So I was biking home from school, typical day, and then I reach the intersection I take to go home. The intersection leads into some train tracks. I need to cross these in order to head home. Simple, right? Only this time, a pedestrian got ran over by a train and thus there were a ton of cops there. There was a blonde woman (sort of crabby. She was part of Tustin PD) and a traffic cop. They told me to go around to Ritchie and then to McFadden so I could head home. So I biked around on the path they told me.

...But Ritchie was farther of a route than they had told me. Like, past a giant auto mall. Full of heavy traffic. I just called my mother and she's on that street right now and it's very bumper to bumper and most other cars are moving pretty fast, so it'd be dangerous and time-consuming for me to head through there.

The only other way to McFadden was over a freeway exit. Pedestrians on bikes aren't allowed on this stretch of freeway. I decided to head back to the intersection, but then I realized something. The area where the street my house is on, Newport, is split into two areas, both leading into a dead end. I figured I could cross the dead end, but it led into a creek just past some railroad tracks. I didn't want to cross over the creek with my bike though, so I started walking back to the intersection along the tracks to see if I could go back the way I wanted to.

Guess what? I couldn't. Big mistake.

The cops were still there. One of the railroad guys (fat dude. Smoking a huge-ass cigar too. And it smelled.) stopped me and told me that "that man there would like to see [me]." That man there was a cop. Along with three other cops. One of those police officers was the crabby lady who told me off before. This time, however, she told me that "I told you to take Mantle [a different route than the one I heard before. I'm not even sure this one exists?] and then McFadden to head back home." I replied that I went down that way but couldn't get through to Mantle and came back down here. One of the other guys told me to put down my bike, and my backpack, and he handcuffed me and patted me down. He was searching me for any weapons I might have, so he said. A third cop said that "[I must've] been a rich kid" because the fine for this was $1000.

What the ****.

The cop who was patting me down took my iPod out of my pocket, finding nothing else, and then put it in my bag. He asked for my ID. My school wallet was in the large zipper of my backpack, and I nodded it out to him; being unable to reach it myself, all I could do was lean my head over to the backpack zipper and then touch it with my helmet. He found my ID (Shariq Dhami) and he gave it to the other cops. One of them made a remark about how "Woodbridge usually has high test scores" obviously demeaning my intelligence. (I understand I make stupid mistakes a lot, including now, but come on. That's just rude.) The fourth cop took my ID and began writing up a ticket, asking for various information- my name, address, etc. The Tustin cop who made fun of me twice started explaining how I was trespassing and trains get slowed down and it cost a lot of money to commerce and etc. and that the cops were here because a guy was ran over, thus slowing down train traffic. So basically he was *****ing about not getting paid as much at the end of the year because people like me make honest mistakes. Then he and the female officer left, as the handcuff guy and the guy writing my ticket stuck around. They asked me if I saw the signs about trespassing, which showed up every 1000 feet. They didn't account for my bad eyesight though. In spite of the fact that I'm 16, I'm legally unable to drive (once I get a license, anyway) without corrective lenses. I explained to them as such. The cop who wrote me up gave me my carbon copy of the ticket, said I had performed a misdemeanor for trespassing along a railroad track, and that I have to show up in court at 7/21/2011 or else a warrant is issued. They then let me go along the route I originally intended to go on, and I headed home and called mom and explained to her everything I just said.

So yeah. This is technically my first offense, even though I didn't do anything wrong nor did I do anything beforehand. I was handcuffed and patted down like a criminal, I was myself demeaned by one officer, and they wrote me up. The fine is apparently a thousand dollars and/or community service.

I realize that, sure, I was trespassing, but does this really necessitate me being patted down and then written up for a $1000 fine and a court date? This really brought my entire day down. And it pisses my mom off too. She's not mad at me, she's mad at the police officers. All I wanted to do was to go home. When I couldn't get home, I decided to go back and I get written up. This is really unbelievable, really stupid, and really unbelievably stupid.

