Issue date: 3/26/08 Section: ARTS & LIFE

Media Credit: Jonny Carroll Campus cruiser parked outside of the Sullivant Public Safety Center.

It's all fun and games until someone turns on the flashing red and blue lights.

"What I've been told is that if you're going five miles per hour over, then you won't get a ticket," Forth Worth senior Liand Cotto said. "That could be a lie though."

According to police officials, it is a lie.

"There is not built-in leniency within the law," Lt. Bob Summers of the Denton Police Department said. "Any speed in excess of the posted limit is a violation and could cause motorists to be detained and/or enforcement action initiated by a peace officer who observes the violation."

That said, the officer does have his or her own discretion as to whether he or she feels it is necessary to pull a person over for a given offense.

"Generally an officer wouldn't pull over for just a few miles over the speed limit," said Ed Reynolds, NT's deputy chief of police and senior associate director, "but there are contributing factors."

Those factors include weather conditions, road construction and whether or not the area is a school zone.

"If the car is speeding down Welch where a lot of pedestrians are crossing, the officer may say, 'This is too dangerous.'" Reynolds said. "I would always caution motorists to be particularly vigilant within school zones due to the hazards posed by higher pedestrian and bicycle traffic in the area."

NT officers differ from city of Denton officers in that they are employed and financed by the university. However, Summers said not to underestimate the authority of NT police when on campus.

"UNT officers are peace officers and have the same arrest authority as city of Denton police officers," he said. "They primarily address law enforcement issues, unique or in close proximity to campus property, and the public roadways within the campus area."

Reynolds said a person is more likely to see the dreaded flashing lights in the rear-view mirror after taking advantage of the imaginary five-mile-over grace period in a school zone than on the interstate.

But don't get the bright idea that you can blame the radar gun for those few extra miles on the speedometer either.

"A properly working radar unit in stationary mode is accurate within plus or minus one mile per hour, even at highway speeds," Summers said. "The court system has embraced the validity of the technology."

According to Nissan service adviser Jimmy DeLeon, attributing the guilt to a faulty speedometer won't fly either.

"It might be off by a mile or two, but they are calibrated to the actual speed of the vehicle," DeLeon said. "This is true across the board, not just for Nissan."

So it sounds like motorists are out of excuses. Instead of looking for an out when pulled over, Summers suggested cooperation as a nice alternative.

"Understand that managing traffic and enforcing vehicular law is a significant part of an officer's job," Summers said. "Intense argument with an officer or refusal to sign a ticket is generally counterproductive. The place to argue the merits of any offense is in the courtroom and not on the side of the road."

However, Reynolds said, there is one simple technique to ensure an officer won't bother you.

"If you're driving the speed limit and following all the laws, then you won't get pulled over," he said.

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