Car Rams Into Detroit Metro Check-In Counter

On Friday, a driver rammed his car the check-in area at Detorit Metro Airport.

The Detroit Free Press:  Car crashes through Detroit Metro Airport's McNamara Terminal

Six people thankfully only had minor injuries.

This certainly showed one heckuva security hole at Detroit Metro, that the driver drove right through. 

The driver was arrested while ranting after the event.

Interestingly enough, even as the New York Post showed the driver getting hauled off into custody, he has still not been identified over 72 hours later.  There has been no news or updates of any charges or whether the driver was drunk, had a mental episode or this was something else.

Kinda strange, that.

Stupid Criminals: Road Rage Is Not Good For You

Especially when you get out of the boat (ie your car).

The Detroit Free Press: Jackson County man killed in road-rage incident. What MSP says happened

A road-rage incident this past weekend in Jackson County left one man dead and another hospitalized after a third, uninvolved passerby struck both men while they were fighting in the middle of M-60 in Concord Township, the Michigan State Police said.

Yep, don't be scuffling in the middle of a highway at night - you're kinda hard to see rolling around down there, and may get hit by another vehicle as oxxured here.

According to police, the two younger men were involved in a road-rage incident. The drivers of the vehicles — a Chevy Malibu operated by the Concord man, and a Jeep Cherokee operated by the Parma man — pulled onto the shoulder of the road.

Once parked, they got out of their vehicles and began fighting in the road, where the Hanover man struck both of them

There were no winners in this incident, which appears to have been both voluntary on both their parts, and completely avoidable.

Stay in your vehicle and keep your hands to yourself. 

Nothing good happens when you try to fight it out over some slight in traffic. 

Throwing hands just because you got cut off, or the other driver is a moron is not going to improve your commute and it may just wreck your day, or life. 

Scenes From Rush Hour

Driving home in rush hour traffic, I managed to see this at a red light on one of the busiest non-highway streets in the county.

 

The lack of helmets, most especially for the child is notable.

So is the lack of a license plate.

The choice of footwear, though, is truly deserving of a chef's kiss.

Slippers.  Fargin slippers, on both of them.

Stupid Criminals: FA With Feds In Traffic, And FO

So, a progressive from Ypsilanti decided to flip off an ICE van -- twice -- and then brake-check it, again twice, almost causing a crash both times.  

Well, he got caught. 

The Detroit News: Bird-flipping driver charged after 'brake checking' immigration agents

An FBI complaint against 30-year-old Jacob Nathaniel Len describes a high-speed confrontation last month along two highways in Michigan that jeopardized the safety of 15 immigrants as a federal convoy hauled the detainees from a Border Patrol office in Metro Detroit to a privately run detention center more than 200 miles away in Baldwin in northern Michigan. 

 . . .

A lawyer for Len is not listed in court records. He is charged with using a dangerous weapon (a vehicle) to assault, resist or impede federal officers, a felony that carries a 20-year maximum sentence. 

.....

"When asked if he drove his BMW erratically in the presence of Border Patrol vehicles a few weeks prior, Len confirmed he was driving on I-96 that day and that he 'flicked off' the vehicles," the complaint reads. "Len first denied that he 'brake checked' the Border Patrol transport van but later admitted that brake checking the vehicles could have hurt the occupants inside."

Considering he knowingly did the "brake check" maneuver twice, he knew exactly what he was doing. 

Let's hope he gets the full sentence for his FAFO'ing around, and this is a federal case, in federal court, so the progressive prosecutor in Washtenaw County can't help him.

Not A Good Look

Fun window sticker seen on a car today.

Click to embiggen. 

 It says: "If you hit me with my baby in the car...  I'll whoop your ass til the cops come"

That's a great job announcing that the driver is going to commit a violent assault on another individual if an accident occurs.

So, if an accident occurs, and a fight breaks out between drivers, and the driver has this on the car, which driver in the incident do you think is likely going to get charged for the fight?

Yeah, the driver of that car is going to have some explaining to do. 

Announcing you are going to engage in violence where violence is not warranted is not a good look.  That sticker can and will be used against you if things go sideways.

It also tips off others to expect the driver of that car is going to be violent if something happens. They may be a bit extra cautious and then interpret that driver's actions as leading to a physical altercation,  causing them to react more outwardly defensively than the  driver would likely prefer.  It also gives them a head start on a self-defense defense in a fight, after all the idiot driver announced to the world that they would "whoop your ass" of anyone with whom they got into a car accident.

Given the driver of said vehicle was in fact driving like crap, and likely had a phone glued to their ear (which is now illegal in Michigan but still ignored by many), that sticker is just asking for trouble if a fender bender occurs. Given how that driver drove, that is likely at some point.

