I was goaded
into an argument yesterday on our talk show, Morning Coffee and I took the
bait.
I mentioned
that my speed was timed by radar TWICE on Saturday on Main St. in Fairfield.
That didn’t bother me. I wasn’t speeding. What bothered me was that it was a
state trooper operating the radar.
I know this
is a familiar rant here in Fairfield….but I promise to do this once…and then I
will leave it alone. I won’t beat it like a drum for the next several years
when I don’t have an original idea for a commentary.
We don’t
need state troopers running radar in the city limits of Fairfield. We have
around 11 Fairfield city cops who are more than capable of operating a speed
gun. If they decide to pack it in, we have 6 county deputies who are also
trained.
City cops
don’t go to Sims to catch speeders…and I have never seen a county deputy
running radar on the 26 Wayne County miles of Interstate 64. That’s state
trooper territory. And that is where they should be. There are thousands of
cars rolling through….many of them speeding…..and plenty of folks not wearing
their seatbelts.
They are not
needed on the Airtex parking lot….looking to snag the good citizens of the city
in a speeding violation. I think the “superslab” running the length of the county
should give them more than enough opportunities to fill their mandated quotas.
Now…having
said that….I need to express that I greatly admire all law enforcement
professionals and thank them for their service. I just wish troopers served
somewhere other than the Airtex parking lot.
I agree. Somewhat. The Airtex parking lot could be called “private property”? But every state highway is - or should be - “fair game” to catch speeders. Actually, Dr. Dreith, I-64 is part of the Federal interstate system so shouldn’t it *only* be patrolled by Federal “troops”?
ReplyDeleteThere are counties in So Illinois that do patrol the interstates. The counties have hundreds of miles in there jurisdictions to cover and maybe 20-25 miles of interstate. That is a real misuse of resources. But it is a big source of revenue for those poor counties. Besides, the locals who might be caught speeding on the back roads might just remember the sheriff on Election Day.
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