This is horrible... I mean you don't go on the tracks while there are trains right?

This is completely stupid and idiotic on the police's part.

Being 16, having a $1,000 fine, being treated like a criminal, but it was actually a misdemeanor... just rude and the police has to go picking on children/minors now-a-days, they should elsewhere looking for the real crooks.

.....
Utterly ludicrous. This is easily one of the most outrageously ridiculous things I have ever heard of in my life.

Alright, firstly, just wanted to say that the sheer detail you were able to recall this in for this post is pretty impressive.

Anyway, did you happen to actually begin crossing the area you weren't supposed to when they stopped and handcuffed you? Because if not, then you're only being fined on suspicion and presence, which doesn't in fact warrant a fine (granted, laws may differ where you live), but still, it doesn't make sense from a judicial point of view. If you did end up actually crossing before they stopped you, then perhaps yes, it does explain them questioning you, but still, this is your very first offense. You have no criminal record so to speak (I'm assuming), so an action of this level should only really call for a warning, especially when taking into consideration your poor eyesight. I suppose, unless it's cleared up before then, you'll have to explain this yourself in court, but it really does look like not only an exaggeration, but an error on the police's part. What makes it even more strange is that they allowed you to go on the route you had originally intended afterwards, to "trespass" after they had set a court date, etc.
This would be like allowing someone to commit a murder once being caught, as long as they were given a court date and possible charge beforehand. If they were so intent on keeping you from taking that route, only to allow it after such action, then realistically, not only are they hypocrites, they're just weakening their case.

In any event, good luck with the whole ordeal, hopefully it passes. But I'm sure it'll all be fine, so you shouldn't worry about it too much, just let things run their course (though I can understand any apprehensiveness you would have anyway, this is a lot to go through in a day, even more so for a 16-year-old)

How much you want to bet that they only did this to you because you're half pakistani?

What the hell is wrong with these police officers? It seems like they had nothing better to do than to pick on a 16-year old teenager wanting to return back to his house. The matter is extremely ridiculous and doesn't call for all this treatment; a fine for something you never intended, let alone a court date, is stretching it too far.

Now you can't change what already took place, so you need to accept what happened with patience so that you can clarify your points during the court session. It's best to remain calm about the issue, especially since you didn't do anything wrong anyway. I wish you the best of luck on the case, and I hope that it will be resolved soon.

>Tustin

Alright this is going to sound bat#### crazy but I "almost" know who that was.

http://www.ocregister.com/news/-300155--.html
I found this on my tribe's greeting this morning on TFM, along with R.I.P. Affliction. Think I only saw the guy no less than a dozen times in-game and maybe once on their forum. It really wasn't catching my attention but now that I came across this thread it kinda just blew my mind for a minute. Checked back on Transformice forums and the Affliction talk starts towards the bottom here and picks up from there on the next page.

http://cheese.formice.com/leaderboar...ker/Affliction
Unless someone hacks into it, those stats are just gonna be frozen in time now.

You act like you think America is fair. At any rate, the judge will most likely eliminate the fine, and possibly the ticket entirely. Unlike small-town cops, judges tend to be sane.

What the ****.

I really home you get it sorted out, Lite. People are so stupid. Everyone thinks all kids are trouble these days.

@Everyone but Kero; Thanks for the support guys.

@Kero; I'm behind that train in the shot- that's where the cops cuffed me.

In any case...

Mom and I went to Tustin PD a few hours after I got home, but we were told none of the officers who were there when I was given the ticket were from Tustin. Today we went to OC Sheriff's department to file a complaint, and we were shown away and given a form to fill out a written complaint and then mail it in.

So basically

A. I can't contest the ticket at any time prior to the actual court date (And I WILL contest it. I don't want anything at all on my juvenile record and hell I don't even want any criminal record to exist)

B. Everyone in the police system is a bunch of morons and do **** by proxy 100% of the time.

Unless the cops make up some ******** testimony I've got the case in the bag.