Don't put stupid stickers on your car announcing your proclivity to engage in unwarranted violence, it's going to make things a lot worse for you.

Well, That Was A Fun Way To Start Off The Morning

 

A quick reminder for people on how to use roundabouts (traffic circles):

 

1.     When the way is clear, you enter the traffic circle.

 

2.     Once you enter a circle you proceed and you do not suddenly slam on your brakes for no damn reason (allegedly because you see a car coming from the other side of the roundabout that isn’t an actual factor), causing the car behind you that was following and had also entered the circle to slam on their brakes.

 

On the upside, speed in the traffic circle is low, and my brakes work really, really good, even with the surprise factor of the elderly lady deciding to lock up her brakes right in front of me in the circle as she apparently got confused as to roundabout operation.

 

Not even a scratch on either car, nor any injuries, which is nice.

 

Startle response and blood pressure increase to start the morning off, not so much.

First Solid Snowfall of Winter

So you know it's time for bad drivers and special idiot parking season.

What's wrong with this picture?

Mr or Ms. Mercedes is in the middle of the travel row and decided to make his/her own parking space, with tons of open spots available. Probably too entitled to walk an extra 3 feet. S/He will likely be very upset if the Cadillac pulls out and smacks the car as it is trapped by the Mercedes' front end with not enough room to get out (not that they are lined up nicely in their space either, but still).

On top of seeing the parking special when I arrived, it was fun just getting to the parking lot. A lady in a Lincoln decided the best way to drive was centered on the lane divider between two lanes while she toddled along at 23 mph on a 45 mph road. She endeared herself to everyone she was blocking in both lanes for over a mile.

Patience is certainly required when driving and indeed parking in the winter in Michigan, that's for sure.

The Most Dangerous Part Of Yesterday

The time Mr. B. and I were in the most danger yesterday did not take place while we were in the air.

Instead, it took place when I drove towards a solid green at the T-intersection from the south side of the airport to turn left onto the M-59 Highway.

I was in the left turn lane and starting the turn on the already solid green when Mr. B. said "look out!" I had seen it as well, and was hitting the brakes as he said it, and we came to a sharp halt.

An idiot in a Jeep had decided decided to whip through the already very, very, solid red without looking to see if anyone was coming out of the airport drive. It's not like he was running a yellow, this had already been a solid red before he got near the intersection.

This led to some incredulous looks by both Mr. B. and myself, as well as some language not appropriate for a general audience -- much of which concerned the dubious parentage and proclivities of the Jeep driver.

Had I been moving faster to make that turn, it would have been rather bad.  I then finished the turn on the green, well behind the speeding Jeep and no one else tried to bash through the light like that. The Jeep then came to a stop at the very next red light as there were already cars stopped in front of it, and the idiot driver really hadn't saved himself any time, so there's that at least. 

It was far more dangerous on the ground than in the air yesterday.

What Is Up With People Ignoring Red Lights Recently?

Not sure what to make of this.  Yesterday and today alone,  I've seen three people run red lights.

Not running as in going through a light color-shifting from late yellow to hot red, but I,m talking full-on intentional go through fully established red lights where other cars have already come to a full stop.

Yesterday, a fellow ran through a red light on a 4-lane major road without even stopping at all as the lane was empty, other three lanes had cars stopped at the red long before he came whipping up, including mine.  Luckily there was no crossroad traffic with the green light at the time but he plowed on through.

Also yesterday, idiot on a motorbike didn't just decide to weave through the lanes, he came up and weaved through the intersection when he had a red and I and other drivers had a green and were already in the intersection. That was a very almost surreal "WTF?!?" moment.

Today, I saw one guy come up to the light, come to a stop, and then drive through the solid red and make a left turn from a two-way street to a two way street. He apparently did not wish to wait long enough for the light to change.

While it is true that, in Michigan, you can make a left turn on red from a one-way to a  one-way street (this freaks the heck out of people not from Michigan btw), you cannot make a left turn on a red from a two way to a two way.  

While there was a break in traffic on the street with the green and he took it, still, no bueno. He also didn't save all that much time doing it either.

Not sure what the heck is going on.  All of this idiocy was during the day in clear conditions and no possibility any of them did not see the solid red lights that they all happily and impressively stupidly blazed through.

Apparently, It Does Take Someone (Or Even Two People) Getting Killed To Be Fired From A Detroit Union Job

The Detroit News:  Detroit bus driver who killed pedestrian downtown fired

A bus driver with a record of a crash per year (unclear if it is all buses or also personal smash-ups) for the last eight years has now finally been fired from Detroit's Department of Transportation after she ran over a pedestrian a few days ago. That latest fatal crash involved running over the pedestrian in a crosswalk right in front of her bus.

