They took 45 minutes to respond to my wife getting armed robbed in our tanglewood driveway. They definitely don't give a **** about your car and have far more important **** to deal with on a daily basis.

Nice tanglewood humble brag

KDubAg said:

---

I know it sucks but I can't really blame the Police Dept. There is just too much crime and motor vehicle accidents and not enough personnel (officers). And there will never be enough.

Quick stats show
67,241 MVAs in 2016 (182/day)
72,166 Thefts in last year (197/day)

There's just not enough officers to investigate and follow up each case if there is that many new cases per day.

Not including burglary, rape, murder, assault, robbery per day...

Now you can see why they don't bother with the little stuff (besides not generating income). But they need to money to fund the department somehow. Better to help offset the cost by getting it from people who "break the law", than raising taxes or getting bonds approved, or other dumb tax or fees on the citizen.

I'm not a police officer

---

Lol. I got a ticket for changing lanes too close to an intersection in front of Minute Maid. A few weeks ago. If anything qualifies as little sruff, it's that. They had plenty of time.

1876er said:

---

KDubAg said:

---

I know it sucks but I can't really blame the Police Dept. There is just too much crime and motor vehicle accidents and not enough personnel (officers). And there will never be enough.

Quick stats show
67,241 MVAs in 2016 (182/day)
72,166 Thefts in last year (197/day)

There's just not enough officers to investigate and follow up each case if there is that many new cases per day.

Not including burglary, rape, murder, assault, robbery per day...

Now you can see why they don't bother with the little stuff (besides not generating income). But they need to money to fund the department somehow. Better to help offset the cost by getting it from people who "break the law", than raising taxes or getting bonds approved, or other dumb tax or fees on the citizen.

I'm not a police officer

---

Lol. I got a ticket for changing lanes too close to an intersection in front of Minute Maid. A few weeks ago. If anything qualifies as little sruff, it's that. They had plenty of time.

---

Yeah, the typical practice for a group faced with too many jobs for too few people is to put most of the people doing the job they believe is most important. The fact that there are dozens of cops out writing speeding tickets in places where everybody speeds, while they can't seem to find any detectives that want to investigate rampant vehicle theft and breakins tells you exactly what the departmental priorities are.

It wasn't a warm reception but thanks for posting all the same. I miss the insight AgofEnlightenment used to provide on this board.

I have a buddy who is a deputy in another county, and he loves to play supercop on Facebook. He's a big believer that Black Lives Matter is turning regular, law-abiding folks against the police. I think that the interactions we are talking about here are more likely to sour folks on cops.

I was side-swiped a couple of years ago, and the HCSO deputy who (finally) arrived tried to talk me out of getting a police report. After I finally convinced him to do his ****ing job, he didn't bother to check that the insurance card she provided had expired a year ago and she didn't have insurance. So my insurance got to foot the bill while she got off without any repercussions.

Police funding encompasses pensions, which CoH (and every other jurisdiction in the country) has done a poor job of maintaining fiscally. Any additional resources dedicated to helping make Houston a safer place has to first run through the city crony filter, then the union crony filter, then the retirees get the otherwise larger benefit cut reduced before we get something in the budget to attract qualified candidates to a thankless job.

Meanwhile, at the start of the evening rush hour, cops on motorcycles are writing seatbelt citations on the actual entrance ramp to 45 gridlocking half the routes out of downtown.

If you want more credibility among the public about limited resources, how about we start with cutting out the operations that inconvenience thousands of people to enforce a law that only protects people from a slightly higher risk of injury to themselves while ignoring property crimes for which the actual investigative work is already complete.

schmellba99 said:

---

Dunners2011 said:

---

Having the license plate solves nothing for this. The suspect has to be identified. Can't put the car in jail. And without witnesses and a clear view of the driver you won't be able to charge anyone with this.

---

Of course it doesnt. I mean, not like you can look up the LP number and get a name, address, etc of the refistrant of that number. Nope, that cant be done.

Drive 8mph over the limit though? That is definitely worth the time to issue a citation.

---

Red light cameras don't seem to care who was driving the car.

Boo Weekley said:

---

Law enforcement is not here to protect and serve, they are here to shake you down. They'll expect you to take it like a man and for you and your insurance to handle it and you'll pay a slightly increased premium while the illegal or felon gets away scott free and you pay for their misdeeds...LEO's have decent, tax paying, law abiding citizens to harass as another form of tax for the city and state. Part of living in a liberal sanctuary city full of Beto loving eunuchs is that illegals can easily get away with being a net drain/burden on society in so many ways. This is just one of many. Don't get me started on the ER's, schools etc.

