Q about jammers and police powers

[GreigM]

With all the quite public knowledge that very few police cars are now equipped with, or performing the task of laser speed detection, and the apparently huge reduction in trafpol (a-la Dibble's post) what is stopping us all using jammers?

It seems to me that the biggest threat now is the mobile scamera van, as fixed sites can be known about in advance using radar/gps detectors and their range is limited compared to the scamera van.

So given the scamera vans are now the only unknown - what is to stop us using jammers? Even if the scamera operator knows that they've been jammed, they can't chase you down the road and stop you. Once home I believe the plod would need a warrant to dismantle your car and determine that you have a jammer, and even then there is a burden of proof that it was installed and used at the time, and I just don't think they'd bother.

So are the govmnt handing us the solution - use jammers, although illegal the chances of getting caught and prosecuted are minimal?

[TheLemming]

The summary sounds about right, although illegal, the odds of being caught and prosecuted are pretty low.

Those odds however will skyrocket if you drive around everywhere at mach 1 with the jammer on - I would be amazed if they didnt make a point of catching you.

[jeremyadamson]

Well, yeah.....but around my area I hardly ever see a van operating.....once every couple of months maybe.....so you'd have to be pretty unlucky to have come to the attention of the civvies in the van more than once.

[cliffe_mafia]

This link is quite informative..

www.ukspeedtraps.co.uk/jamlaw.htm

I believe the new jammers give the camera a general error , so the scamera operator doesn't know he is being jammed.
This gives you time to slow down if speeding and then turn off the jammer so the scammers can get a second reading.

[gone]

GreigM said:

With all the quite public knowledge that very few police cars are now equipped with, or performing the task of laser speed detection, and the apparently huge reduction in trafpol (a-la Dibble's post) what is stopping us all using jammers?

Nothing is stopping you. Only the consequences of being caught using one. The same for any offence you may be considering. "Is the time worth the crime?"

GreigM said:

It seems to me that the biggest threat now is the mobile scamera van, as fixed sites can be known about in advance using radar/gps detectors and their range is limited compared to the scamera van.

you are probably right. Why use a Jammer and not your eyes? Your eyes are infinately better at dealing with this situation. Jammers are for those with lack of observation!!!

GreigM said:

So given the scamera vans are now the only unknown - what is to stop us using jammers? Even if the scamera operator knows that they've been jammed, they can't chase you down the road and stop you. Once home I believe the plod would need a warrant to dismantle your car and determine that you have a jammer, and even then there is a burden of proof that it was installed and used at the time, and I just don't think they'd bother.

Probably not. You would become grouped along with those who fail to register their cars 'community chav mobiles' and other stuff which would go in the 'too difficult box'

GreigM said:

So are the govmnt handing us the solution - use jammers, although illegal the chances of getting caught and prosecuted are minimal?

Why not just fail to register you vehicle? No one will know at all where to go/how to find you and you will save a heap of cash in the process (until that is, you are caught )

[maxf]

gone said:

Why use a Jammer and not your eyes? Your eyes are infinately better at dealing with this situation. Jammers are for those with lack of observation!!!

Small news story in the Metro this morning was reporting a recent court judgement which allowed mobile vans to be hidden! Left the rag on the train, but can pick another up later.

[tvrslag]

Maxf

Read this this morning as well that the police have now been given the power to actually "hide" scamera vans in some cases. This only applies to Police operated vehicles and not vehicles run by, or part of any speed camera partnership which must abide by the laws governing their sighting and placement(as I understood the article).
Previously I would have agreed with Gones post regarding observation. But as vans are now likely to be hidden behind hedges a Jammer appears to be the only option, apart from becoming pshycic.


>> Edited by tvrslag on Friday 5th November 14:08

[telecat]

Ok seen the LRC100 and the LE30, what "would" you use???

[james_j]

maxf said:

gone said: Why use a Jammer and not your eyes? Your eyes are infinately better at dealing with this situation. Jammers are for those with lack of observation!!! Small news story in the Metro this morning was reporting a recent court judgement which allowed mobile vans to be hidden! Left the rag on the train, but can pick another up later.