One of those eight prior crashes included a fatality in 2015.

That action wasn't taken after a driving record of 8 crashes until she ran over a person with her bus on camera tells you all you need to know.

Michigan's Distracted Driving Law To Go Into Effect June 30

Say goodbye to penalty-free holding your phone to your ear, and other uses of the phone as a distraction, while driving in Michigan starting June 30.

 The Detroit News: Whitmer signs distracted driving laws: When they go into effect

While I tend to have a bit of a libertarian bent as far as phone use while driving goes, it is unfortunately and very readily apparent that most Michigan drivers cannot handle it. 

Heck, I noticed years ago how just holding a phone and talking on it visibly degraded my driving performance, and have been hands-free (on the rare occasions I actually need to talk to someone while driving - most calls can wait until you're at your destination and can pay full attention to the call) for years and years now.

From driving under the speed limit (generally in the left lane) with a phone visibly pressed to their ears; to intermittent and uncalled for braking; to not going when the light turns green; or for some reason hitting the brakes before going through a green light; or much more dangerously going through a solid red, there's a lot of distracted drivers yaking, texting, or playing on their phones out there.

Yes, I have been hit by a distracted driver - a couple years ago, hit from behind while I was stopped at a red light, not a particularly pleasant experience and wholly avoidable had the moron been looking up at the road ahead instead of at their phone.

Since most cars today have easily usable hands-free options, this is pretty darn easy to comply with. It is unfortunately a needed law due to the sheer number of idiot drivers not paying attention to properly operating their vehicles out there.

When you're driving, your attention needs to be on your driving first, everything else is secondary to that. It shouldn't take a law to require this basic approach to vehicle operation, but it sadly seems that it does.

Jesus Took The Wheel . . .

And promptly badly violated Michigan's Vehicle Code.

I kid thee not, the red SUV in front of me this morning had a license plate of "JESUS07".

Not sure if that meant the driver was from a long line of Hispanics named Jesus and the driver was the seventh in line, or if the driver was a gamer.

Well, JESUS07 was driving right along. Driving so far along in fact that the driver then drove right past a school bus that had its red lights and stop sign out but JESUS07 carried on its merry way.   You're really, really, not supposed to do that. Don;t know if that counts as a sin or merely a sign of stupidity and/or not paying attention.

I, on the other hand stopped for the school bus, and as a result never caught up with the driver who kept zipping along and then turned off the road before I did so I couldn't get a picture.  Maybe the school bus had a camera and got him.

Range Trip and Sunday Drivers

So this morning I went to my range's monthly business meeting.  Not as painful as one might expect and things got done,but some parts certainly dragged along unnecessarily. No biggie.

After the meeting Tosh, Duffy and Anthony were waiting and we then setup to shoot and we first shot rifles and then I got to shot my new A-Zone steel at 7 and 25 yards.  Lots of fun and I - you guessed it - need more practice.  I wasn't hititng any of the MSP Black Belt standards today.  But, it was extra satisfying hearing that sweet ping sound when i hit my own steel plate at 25 yards off the draw, as slow as it may have been.

Given the ammo shortage and a match coming up next weekend,  that's 50 more flawless  (and expensive) rounds through the IWI Masada today.

A good time had by all.

Then driving home on the highway with no issue of note.  I exit and the exit has 4 lanes - 2 lanes tro the left and 2 to the right.  

I'm in the outside left  lane.  To make the turn super easy even for morons, there is a dotted white line for the turn separating the two lanes.

So of course the idiot driver beside me on the inside turn lane (with a Biden Harris sticker no less) cunningly makes the turn from the inside lane and in the midst of the turn drifts completely into my lane. Oh, I'm in that lane at the time.  Not pleasant, but I avoid the collision. 

Ok then.  Idiots abound and glad I was looking out for that.

Then less than a mile from that incident, I'm in the left lane keeping up with traffic, and a white Ford Explorer decides to leave a strip mall on the right side and instead of turning into the right lane decides to turn right into the left lane right in front of me going a heckuva lot slower than the 45mph I am going.

Brakes are quickly stomped upon and a horn is loudly sounded to indicate I don't enjoy almost getting hit by a complete moron who can't merge into traffic and he had an entire empty right lane he could have easily turned into.

He takes affront at this and when we get parallel as I had to change lanes to avoid him and he starts flipping me off, then dicking around in traffic playing braking and lane changing games and being a jerk.  Whatever.  I'm not engaging with that kind of crap.  I just drop back to avoid the douchebag and carry on my way while he speeds off in a huff and nearly hits another car as he does so.

