Car Never pull over! Drive straight to the nearest Police Station! Call 911 and tell them you have someone trying to pull you over and that it is an unmarked car and there is NOTHING they can do about it! If we all do this every time an Unmarked Cop tries to pull someone over they will be forced to give up their Stealth Cars because it will be too much of a pain!
http://www.theamericanrose.net/ Matt Rose

Being able to flip the bird while speeding past incompetent motorists is one of those great freedoms of being a driver.
Pliny the Elder

I love when pigs get their comeuppance!
Arturo

What we don’t know is if he was indeed passing traffic, whether there were people in front of him so he couldn’t go faster, and whether she was tailgating him first. Since she flipped him off, I’ll bet she was. There is an unfortunate belief that you must move out of someone’s “way” if you are in the fast lane and they are behind you, which is not true. If you are in a supermarket line and the checker is slow, the people in front of you don’t have to move out of your “way.” It’s a line.
loona_c

Was he in a police car? Cuz I sure wouldn’t have pulled over otherwise.
loona_c

Many years ago we were driving in GA with out outta state plates. Cuz we lived outta state. We got pulled over for speeding (we weren’t, other GA cars were passing us). We had just crossed Macon County line (LOL, cue the Deliverance banjo music). He issued the ticket and we had to FOLLOW HIM to some backwoods sheriff’s office to pay the ticket in cash right then. (It was before cell phones and I just knew we’d never be heard from again! LOL)
Ron Rankin

and then the rest of the story

Watch: Law Student Shuts Down Off-Duty Cop’s Power Trip In Under 30 Seconds (VIDEO)

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