Ever been hassled while railfanning?

[PAT.C]

SINCE WEAPONS HAVE ENTERED INTO THIS THREAD...

IF YOU CARRY, DO IT LEGAL AND DO IT SAFELY.

AND REMEMBER - THE BEST SELF DEFENSE WEAPON IS A KIND WORD BACKED UP WITH A CCW.

A WELL ARMED [LEGALLY ] SOCIETY IS A POLITE SOCIETY.

A GREAT PLACE TO GET YOUR CPL...
http://michiganccwclass.com/

THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE MINE.

[AARR]

AND REMEMBER - THE BEST SELF DEFENSE WEAPON IS A KIND WORD BACKED UP WITH A CCW.

A WELL ARMED [LEGALLY ] SOCIETY IS A POLITE SOCIETY.

Hong Kong Phooey has his own opinoin about the best self-defense

[Norm]

Hong Kong Phoey,

While I respect your opinion I also have to agree with Capt'n Caps.

[Y@]

For once I'm going to agree with the Captain...

GUNS ARE GOOD.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Jochs]

I used to drive to the end of Graham St. in Benton Harbor to see what was in the yard, then turn around and go back out. Once a cop saw me backed there and asked what I was doing. I told him I was interested in trains and would not walk on the tracks or anything. He said okay and told me that guys often drove back to the yard to conduct business with hookers.
I remember about 15 years ago when I worked nights in Benton Harbor the "women of the night" were always walking around trying to flag cars down.

[sbrrpics]

SINCE WEAPONS HAVE ENTERED INTO THIS THREAD...

IF YOU CARRY, DO IT LEGAL AND DO IT SAFELY.

AND REMEMBER - THE BEST SELF DEFENSE WEAPON IS A KIND WORD BACKED UP WITH A CCW.

A WELL ARMED [LEGALLY ] SOCIETY IS A POLITE SOCIETY..

well pat.c as you know from last years meet i have a CCW and for those that dont know i also have a step mom who is a cop so i have "connections"

[A No.1]

I guess we need to organize a RRFAN.COM / NRA meet.

[jcnorthpole]

Last year I was at JAIL/CN crossing east of Cedar St. overpass in Lansing waiting to see some trains. A GTW police came up, asked me what I was doing there, and gave me a ticket. I was on private property but did venture onto CN property a bit. I didn't argue with him but he still cited me (said the area I was in was a "zero tolerance" area).
I did fight it in court (I won...minus $1,000). The lesson I learned was don't mess w/GTW police and be aware where I'm at on RR property.

[CSX_CO]

Why is a local cop doing a checkup 'enough to leave a bad taste in your mouth'?

I don't have any problem with the cops doing their job, I was just referring to the totality of the experience relayed by Crow T Robot as far as being hassled goes, and mostly the part about having a gun half pulled on him.

That's because HE REACH DOWN when the cop approached. He's at Delray, which isn't in the best parts of town, cop approaches, and he reaches down under the seat. Of COURSE the officer is going to think about drawing a gun. They are taught to expect anything on even a routine traffic stop. If you watch, they approach with their hand on the holster. Best thing, keep your hands in plain sight on the steering wheel, and don't reach for anything until they tell you to.

Practice Safe CSX

[supraman]

CSX_CO you just don't understand what I was saying. I never meant to imply the cops did anything out of the ordinary or wrong, just that experiences like this might leave a bad impression of the railfanning hobby, compared to say knitting or flying radio controlled airplanes. So ease up with the lectures, thanks.

[pica]

Years ago before I was even a railfan I got a ticket from Officer Washington in Plymouth. There was a Chessie engine sitting in the yard (that tells you how long ago that was.) I wanted to get a picture of it so I just kind of walked through the yard over to the engine. Needles to say Officer Washington pulls up and gave me a ticket. He let me take the picture too.

[Eric Berger]

The only time I was approached was once when I was in Romulus. I had decided to park on the street in front of the Landing Strip to watch, as I had a fairly decent view of the diamond from that front space there.

The bar bouncer comes out and starts hassling me about parking there. I told him that since I was on a public street, and legally parked at that, that I would move when I was good and ready. He calls the local police, and an officer comes up in about ten minutes. (Cop shop's a couple blocks away, on Olive Street.)

Officer comes to me and asks me what I'm doing. I tell him that I'm watching trains, and that I figured that would be a good place to watch from, as it wasn't railroad or private property. Officer turns to the bouncer, and says "Well, the man's correct. He has every right to be there. All I can say to him is I think he's wasting his time, but I can't make him move on because he's legally parked! You have a parking lot for your customers -- they can park there!"

I finally did leave -- after another half hour or so

As for railroad police, never had any contacts with them since I watch from public property. If I do want to check down the line to see what's coming, I use sidewalk crossings to check.

[Sean N]

One time I ran into a friend of my parents while watching near Farmer in Plymouth. While talking we walked on the sidewalk and stopped between a couple of the rails while he talked about a couple of rail related items. A Plymouth cop stop and asked if we railroad employees and then asked us to move, which we did - a few feet over away from the rails. He then turned around and drove back by less than a minute later staring at us. Thought he was just showing his power, but as a life long Plymouth resident it rubbed my parents friend the wrong way.