Two close calls on the same road is a bit worrisome.  Too many lousy drivers out there at the moment, probably lots of them just started driving again since Covid began and have unlearned how to change lanes, turn, and enter a road.

Good time at the range and some excellent accident and road rage avoidance practice.

Stupid Criminals: How To Not Talk Yourself Out Of A Ticket

Americans have the right to remain silent, but most, while having that right, really lack the ability.

Generally, when you're caught speeding, it's unlikely you will be able to talk your way out of the ticket.

Most people just accept the fact they were speeding, take the ticket and deal with it.

Some people try to talk their way out of it.

And a minority of complete morons manage while trying to "talk their way out of it" to dig themselves in way deeper as did today's example of a stupid criminals:

The Detroit News: Driver threatens to kill officer, burn down police station after he clocks 130 mph on I-75, police say

Because nothing helps you win friends, influence people, and not get yourself out of a ticket like threatening the cop who gave you the ticket. It's a real winning strategy.

As one may expect, and to no one's surprise, such a threat really didn't improve the situation.

The driver was charged with reckless driving, having no operator’s license, hindering and obstructing a police officer, and intimidation – threatening to burn a police facility, authorities said.

Quite an effective way to talk yourself up from a civil infraction into a whole pack of misdemeanors, which could have also had a felony tacked on had the prosecutors or police felt like doing so.

Next time, try being polite and see how that goes.

Today's Quick Driving Legal Tip

Well, you happen to drive a lime-green Dodge Challenger and it's snowing a bit, oh, what to do?

So, you want to rev your engine a lot and do donuts in a parking lot, and also race back and forth between some interconnected parking lots and on and off the street at high speed and with maximum noise.

In other words you want to drive like a jerk in a lime-green Challenger.

The tip: Don't do this within hearing distance of a police station on the same street.

Just too much fun to watch two police SUVs converge, box him in, and nail him.

Random Thoughts On Road Travel Through Different States

Michigan roads seriously suck. You can actually feel the difference when you leave the state and enter Ohio.

Ohio drivers, for some reason, seem compelled to pass you on the right of the highway, even when the left lane is clear and available for passing. Why this is, no one knows.

Ohio is also a helluva long state, and just as you think you've made it, the area in Cincinnati right before the bridge between Cincinnati and Covington, Kentucky is always under construction, always having a goofy traffic jam and the signage basically sucks. Again, no reason why, it just is, Every. Single. Time.

Tennessee drivers tend to be fine, although just as in the above states, BMW drivers have not ponied up for the expensive turn signal option for their vehicles.

Georgia - Atlanta traffic on 75 really sucks, and Atlanta goes on forever. Not having the express lane open was a BS move there Atlanta, really. The traffic just past Atlanta near the 475 Valdosta bypass somehow manages to suck even more and go even slower. But at least there are good BBQ stops close to the highway which makes up for it somewhat.

Florida drivers are their own special breed:

Yep, lots of left lane hogs at or below the limit, with lots of people in all lanes that couldn't find a speed limit with both hands. Those people were coupled with those who thought the speed limit should be ignored and weave in between those who don't doing about 95. Watched one moron do 10 lane changes going across all lanes no less, in less than 3 miles, complete with tailgating before each lane change, and it didn't actually get him all that farther than if he just stayed in a lane.

The most important question with Florida drivers is: Can someone please tell me how the living hell you can manage to be useless enough cause an accident on a clear day, with perfectly smooth and dry roads, with said accident being big enough to shut down the entire freeway going south to a complete halt for over an hour and a half?

That was no fun parked sitting in that and finally seeing 4 tow trucks come up from behind us and then go on up to the accident location and it finally began to open up after that. Sheesh.

One possible answer could have been drivers like the one idiot I saw texting with both hands, while speeding on the highway and doing a fair bit of weaving, because hey, who needs to touch a steering wheel when going 80-85 mph, texting is more important, right?

It was an adventure getting to Florida last week, and that was without any particularly bad weather aside from a dash of rain in spots.

Detroiters And Car Insurance, Part Deux

Got a call from a Detroiter today who has, yes you guessed it, outstanding tickets and warrants in my jurisdiction.

First she figures since marijuana is now legal, her open warrant for failing to appear for sentencing for possession of a decent amount of the electric lettuce in 2009 should just go away.

No, it really doesn't work like that.

Next, of course, she has an outstanding warrant for failure to appear on driving without a license, no proof of insurance, and no proof of registration charges - the Detroit Driver Trifecta.

