Why is the street shut down for so long?

Posted on May 3, 2015 by Badge415

Have you ever driven by a big collision scene and wondered why it was taking the cops so long to open up the street?

Have you ever wondered why it looked like the cops were standing around doing nothing when you were getting detoured?

No one wants be inconvenienced by a road closure when the police shut the street down because of a car accident or a crime scene. Believe me, I don’t want to be there any longer than I have to. I just want to finish my call and move on to the next one.

When the street does get shut down, it’s for good reasons. We don’t want to impact the public any more than we have to. Here are a few reasons why the street gets shut down at a collision scene.

1. Sometimes it’s just safer for everyone involved to have it shut down. The firefighters and ambulance personnel need room to work and they don’t want to worry about cars zooming by. Firefighters hate dodging cars just like we do.

2. Sometimes it makes cleanup easier for the street to be shut down. This is usually temporary.

3. Sometimes we shut the street down because we’re waiting for word from the hospital on the condition of the victim. No emergency room doctor is going to tell you anything in five minutes, so we have to wait. If the injuries aren’t as bad as we first thought then we open it up and get out of there.

4. Sometimes the street is closed down because it was a fatal collision. Closing the street down is just a necessary evil. If it’s after business hours, a traffic investigator or detective might have to be called out from home. This alone could mean an extra half 30-60 minutes to the street closure.

This might be why you see a bunch of cops standing around doing nothing. They might be in standby mode waiting for the detective.

5. Sometimes we stand on the side and look like we’re doing nothing because the forensic person wants us out of the scene so they can take their pictures.

6. Sometimes the fire trucks are in the way. I can’t set up for measurements until they leave the scene. If I setup too soon, there’s a chance the fire trucks will run something over when they leave.

When it comes to investigating a major injury traffic collision there are certain things we have to do. That means we have to measure the location of all the skid marks, gouge marks, fluid trails, areas of impact and points of rest.

There’s no getting around this part. After the investigation is done in the street, the traffic accident scene can be recreated in a scale drawing for the report.

The street could be closed down anywhere from 1 to 3 hours depending on how involved the scene was. It could also be longer.

Remember, we understand everyone wants to know how to get around the closure, but it’s impossible for us to answer every question when we’re standing in the middle of the street.

You’re just holding up traffic if you stop. You might have to keep going and figure it out.

It’s 2015 people. Invest in a map. Or just pull over and look at Google Maps on your phone. It’s not that hard.

No one follows the rules

Posted on April 26, 2015 by Badge415

Responding to collision calls that involve unlicensed drivers is pretty common for me. If the regular public actually knew how many collisions were caused by unlicensed drivers they would be shocked.

Sometimes it seems like I can’t go to a collision call without at least one of the drivers being unlicensed. Sometimes it’s both drivers.

To me it’s the most basic rule of driving. Have a license. It’s pretty easy, but there are a lot of people out there who just don’t care about our laws or the rules. It’s a common theme in police work.

There are people out there who have been cited numerous times for driving while unlicensed, but they’re still out there committing violations and crashing into people.

And when they do crash, the unlicensed driver is almost always at fault. It’s amazing how much damage and destruction they cause.

It’s one thing if you’re unlicensed and minding your own business. If I don’t know about it then there’s no reason to bother you. But it’s another thing if you’re out there crashing into people and hurting them.

Friday night was another example of the unlicensed driver causing chaos and not caring.

The driver told me he was “going a little fast,” while he was looking at his phone to change a song. He was still looking down when he swerved to the left and crashed into a car that was stopped for a red light.

He never saw the car before he hit it because he was looking down at his phone the entire time.

While I was interviewing him, he told me he has been cited twice for no license and this was his second time being involved in a collision.

Then I saw something written on his windshield that left me shaking my head like I normally do at work. I shake my head so much at irresponsibility that I’m almost like a sideways bobblehead.

The date 1-23-15 was written on the windshield, along with 30 DAY. This was a marking from a tow company after the vehicle had been taken to the yard.

This guy had his vehicle impounded for 30 days on January 23rd, for driving while unlicensed. He hadn’t even bothered to erase the markings from his windshield.

If he can’t erase the tow company markings, what makes you think he even cares about what kind of damage or harm he does with his car? The proof was right there in the street because both cars were towed.

During the interview he told me he had been living illegally in California and didn’t have a license. I asked him why he hadn’t gone to the DMV because they were handling out driver’s licenses to everybody since the beginning of January.

His answer should get you upset if you’re following all the rules and have car insurance.

He just hadn’t gone yet. He hadn’t even made the effort to go to the DMV, despite the fact that they’re handling out licenses to everyone like candy.

When he found out his car was being impounded again he asked if he could have a chance. I told him no way. He then asked, “Can you just have the tow truck put the car in my backyard?” NO!

This article isn’t a debate if they should get licenses or not. That’s for someone else to decide. I’m just telling a story about what happens almost nightly where I work.

In California, everyone has the ability to get a driver’s license no matter what country they’re from or what their citizenship is. That’s fine, but when a person hasn’t even made the effort to go to the DMV then it’s beyond lazy and I have no sympathy.

Unfortunately they’re out there on the roads with the rest of us. Stay safe out there.

What’s the crash theme for tonight?

Posted on April 13, 2015 by Badge415

Every work day seems to have a theme. Sometimes it’s “red light” night where every crash I take involves someone who ran a red light. Sometimes it’s “rear end” or “knock a pole down” night. It just depends on which way the wind is blowing.

