[Starsky]

Originally Posted by MACHrophage

That is not going to fly in court b/c an officer is a "trained observer." Courts generally find that due to an officers occupation his/her ability to accurately observe and recall is better than average...therefore if an officer off duty or on duty comes into court takes an oath and states " joe blow was speeding, I know he was speeding b/c I saw him exceeding the legal limit." joe blow is going to have to come up with some really good explaination as to why the officers observations are not accurate. ( i.e. it was raining, mistaken identity, etc...)

Additionally, although opinion testimony is only allowed under limited circumstances in courts any person can give opinion testimony regarding general matters that most individuals have experienced...speed, whether or not someone is intoxicated,approximations of height and weight, etc...are allowed. Ordinary citizens can testify in court to these matters, so officers can too.

Here in Austin, if a cop pulled over someone off duty for a traffic violation he would be branded a Squirrel. Its also in our policy that we will not enforce misdemeanor violations off duty but if we feel strongly about it, can call for an on duty officer to respond. In cases of felony or life and death situations, we will take action off duty if safe to do so. Our speedometers are calibrated every 90 days. if they are out of date, no tickets for speeding are given using the vehicle to pace.