Her explanation for it is something else indeed, and I quote:

"I didn't do anything wrong - the lady who loaned me the car, she knew I didn't have a license, and she shouldn't have had expired plates on the car that caused me to get pulled over, it's not my fault."

So much was wrong with that emotionally declarative sentence that I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or ask her if she's still smoking the good stuff when I heard it.

She honestly and vehemently thinks she did nothing wrong by driving without a license or insurance, and it's all her friend's fault for giving her a car with an expired plate.

She was then surprised that she needed to pay a retainer to a lawyer up front to fix this problem and the only reason she wants to fix it is the outstanding warrants are giving her issues with her benefits and preventing her from getting even more government assistance.

So no, she won't be retaining me 'cause she don't want to pay up front. This of course means she wouldn't be paying when it's done either, I do know how this works by now and sorry, but this just doesn't qualify for a pro bono case.

There really is no need to wonder why auto insurance is so high in Detroit.

The Real Reason Why Detroit's Auto Insurance Is So High

One of the hot-button issues for Democrats in Michigan and Detroit is the complaint that Detroit's auto insurance rates are incredibly high, as in on average $4,000 a year for insurance high. Of course, the Democrats tend to claim this is due to racism.

There's a reason for the rates being so high, and it isn't racism.

Lets take Y for an example.

Why Y? Well, why not? Y is a female Detoriter I've come across in my legal journey in court recently who has a little issue.

You see, Y has been driving with her license suspended.

How long?

She's been driving suspended continuously for 15 years!

Y's license was suspended back in 2004 and she's been driving on it suspended ever since.

Prior to that she's had her license suspended and restored multiple times from 1999 until 2005, when it got suspended and stayed suspended as she never bothered resolving the 2005 suspension, she just tacked a series of more suspensions on top of that one.

Why? Because she doesn't pay tickets when she gets them and had been driving often without insurance. This has not however stopped her from driving all around the Metropolitan Detroit area.

She's unfortunately not a particularly good driver and tends to get pulled over. When she's and when she is pulled over, the police tend to quickly find out she's driving on a suspended license and then charge her yet again for driving suspended along with the reason why she was pulled over, she doesn't pay the tickets and it stays suspended

These episodes of her being caught speeding and improper lane changing and going through red lights mainly take place outside of Detroit and she complained that clearly, she's being ticketed and pulled over because she's being "profiled".

No, Y is bring ticketed not due to profiling, but because she's driving, and driving badly enough to warrant police attention, on a long-suspended license.

Oh, and Y's driving record goes on for 10, yes ten pages worth of charges and convictions for driving while license suspended and related charges that she keeps getting pulled over for and ticketed by the police.

Insurance costs are high in Detroit not due to racism.

Insurance costs are sky-high due to the fact that insurance companies don't like risk and due to Y and people like her driving around without insurance and with suspended licenses, and causing accidents without the slightest care, Detroit is a very high risk and high cost area.

In short, the real reason for Detroit's high insurance rates can be summed up in one word - Detroiters.

Sometimes You Really Should Shut Up And Take The Deal

Had a client come in with a speeding ticket problem.

Officer had given her the ticket and while she was speeding 11-15 over, he cut her a break and reduced it to impeding which is zero points and just a fine.

That’s a decent deal right off the bat considering he had her dead to rights on radar.

Somehow, and I’m not sure how exactly, she decided to represent herself in court and instead of just paying the ticket managed to get it reinstated against her as an 11-15 over 2 point offense and fine. She is then found responsible for it and gets the full hit. That takes some talent.

Situation clearly not improved she hired me to fix her mess.

So I entered an appearance and today met with the prosecutor before the hearing and got it reduced back to the impeding charge, got that entered on the record and she’s all set.

Sometimes you need to accept the gift you’re given, smile, thank the officer and pay your fine and move on rather than trying to fight a ticket in a rather ineffective manner.

Just A Bit Too Fast There, Fella

Slowing down is sometimes the best way to speed up. - Mike Vance

One teen driver here in Michigan has certainly never heard that quote.

The Detroit Free Press: Michigan teen stopped for doing 138 mph on I-75

138 mph is a tad bit much, now isn't it?

When they say 8 you skate they don't mean 138!

The excuse given? He needed to be home before his curfew time.

He was almost certainly late for curfew after that traffic stop. Happily for him he didn't lose control and wreck himself.

Now on top of busting his curfew he'll likely have a much more involved explanation for the speeding ticket to give his parents now. The ticket for 138 in a 70 zone is going to cost him rather nicely. The trooper didn't hit him with a reckless driving ticket, which was rather nice of him.

Going double the speed limit on a highway in traffic is a tad excessive.