@Mag- I'm half Mexican, half Pakistani, for one. Proper term for Asian is "Asian" or "Asiatic." However, all the cops -were- white, so I could play the race card if they say anything stupid.

Clearly you were in the wrong here. How dare you try and get home, Lite! Once you saw the tracks were closed off, you should've head back to school and slept there. Like a good kid.

I can't find a word to explain my opinion. The whole thing they did is just pointless and meaningless.
If something like that happens in Dubai, like handcuffing me, I would be in the court in the next day charging those cops. They would so regret it. Of course, if something like that happens in Lebanon, then in less than an hour my cousins would be there, beating them up and I would be on my way back home. In Lebanon, those who are from a strong area, the police would never dare say a word. This can be both good and bad.

Cops are idiots, all they do give people ticket. For example, my dad got one and he was speeding, that cops sit around getting out ticket. 5 other people got a ticket for that too and my bus driver almost did too from that ******.

Cops are now just idiots. My dad wasn't speeding (put down wrong thing), he just used self sources. Just another way for him to get money.

Best of luck for the court, Lite. This is really unfair and ridiculous that they charged you a $1000 just for crossing the train tracks. Apparently the police probably must be desperate for money if you get a $1000 fined for a petty thing like that.

I'm not getting charged a fine yet. I go to court to dispute the ticket and if I lose I get fined and I might get slapped with community service. I intend to completely get the thing off my record/make it so I don't even have a record.

What I still can't believe is the amount. Who would charge $1000 for a 16-years-old guy?! The ticket itself is just too high. We don't get such high price even if you make an accident.

funny how the day this happens I get a lesson at school for "train safety"

anyways I feel horrible, they have no rights whatsoever to do that

Damn. Another victim of cop idiocy.

I feel your pain man. I got stopped and held back for 2 hours at an airport for bringing a LETTER OPENER in my CHECK-IN LUGGAGE. I wasn't fined or anything, but I now have a record that states that I tried smuggling weapons into my country when I was 15. Brilliant.

edit: Oh, I forgot to mention, as a nice cherry on top, it was on a school trip.

EPIC BUMP

GUESS WHO'S CASE IS APPARENTLY NOT ON RECORD

See? It all worked out in the end.

I still might have to go. I went today because I was supposed to go today, and they turned me away saying that they didn't have me on file. Either they forgot the case or they postponed it. Either way I'm awesome.

Congratulations, Lite. I've been reading this topic since you posted it, and I have been on your side the entire time. I'm glad that you haven't been fined/arrested/killed/etc. I really hope you're done with this and they don't being back the charges.

Congrats, Lite! Hope it still continues to work out right.

Well, that'll teach you for going outside, Lite. Be more careful next time.

I've been liking a lot of posts in this topic, I just realized

Quote:

Originally Posted by AnathemA Damn. Another victim of cop idiocy. I feel your pain man. I got stopped and held back for 2 hours at an airport for bringing a LETTER OPENER in my CHECK-IN LUGGAGE. I wasn't fined or anything, but I now have a record that states that I tried smuggling weapons into my country when I was 15. Brilliant. edit: Oh, I forgot to mention, as a nice cherry on top, it was on a school trip.

Update.

Okay.

So a couple weeks ago, a request to view the file for my case was denied for no other reason other than they didn't want us to see it. Today, we get a letter saying the case was dismissed, but I'm on probation, meaning that the record still exists and the case was on file although it's now been dropped.

My mom's angry that I have a record now, and it won't be expunged until I'm 18. I'm just glad nothing's happened or going to happen unless I run into another group of pissy cops. Mom wants to go tomorrow and file a complaint about me being on probation, but I'm not interested. It's summer. And I'd rather vegetate and play video games than have to do something important.

Well atleast you are safe, but seriously man that sucks but one has to get used that there is many stupid people on the world

While I'll admit I am a lazy a person.

But seriously this is social injustice you totally should take real action.