There are few things more jarring than when you're doing 80 on the freeway and spot a well-concealed police cruiser. You immediately begin to sweat, get your story straight, perform a mental check-list of license and registration, then watch the rearview mirror like a hawk to see if he pulls out. If you get the ticket, your day is ruined. If the cop was looking down, eating a donut, or just wanted a more brazen offender, flowers smell sweeter and your step is a little lighter. The San Mateo police know this all too well, but a tight budget and too few officers makes putting more cops on the street all but impossible. So drivers have been flying through the suburban streets of San Mateo without the worry of an expensive, time consuming ticket. To put a wrench in the plans of would-be traffic violators, the police have enlisted volunteers to drive actual cop cars and park them somewhere in their own neighborhood. To make the cars look more official, officer David Coy (alias: D-Coy) has been commissioned to sit behind the wheel, but this guy is as dumb as they come. D-Coy is a mannequin, and he sits behind the wheel to make the city's ruse more effective. So far, drivers are fooled, as most are obeying traffic laws under Coy's watch. We're questioning, however, why the police department would talk to the local news paper about its own deception. Officers say they want more volunteers, but what they'll likely get is area drivers that ignore their decoy. We just hope the guy we pass on I-75 every day is replaced with Dave real soon.
[Source: San Mateo Daily News (pic by Victor Maccharoli), via All Cars, All The Time]


If you've ever blown past a school bus with its lights flashing, here's proof that there is absolutely no excuse. Even Kewaskum Wisconson Police Chief Richard Knoebe isn't above the law as the officer gave himself a $235 ticket and 4 points on his driving record for passing a flashing school bus while in his patrol car. What's amazing is that the officer even had a good excuse for passing the bus. He was approaching a stopped dump truck when he saw a vehicle passing from behind. He was busy passing the truck when he belatedly noticed the school bus. Since Knoebe was the only officer around, he wrote himself up and paid the fine the next day. We're guessing Knoebe received his Cub Scout honesty badge without any issues.