Also gotta laugh when anti-gun libs put their faith in cops. When seconds count, they could be 10-45 minutes away.

Political rant over.

---

We need privately financed death squads like they have in Rio.

BBRex said:

---

I have a buddy who is a deputy in another county, and he loves to play supercop on Facebook. He's a big believer that Black Lives Matter is turning regular, law-abiding folks against the police. I think that the interactions we are talking about here are more likely to sour folks on cops.

I was side-swiped a couple of years ago, and the HCSO deputy who (finally) arrived tried to talk me out of getting a police report. After I finally convinced him to do his ****ing job, he didn't bother to check that the insurance card she provided had expired a year ago and she didn't have insurance. So my insurance got to foot the bill while she got off without any repercussions.

---

I don't think it's BLM, but that may be a part of it. It goes further back than that. However, my alleged lane change violation a few years ago opened my eyes to how the police profile people. 40 year old insured moms in school zones and 50 year old couples on a date are just easier to shake down. Sure, there are still plenty of DWB's issued, but not all cops are cut out for that.

He wants to think the public's growing suspicion and frustration with police is tied to some national, b.s. movement organized by cop-haters. I think the average person, who is mostly supportive of the police, starts to get more irritated then mad because their admittedly rare interactions with officers is usually an exercise in frustration. In one hand, you get your speeding tickets, but on the other, when you need some help, the police take an hour to show, try to talk you out of having them do their jobs, then have an attitude about the whole thing. Why would anyone support that?

BBRex said:

---

He wants to think the public's growing suspicion and frustration with police is tied to some national, b.s. movement organized by cop-haters. I think the average person, who is mostly supportive of the police, starts to get more irritated then mad because their admittedly rare interactions with officers is usually an exercise in frustration. In one hand, you get your speeding tickets, but on the other, when you need some help, the police take an hour to show, try to talk you out of having them do their jobs, then have an attitude about the whole thing. Why would anyone support that?

---

Yep. Law abiding citizens who think that somebody weaving through traffic going 20 mph faster than everybody else should get popped, not the guy changing lanes without signaling on an empty street.

I had 4 cars pull me over a few years ago because I had a tail light out. Apparently it was an APB. I had 2 babies in car seats in the back...apparently on my way to commit dastardly deeds.

Meanwhile, my recent immigrant son has 4 guys jump out of a pickup, beat him up, call him an N, and do $3500 damage to his face. He id's them in school. What came of it? Nothing. HPD decides it was a "mutual affray," which is code for "might require work."

Years ago my neighbors had teenage sons, and they would have huge drinking parties, often parent-enabled. One night at about 2 a.m., we'd had enough so we just called HPD. They showed up about an hour later. No citations were issued - none for the homeowner, and certainly no MIP's. What they did do was tell all of the drunk kids to go home, so they all got in their cars and drove off. Who wants to do all the paperwork for that, or make tedious phone calls to their parents to come get them?

94chem said:

---

Years ago my neighbors had teenage sons, and they would have huge drinking parties, often parent-enabled. One night at about 2 a.m., we'd had enough so we just called HPD. They showed up about an hour later. No citations were issued - none for the homeowner, and certainly no MIP's. What they did do was tell all of the drunk kids to go home, so they all got in their cars and drove off. Who wants to do all the paperwork for that, or make tedious phone calls to their parents to come get them?

---

and if one of those drunk kids get in a wreck the parents would sue HPD for making them leave a safe environment.

Martin Q. Blank said:

---

Those getting their cars broken into, report to the police that a handgun is missing. Then they'll solve the case.

---

So file a fraudulent report??????

KDubAg said:

---

schmellba99 said:

---

Dunners2011 said:

---

Having the license plate solves nothing for this. The suspect has to be identified. Can't put the car in jail. And without witnesses and a clear view of the driver you won't be able to charge anyone with this.

---

Of course it doesnt. I mean, not like you can look up the LP number and get a name, address, etc of the refistrant of that number. Nope, that cant be done.

Drive 8mph over the limit though? That is definitely worth the time to issue a citation.

---

What's that going to prove? If the driver doesn't stop and admit to it, or no witnesses, or no video..how is just getting a LP to police going to help with anything. If that works, I'll go and say this (person I don't like) swiped me, hit me and give PD his LP #.

Seems like that would be a good insurance scam if they went after people, bc he said she said.

