No I heard it on a police forum. Thought it was a funny term to call it.
In fact, it wasn't even being used to describe a taser being used on a civilian. During training, we have to get tasered ourselves, also take a blast of pepper spray straight ot the eyes.
There was a thread on aforementioned police forums, which was a poll. The question was "what would you rather do if you had to do it again, pepper spray or taser?"
One of the officiers replied to the thread "I'll ride the lightning over getting sprayed any day of the week."
That's where I first heard it. Thought it was sly and funny, and now I use it to this day.
Which tickets did you fight that were not "legal"? Just curious.
Typically there are legal problems with many posted speed signs, the radar guns used, the training of the officers, and the availability of public records.
posted speed signs
Speed limits should be by NHTSA standards set at 85% percentile of what people will travel on a road. This has been ignored in most cities and was ignored totally when the nation was at 55 mph on the highway. The 85% percentile is quite high on an open 4 lane highway.
radar guns used
Many guns are old, not approved for the situation it is used in or not tested daily Or calibrated on, I believe it is supposed to be a yearly basis.
training of the officers
Most officers are terrible as scientific measuring instrument. I have seen officers parked behind trees shooting through it as the wind blows. Great for erratic results. I am not sure if they do those things on purpose or not. Another one of my favorites is flicking the wrist while shooting the beam. I have seen officers do that on me. I take the ticket, go home and call the watch commander. Complain like crazy. Hope it gets to court and then get the judge to look at them like an idiot. Maybe I end up paying but that officer has to work with that judge for a long time.
the availability of public records.
The above things often need the ticketed to be able to obtain the public records like the traffic study on 85% percentile. They will do everything they can to avoid you having that on court day. Most places will only say you can have it if you have a ticket with an upcoming date. But will drag their feet so much that you will probably not get it. Then the court wont dismiss because you don't have the documents they claim you need. Actually the police should have to prove that the posted sign was legal according to 85% percentile but never do.
And just try getting records on the specific gun used, its calibration tests, history, or the training of the officer in using the gun. You should be able to get all of these but probably cant.
Many jurisdictions have changed the burden of proof so much that it is almost impossible to win cases. Because the laws are illegal, the equipment is bad, and the police don't have much interest in real crimes. But they needs their money.
