Today's Doofus is a drunken driver from Spokane, WA. Apparently she believed that a recent change in State law meant that police could not legally pursue her.
As a trooper was on patrol in Spokane Valley, he spotted a Ford 150 swerving through lanes of traffic. As any officer would deduce, he reasonably believed the driver was driving under the influence.
It was reported that once the trooper pulled behind the vehicle and flicked the cruiser’s lights on, Baporis then sped up. She allegedly then started a pursuit that reached speeds of more than 100 miles per hour.
. . .
According to Washington State Patrol spokesman Trooper Ryan Senger ... the driver, Baporis, [believed] that her constitutional rights were “being violated” and therefore, [she] did not need to pull over.
In addition to refusing to pull over for the DUI suspect pursuit, it was reported that Baporis called 911 during the chase. She allegedly claimed that she was being illegally chased.
Senger responded to media by calling the 911 call- “hilarious”. You can add ironic and moronic to that.
Thankfully, the State Patrol was able to successfully and safely disable the vehicle from the DUI suspect pursuit.
There's more at the link.
I've seen this strange behavior many times before in criminals I have known. They get it into their heads in some unknown fashion that their presumed "rights" override those of anyone else (particularly law enforcement), or give them the freedom to do as they please irrespective of any danger to others their actions may pose. They insist that any attempt to enforce the law is a violation of their rights, and even (in some cases) appear to think that defending themselves against such enforcers is part of their right to self-defense. They can't be persuaded otherwise, no matter how lawyers and courts may try to explain it to them.
What's even weirder is that, when a criminal has committed a crime, he/she will regard the proceeds of that crime as their property, giving them the right to defend it against anyone trying to take it from them - be that other criminals, or the original owner, or even police. They regard it as theft to take what they've already stolen, and many end up in very serious legal trouble for acting on that impression.
On this occasion, the driver learned a lesson without it costing her too much. She may not be so lucky next time...
Peter
Actually, Washington state passed a law limiting police pursuit. Driving under the influence is one of the points that allows pursuit; but, the way this law was presented to the public by the media was that the cops wouldn't chase you. So, it is understandable that this gal would be upset that she was stopped.
ReplyDeleteWelcome to Inslee's crazy world.
https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=10.116.060
Hey Peter, I apologize for putting this here but I am trying to send you email and I'm having no luck using the contact feature on your blog. Do you have an email address I can use?
ReplyDeleteThanks,
Lalo
@Unknown: See under "About Me & Contact Info" in the sidebar.
ReplyDeleteA pickup that has most of the weight over the front axle at 100+ mph is not good.
ReplyDeleteYeah, still no luck.....
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I'm down near H-town and I've been a regular reader of this blog as well as several of your books for years. I've been enjoying your work since you were still in Louisiana, in fact.
I am hoping to meet you one day, as well as some of the other bloggers you hang with.
Maybe one day.
Lalo
@Unknown: Under "Peter" in the "Contact Me" section, look in the left column for the link "E-mail". That'll give you my e-mail address.
ReplyDeleteNope.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what it's supposed to do, but what it ain't doing, is giving me an email address.
Lalo
In the golden days of my youth, if you ran from the cops they would chase and eventually stop and arrest you, but not before they beat (a whole lotta) sense into you.
ReplyDeleteNowadays, if you run from the cops, they MAY chase and arrest you, and even when they do, the perp is often out w/ no bail before the cops get the paperwork finished. There's no incentive to stop.
A righteous beatdown will generally focus the criminal's mind and disincentives further stupidity.
But then, we used to be a real country.
@Lalo: *Sigh*
ReplyDeleteLeft-click on the link that says "E-mail". A menu will pop up. Click "copy e-mail address" (or whatever it says that's similar to that). Open your e-mail program and paste that address into the "To" field.
Q.E.D.
Welp, at least THIS time, she didn't kill anybody...
ReplyDeleteYears ago a psychiatrist (whose name escapes me at the moment) at St. Elizabeth's in D.C. did a study of the thinking patterns of career criminals and concluded that they don't think the same way law-abiding citizens do. For example, he found that a robber approaching a target did not say to himself "I'm going to take that man's money." He thought to himself instead "I'm going to get MY money which that man has." That may be why the slang for robbery was "getting paid." This is consistent with your observation.
ReplyDeleteParenthetically, he concluded that the convoluted thinking of criminals must be changed through intensive therapy for any rehabilitation to have a reasonable chance of success. My years in law enforcement provides experiential support for his thesis.
She's lucky she wasn't in the Alabama area. According to u-tube videos listed, the cops will use a PITS stop on you at 100mph+, which may result in fatalities. Car full of people, they don't care...
ReplyDeleteFWIW, I have no trouble seeing the email when following the instructions above.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't work for me either. Instead, the classic Microsoft Pop Up opens, which states, "Choose which program you wish to use to open this", and right below it list only three options (Google, Outlook, Office 365). Nothing about, "copy email address" or anything that is displayed.
ReplyDelete[BTW, . . . please don't make people feel stupid, because the instructions aren't working, . . . (smile!)].
This is why, in happier days, fleeing from The Man was carte blanche tacit approval to receive a compensatory and well-deserved PR-24 shampoo upon finally exiting the vehicle.
ReplyDeleteRecidivism was low, as the Lumps Of Knowledge imparted lessons in citizenship that lasted even longer than the scars did.
> They get it into their heads in some unknown fashion that their presumed "rights" override those of anyone else (particularly law enforcement), or give them the freedom to do as they please irrespective of any danger to others their actions may pose. They insist that any attempt to enforce the law is a violation of their rights, and even (in some cases) appear to think that defending themselves against such enforcers is part of their right to self-defense.
ReplyDelete----
Definitely; I've seen it too.
I think it's because they don't really have any conception of "rights" as we think of them. They see the world in terms of power and advantage, not rights and responsibility.
If they think they have power or advantage they will use them to the fullest, because they have to assert their position in the pecking order they interpret by what they see of the world outside their head.
My local PD quit carrying clubs long ago. They're all high tech with Tasers now. I suspect
ReplyDeleteit was mostly for convenience dealing with chairs and patrol cars.