[AARR]

...and stopped between a couple of the rails ... A ... cop stop and asked if we railroad employees and then asked us to move, which we did - a few feet over away from the rails.

Same thing happened to me in Durand only the officer looked embarrassed. Kind of like when your boss tells you to do something that you think is stupid but you have to do it anyway.

[Norm]

Only once, and that happened in Durand long before I moved here. I stepped on railroad property to see if the Flint local was coming back or not. Got cornered by a CN cop who was not in the least polite. Told him I had been a railfan for fifty years or more, and was just looking to see if it was coming back. The guy was a total jerk; not fit for a real police department.

[MagnumForce]

Railroad Police ARE real police in every sense of the word! They are not rent a cops, they have the full power of the law behind them and can ticket you, arrest you, etc etc the same as any normal cop can.

I have never been "hassled" at any times when I did not deserve it. The only time I have had an encounter with a cop was while shooting off the old closed Bridge between Melbern and Edgerton back in the Conrail days. It had no trespassing signs all over it, the local Sherriff's Deputy simply asked me politely to move along. The idiot 18 year old me shoudl have never been there in the first place and I am lucky I did not receive a ticket.

If you aren't an idiot about things your chances of problems are nil. If someone wants to know what you are doing, so be it! To people who know nothing about railfans you are darn suspicious looking!

[rsinoms]

The only thing I have to say about the subject is that the only time i have been hassled was one time. I overstayed my welcome at a railroad station and was hassled by railroad cops and left. My general experience says don't argue with them and be polite and they will be respectful of you. They are just doing their job and I agree paranoia is at an all time high but be understanding to a point because the worst thing you can do is get in their face... For us all to get along, just be the bigger person!!!

[Norm]

Russ,

I think you've got it right. In my lifetime I've had plenty of interaction with cops, and being reasonably law abiding and on their side, virtually all have been pleasant encounters. The two exceptions were with railroad cops. It's pretty well known on this forum that I have several Oakland County deputy friends. It's also a given that if you treat them with respect you will get the same in return. Courtesy and politeness go a long way in dealing with anyone, and particularly with those who have the authority to cuff you and place you in the back seat and then explain to a judge.

Simply put, show respect and you will get it returned in kind. Start mouthing off, and the outcome will be different.

[hoborich]

I was hassled by a CSX cop name of Karcher at Delray. I was parked side of the cement company driveway, and sitting in my van. He came down the service road side of the tracks, from Livernois, and stopped at the bottom of the hill and watched me for a few minutes. Then he flips on his overhead lights and speeds right at me broadside at a good rate of speed. He slid to a stop a few feet from my door, and got out and asked what I was doing. I told him I was watching a few trains. He proceeded to give me the standard 9/11 harangue. I listened politely, and quietly asked him if I looked like a terrorist. He then said, "Well, people hop on trains from this location". I asked him if I looked like I was going to hop on a train and abandon my van". He accused me of "escalating the situation". While he stood there in the cement company driveway, with his car on the cement company property, he said I was trespassing. Then the smartass demanded my ID and said he had to check his list of approved trainwatchers to see if I was on it, and ran a LEIN check on me. I knew what he was doing because my ex wife used to be a LEIN operator for the state police. Then he comes back and tells me the whole area is railroad property, and there is no place to watch trains at Delray without trespassing, and I have to leave the area. I asked him why he was taking such a hard attitude when other rail cops just asked me what I was doing and went on their way. He said he just really really liked his job. I asked him if he was saying the other rail cops weren't doing their job. He just said "Leave,get out of here, goodbye"! I've been back to Delray several times and never saw him again,but others have had run ins with him too. So,if you see a little dust cloud coming down the service road at Delray, just leave and come back a little while later. He seems to pace alongside Q131 down to Delray, then leaves the area after they go by.

I also had a run in with the Marathon clown team on the Fort street bridge. What annoys me about them is that after they have determined that you are not a terrorist or a threat to their refinery, they continue to harass you and demand you leave the area. They are not police and according to Michigan Law, the authority of a security guard is limited to the premises of the employer. Michigan Law says "when a security guard leaves the premises of the employer, they are limited to perimeter surveillance". The first rent a cop came up on the bridge and told me to leave, that I couldn't be up there. I told her that Fort street was a public street and I had a right to be there. Then she called two other rent a cops for backup. Two guys came up on the bridge in SUVs with red and blue light bars on the roof. Security guards are not allowed to use blue and red lights in Michigan. I pointed out that they could not turn on those light bars and make a traffic stop on Fort Street, so where did they get off approaching a citizen and giving orders on a public street. Then I got the "since 9/11 everything changed" lecture. God, I'm sick of hearing it. I told them it was a public street and I had a right to be there. Then they said they had to make a report to Homeland Security. I said I would have to make a criminal complaint against them for impersonating police officers on a public street, since they approached me on a public street from vehicles with blue and red light bars on the roof and started giving orders. I stayed another 20 minutes and left since there were no trains moving.

[Crow T Robot]

My one run in at Delray was enough found another area to go and haven't been back. Would I like to maybe this summer if the gas prices come down but I might go to Durand instead. Plymouth while boring as @e$$ is a much more relaxing place...