Maybe they don't like drivers with powers of observation!

[cptsideways]

I have near perfect eyesight, but I can target a vehicle far enough away with my Pro-Laser gun at a distance that I can not recognise what the vehicle is. This is well beyong the normal range of good observation.

At 60mph I can taget you from 50 seconds away, considering it would take you less than 10 seconds to stop at that speed.

The new Pro-Laser III camera as used by Dorset £arnership has a usable range of 2 miles !!!!

[maxf]

I tend to observe long distance slightly, middle distance quite heavily and close distance very heavily. Right or wrong, my driving 'obsevation' doesn't allow for me to extensively focus on every flyover and possible scamera trap 1 mile away, as this would mean neglecting the middle and close distances.

[bluepolarbear]

gone said:

Nothing is stopping you. Only the consequences of being caught using one. The same for any offence you may be considering. "Is the time worth the crime?"

Which of course assumes it is an offence - which has yet to be proved in court.

[bluepolarbear]

tvrslag said:

Maxf This only applies to Police operated vehicles and not vehicles run by, or part of any speed camera partnership which must abide by the laws governing their sighting and placement(as I understood the article).

Didn't be fooled by the spin. There isn't a single law governing the placement of Scamera vans. They have "guidelines" which is just words in a book and even their guidelines allow them the break the guidelines in 15% of cases.

[hertsbiker]

The thing about jammers & detectors, is that they allow you to concentrate on driving safely, and you may devote more time to hazard perception rather than revenue-loss perception. I would rather people looked for kids crossing the road than be looking for speed cameras. Wouldn't you?

[lunarscope]

bluepolarbear said:

gone said: Nothing is stopping you. Only the consequences of being caught using one. The same for any offence you may be considering. "Is the time worth the crime?" Which of course assumes it is an offence - which has yet to be proved in court.

Therefore they are perfectly legal.
The only convictions for these are two cases of "perverting the course of justice" which were admitted to.
If the accused had pleeded "not guilty" then I'm sure a Judge would have agreed (certainly on appeal).
If the Police/CPS can use this charge then why don't they use the same to bring every chav/scumbag to justice whenever they do anything that prevents the collection of evidence.
Next thing you know, the Police will be charging people for closing their curtains just in case a Police Officer wants to see if a crime was being committed in the room.

[bad company]

Still using my LRC 10 but I do worry about it sometimes

[mobilecentre]

As previously mentioned there is not a specific offenece relating to the use of a laser jammer. The questions begs if they are illegal why are the government trying to ban them !

As for LRC 100 or LE 30 the Lidatek LE 30 is the latest offering from Lidatek and outperforms every other product available today.


Tim

[s a m]

I have picked up a couple of laser alerts and no plod or laser emitters in sight, I am sure that such laser light can be caused by freak refractions – I am not a technical bod, but my laser alert system is pretty good – why would it go off if it didn’t detect a laser, and if there are stray lasers bouncing about, what’s to say a high tech laser gun doesn’t pick one up by mistake.

2mile laser guns is a joke, theres no way we can trust plod with toys like that.

It is hard enough to take a photo at long range with a big lens, let alone point a laser gun at number plate moving at high speed. Whats to say one reading was bounced off the body work, and the next the number plate - could easly result in a faster speed than your actually doing.

[pic[http://pc59te.dte.uma.es/cdb/series/fox/bitmaps/wiggum.jpg[/pic]

[cptsideways]

telecat said:

Ok seen the LRC100 and the LE30, what "would" you use???

I've made a list of all the devices I've tested so far & one wins hands down over the others, for sensitivity & doing its job as required. And it's not the one your all expecting. I don't want to name & shame but one model has about a 60% failure rate.

Mail me for the info if you need to know

[deeen]

s a m said:

It is hard enough to take a photo at long range with a big lens, let alone point a laser gun at number plate moving at high speed. Whats to say one reading was bounced off the body work, and the next the number plate - could easly result in a faster speed than your actually doing.

Interesting defence sam, how could the plod prove that the reflections were off the same point on the car? Might do some measurements / calcs on mine for future reference!