---

A cursory inspection of a vehicle,can,determine,if a sideswipe or accident occured. That is the job of the police.

Of course, the alternative is that you get sideswiped, the prevaiking attitude is that you have insurance, deal with it, and your insurance rates go up because of somebody elses actions and the inability or apathy of the law enforcement force to do more than write tickets for expired registrations.

I dont expect a legion of CSI guys to,come raining down for everything. But if you can provide the make, model and description of the person in this situation, along,with the LP number, there is zero excuse for the police to not make a quick investigation.

And if they are simply too overloaded or busy for this, then they are damned sure too overloaded and busy to issue speeding tickets or registration tickets or have escorts for critical mass or most other things that they seem to always find time for.

94chem said:

---

BBRex said:

---

He wants to think the public's growing suspicion and frustration with police is tied to some national, b.s. movement organized by cop-haters. I think the average person, who is mostly supportive of the police, starts to get more irritated then mad because their admittedly rare interactions with officers is usually an exercise in frustration. In one hand, you get your speeding tickets, but on the other, when you need some help, the police take an hour to show, try to talk you out of having them do their jobs, then have an attitude about the whole thing. Why would anyone support that?

---

Yep. Law abiding citizens who think that somebody weaving through traffic going 20 mph faster than everybody else should get popped, not the guy changing lanes without signaling on an empty street.

I had 4 cars pull me over a few years ago because I had a tail light out. Apparently it was an APB. I had 2 babies in car seats in the back...apparently on my way to commit dastardly deeds.

Meanwhile, my recent immigrant son has 4 guys jump out of a pickup, beat him up, call him an N, and do $3500 damage to his face. He id's them in school. What came of it? Nothing. HPD decides it was a "mutual affray," which is code for "might require work."

---

No, I don't care about that guy (assuming he's not actually reckless driving and causing accidents). I would much rather see the butthole driving in the left hand lane and not moving over get a ticket. Or the two buttholes driving side by side where nobody can pass them get tickets. Or the 350 lb black chick with fingernails as long as eagle talons who is jabbering away on her cell phone and is too damned good to pay attention to the world around them get a ticket. Or the Asian that is scared to get over rickshaw speed and is causing problems get a ticket. Or the resources spent on busting 2 adults that want to hook up in a hotel room for the hibbity-dibbity and a few hundred bucks get spent on things that actually matter.

What's frustrating is hearing LEO's say "yeah, that Target parking lot is a known hot spot for vehicle break ins - happens all day every day" and them not doing a fuggin thing about it.

What are the chances anyone that matters will read this? Many of these posts accurately describe the sentiment of the public and this is a growing problem. Not saying there are any solutions in the thread, but accurately stating the problem is a good start.

In my experience if a policeman did not actually visually see the accident then their report is crap anyways unless there is a 3rd party witness that stopped and waited for the police to get there to give their testimony.

Call your insurance company, give them the license plate number and let them do their job.

Dunners2011 said:

---

And all you ranting and rambling about traffic tickets the guy a couple up from me is right. I haven't written a ticket in weeks. Too busy going call to call trying to catch up with the tremendous workload we have. Our department is less than a third the size of other departments with same amount of citizens.

Want to feel safe? On any given night I work a beat with about 20 thousand citizens, usually all alone. So yes your little property crimes matter but we don't have the resources to solve them all.

Houston needs officers and funding and until we get that we will not be solving all the simple thefts and car accidents.

---

Well when you say things like "yes your little property crimes matter"...a blind person can read the sarcasm. Your caring is shining through. On another note... check your local fire station or under pass, maybe some of your brothers in blue can help ease your workload. Sorry you're funding went to 26 percent in pay raises in the past 8 years. At least you have a working patrol car, with functioning a/c, that you don't have to worry about breaking down in the middle of the freeway daily.

Oh on a side note, remember vote yes for HFD pay parity in November. Thanks brother

Bondag said:

---

In my experience if a policeman did not actually visually see the accident then their report is crap anyways unless there is a 3rd party witness that stopped and waited for the police to get there to give their testimony.

Call your insurance company, give them the license plate number and let them do their job.

---

Most insurance companies won't process a claim against another motorists insurance without seeing that you filed a report with police. Even if the police never come investigate it, they want you to file the report. My wife had a vehicle hit hers in the company parking garage. They had video from building management showing the license plate and driver and the vehicle hitting her car. The insurance company still wanted her to file an online accident report form with law enforcement before pursuing the other driver.