This week’s theme was, “12500 crashes into 12500.”

12500a is the California vehicle section for unlicensed driver. So, if a 12500 crashed into a 12500, wouldn’t that make it a 25,000 night?

Imagine how many cars are out on the road at one time. For the most part, people manage to avoid each other and not crash.

Now, how do two 12500s manage to crash into each other?

It’s like these two vehicles were 3,000lbs magnets that were destined to crash into each other. It was the perfect storm and all the planets aligned at the same time. It doesn’t happen that often and I can’t help but laugh a little bit when it does.

It happened once on Friday night and again on Saturday night. Most sport teams have a hard time doing a “repeat.” I didn’t even have to try. It just happened on its own.

On Friday night, two 12000s crashed into each other when one turned in front of another. Both drivers told me they had failed the written test at the DMV. How ironic.

On Saturday night, one 12500 was parked on the street. There was a car parked in front of him with no one in it. A few minutes later someone got into that vehicle and backed into the guy while he was sitting in his car. The suspect vehicle then took off.

A chase ensued between the hit and run victim and the suspect. They drove all over the place and went into another city while running red lights. Their driving was crazy enough to attract police attention and they were stopped in the neighboring city.

The officers determined that the collision occurred in my city so they called for us to respond. When I arrived, I found out that both drivers were the registered owners of their cars, but neither one of them had a license. It still amazes me how someone can be listed as the registered owner, but not have a driver’s license.

During the interviews I found out they both failed the DMV written test five times between the two of them. That has to be a record somewhere. It was truly the blind leading the blind.

Here’s the best part of the story. There was no damage to the victim vehicle.

They went through all of that for nothing. The biggest winner in the story was the tow truck company, which got to take two cars away as an impound prize.

Maybe they should stick to the Autopia car ride at Disneyland instead.

You can’t make this stuff up.

“Everyone Speaks Tow Truck”

Posted on April 5, 2015 by Badge415

I shouldn’t be surprised at work anymore, but it still happens. Just when I think I’ve seen it all….

On Friday night I went to a call where an unlicensed driver made a left turn in front of another car and they crashed. There was nothing shocking about that because unlicensed drivers crash all the time where I work. It’s the norm rather than the exception.

I went to speak to the unlicensed driver and asked him what happened. He asked me if I spoke Spanish. I told him I didn’t. We weren’t able to communicate so I called for a Spanish speaking officer to respond to assist me.

I called for a tow truck because I was going to impound the unlicensed driver’s truck. I then went to interview the other driver. When I was done with that I stood by waiting for the tow truck and the Spanish speaking officer. That’s when the tow truck pulled up.

I pointed to the crashed truck and told the tow driver that I was impounding that vehicle. That’s when the unlicensed driver said in perfect English, “Why are you taking my truck?”

I actually stared at him for a second wondering how all of the sudden English words were coming out of his mouth. It was like a bolt of lightning struck and turned him into an English speaker. It was of Biblical proportions on Good Friday.

That’s when I said, “I thought you didn’t speak English.”
“I speak a little.”
“784, cancel the Spanish speaker. My driver started speaking English when he saw the tow truck.”
“10-4,” replied the dispatcher.

I was then able to conduct the interview with his English and the “car accident” Spanish that I know.

It was at that moment I was taken back to a saying a friend once said at work. It’s the type of saying that has stayed with me for years and I’ve tried to pass it on to other officers. Those particular words were perfect for this moment…..

“Everyone speaks tow truck.”

No matter what the situation, the sound of a tow truck can wake the heaviest of sleepers. Bring a tow truck into a neighborhood and people will pour out of their apartments.

There could be five police cars parked in a neighborhood and some people might watch. Have a tow truck drive in and doors will fly open. People can’t get out of their apartments fast enough. Even the stray dogs in the area come by to watch.

Up until last night, I had no idea a tow truck had the power to make a person speak English.

Like the saying goes……“Everyone speaks tow truck.”

The Mormon Missionary

Posted on March 26, 2015 by Badge415

The funny thing about work is you never know what you’re going to hear next. Every time I think I’ve heard it all, something else comes up.

Yesterday two Mormon missionaries were riding their bicycles as they approached a red light at an intersection. Two witnesses saw them ride through the red light and one of them was hit by a mini-van.

The injured rider had a helmet, but his head injury didn’t make sense to me. I didn’t understand how the back of his head got so bloody with the helmet on. I then found out he had the helmet, but he wasn’t wearing it. It was hanging from his handlebar at the time of the crash.

While the guy was in the ambulance I spoke with his bicycle riding partner. I gave him the report number and asked him if he had any questions.

That’s when he asked a question I have never been asked before while working.

“Have you ever thought about being Mormon?”
“No.” I answered with a smile.
“Ok.”
“I once had a Book of Mormon though.”
“You did?” He asked with a surprised look.
“I was at a hotel in Provo (Utah) when someone gave it to me. I was thirteen at the time.”
“That wasn’t that long ago,” he said with a sly look.

Since I’m forty-four, the look on his face showed he was stretching the truth a bit. It still made me laugh though. What a salesmen!

Up until yesterday, I have never taken a collision report involving a Mormon missionary on a bicycle. I’ve also never taken a crash where the helmet was on the handlebars instead of on the rider’s head. Usually the rider isn’t wearing one at all.

And finally, I have never been asked if I thought about changing religions.

Even after taking 5,700 crashes, work still throws me a curve ball once in a while instead of the usual fastball down the middle.

That’s why I keep coming back. I want to see what’s going to happen next.