Beau
I was never here.
So I had to take a trip over to Indiana last week. On the way home I was stopped in Illinois. Now I hadn't seen a single officer the whole way through until about mile marker 15. Then they were everywhere. I checked my speed as I tend to set the cruise a few miles over the speed limit. I think to myself that I am glad I dissembled my handguns and locked them separately from the ammo. And then it happens.
I had just got into the left lane to get around a slow truck. A car had just passed me so when I got over I was behind them by a couple car lengths. After passing the truck I got back into the right lane. In my mirror I notice a suburban pull in behind me. The second thing I noticed was the spotlight above the drivers side mirror. I knew what was coming next.
He comes up on the passenger side and asks for the usual. I decided to throw him off a little bit by not saying anything. I handed him my papers, put my hands back on the steering wheel and waited in silence. He looks at my papers, looks around the inside of my van and then tells me he pulled me over for following to closely and for "hugging" the line a couple times. He looked at me expectantly. I assume he was waiting for the "but officer, I'm innocent" that he usually gets from people. I replied simply, okay.
He tells me that he is not going to write me a ticket he is just going to run my information. He starts to step away but turns back to me and asks me to join him in his cruiser while he ran my information. Again I am thinking how glad I was that I had disarmed and didn't have a gun on my belt. I get out of the car and he asks me if I have any weapons on me, knives, guns etc.. I pat my pockets and my waist and reply no.
So we get to his car and the questions start. Every question he asked I paused before answering so I could decide if I wanted to answer and how to answer. In talking with him he flat out admitted that he, and the other police that I had seen were on a fishing expedition. They were looking for any traffic infraction, no matter how slight, in order to pull people over and fish for something more.
Anyway, he wrote the warning and sent me on my way. While I don't agree with what they were doing I was surprised how "nice" the officer was. He did not act the way I figured an IL trooper would act.
Couple other curious things.
When he came to the window I am almost certain the bottom of my mag pouches on my belt were visible. Not sure if he saw it or not.
I had a cylinder for a .22 sitting on the center console. He had to have seen this. I wonder if he did see and that is why he asked me to get out of the car. But if he did see it why wait until I was out to ask about weapons.
I wonder if the reason he waited to ask about weapons was because he did see the mag pouch and/or cylinder and was hoping that I would get out of the car with a weapon on me.
He did not do a pat down.
In his vehicle a camera was pointed right at me. I could see my face on the display screen. I wonder if our interaction was recorded. I also wonder what else it does.
The craziest part of all is this. I hate to admit it but this is the first time I have disarmed while driving through IL. I never stop in IL. I stay on the interstate the whole way through. I figure why should I disarm just because the road I'm on passes through a place that doesn't understand the 2A.
For some reason this time I decided to stop and disarm. Doing so probably saved me from a world of hurt. I've never been stopped in IL before. I am sure this was divine intervention. Thank you Jesus!
I had just got into the left lane to get around a slow truck. A car had just passed me so when I got over I was behind them by a couple car lengths. After passing the truck I got back into the right lane. In my mirror I notice a suburban pull in behind me. The second thing I noticed was the spotlight above the drivers side mirror. I knew what was coming next.
He comes up on the passenger side and asks for the usual. I decided to throw him off a little bit by not saying anything. I handed him my papers, put my hands back on the steering wheel and waited in silence. He looks at my papers, looks around the inside of my van and then tells me he pulled me over for following to closely and for "hugging" the line a couple times. He looked at me expectantly. I assume he was waiting for the "but officer, I'm innocent" that he usually gets from people. I replied simply, okay.
He tells me that he is not going to write me a ticket he is just going to run my information. He starts to step away but turns back to me and asks me to join him in his cruiser while he ran my information. Again I am thinking how glad I was that I had disarmed and didn't have a gun on my belt. I get out of the car and he asks me if I have any weapons on me, knives, guns etc.. I pat my pockets and my waist and reply no.
So we get to his car and the questions start. Every question he asked I paused before answering so I could decide if I wanted to answer and how to answer. In talking with him he flat out admitted that he, and the other police that I had seen were on a fishing expedition. They were looking for any traffic infraction, no matter how slight, in order to pull people over and fish for something more.
Anyway, he wrote the warning and sent me on my way. While I don't agree with what they were doing I was surprised how "nice" the officer was. He did not act the way I figured an IL trooper would act.
Couple other curious things.
When he came to the window I am almost certain the bottom of my mag pouches on my belt were visible. Not sure if he saw it or not.
I had a cylinder for a .22 sitting on the center console. He had to have seen this. I wonder if he did see and that is why he asked me to get out of the car. But if he did see it why wait until I was out to ask about weapons.
I wonder if the reason he waited to ask about weapons was because he did see the mag pouch and/or cylinder and was hoping that I would get out of the car with a weapon on me.
He did not do a pat down.
In his vehicle a camera was pointed right at me. I could see my face on the display screen. I wonder if our interaction was recorded. I also wonder what else it does.
The craziest part of all is this. I hate to admit it but this is the first time I have disarmed while driving through IL. I never stop in IL. I stay on the interstate the whole way through. I figure why should I disarm just because the road I'm on passes through a place that doesn't understand the 2A.
For some reason this time I decided to stop and disarm. Doing so probably saved me from a world of hurt. I've never been stopped in IL before. I am sure this was divine intervention. Thank you Jesus!