WARNING - Harlan County License Plate Crack Down - WARNING

rockcity said:
complain as we may, but I'd think if you are driving on a public road you'd need a tag, insurance, and registeration. If you don't have either and get a ticket, then it is well deserved.
However, not being a KY resident, my opinion may be un warranted as I am not 100% sure as to the laws up there
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What about the parts of west virginia that let you ride four wheelers and dirt bikes in town as long as you wear a helmet. They don't care as long as spending money in town.
 
I didnt see anyone getting pulled/ticketed/sited anything. So maybe they didnt crack down as hard as they wanted to? That or EVERYONE was legal.
 
rokntoy said:
What about the parts of west virginia that let you ride four wheelers and dirt bikes in town as long as you wear a helmet. They don't care as long as spending money in town.
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thats a little different as its not something typically used on the road requiring a tag, insurance, and registration. And, if the towns don't care, they don't care, at that moment. but, the time they start enforcing it and you're supposed to have tag, registration and insurance, you should be legal. just because they don't check one day doesn't mean they can't check at any time. I mean, I know they have been lack with it up there, but I'd imagine you'd have at least INSURANCE if you drive it on a public road. Thats just common sense to me to protect yourself and your lively-hood.


for eveyone to cry about having to obey normal laws is absurd. I'm surprised they haven't done anything about it before.

don't take this as me thinking the cops are right in what they are doing, its just my $.02 looking in from the outside
 
The problem is they need to make the law clear. Some tell it's ok while others say no and give a ticket. Make one law for everyone and post it up so everyone knows.
 
rockcity said:
thats a little different as its not something typically used on the road requiring a tag, insurance, and registration. And, if the towns don't care, they don't care, at that moment. but, the time they start enforcing it and you're supposed to have tag, registration and insurance, you should be legal. just because they don't check one day doesn't mean they can't check at any time. I mean, I know they have been lack with it up there, but I'd imagine you'd have at least INSURANCE if you drive it on a public road. Thats just common sense to me to protect yourself and your lively-hood.
for eveyone to cry about having to obey normal laws is absurd. I'm surprised they haven't done anything about it before.
don't take this as me thinking the cops are right in what they are doing, its just my $.02 looking in from the outside
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Rob, I ain't crying, I am stating the facts. I was charged for failing to have display a tag, I have one, it just was not on the Jeep.
I was cited for no proof of insurance, I give them proof, I have insurance.
I was cited for no seat belt. I had my belt on! His comment was he was just used to seeing shoulder belts.

He was just to Pu$$y to write the ticket himself, he had the county to do it. The county guy didn't see anything. As far as that goes, I was in a parking lot, he never saw me on the road until after I got the ticket.

I talked to man folks up there that were pulled. As far as I know, I was the only one who got a ticket this weekend. Everyone else got a warning.
On top of that, after giving me the ticket. He said he didn't want to ruin my weekend, and he knew I would be back out on the trails, and "not to be the last one in line".
 
yep i got pulled too. I was on the road MAYBE 60 yards before he had me on the side seeing if i was drunk. He wanted to BS with me after being a hardass and being a tool. I wasnt a jerk but he also gave me the "these cant be on the road after 11 at night". Dude...I HAVE A TAG and pay insurance. How is it any different than any other car? :shaking:
 
rockcity said:
for eveyone to cry about having to obey normal laws is absurd.
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Just to try to clear it up for you, again, seems you must have missed it the first time, we are not crying about obeying the law nor are we crying about them writing tickets for not being tagged and insured. We are all for obeying the law and being good citizens!

We are concerned because we were told in person by a police officer that it was ok to drive on the street as long as we were going slow, being safe, obeying traffic laws, etc. And to have them then start writing tickets with no warning is not fair in our opinion.

Granted, it's their perrogative to change the policy at any time and they are well within their rights to write tickets for infractions of the law, but, if they are going to change their policy, we think they should make it known so we can continue to be law abiding citizens, not spring it on us unawares, after telling us it is ok.

I hope this makes it a little clearer for you.
 
rockcity said:
for eveyone to cry about having to obey normal laws is absurd.
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And what about those of us who have tag and insurance and are still getting hasseled. Do you also think its ok for a cop to search anywhere anytime without permission? I mean if you have nothing to hide it should be fine right? What i saw this weekend was the county police seeing this as an opportunity to make a buck. I dont mind them keeping the total drunks off the road but dont hassel the paying customers. Thats simple business :lol:
 
My comment wasn't directed towards anyone in particuliar, just a general statement. I'd bitch about it too if they kept flip flopping back and forth.

However, it seems like everyone here makes a big deal about knowing the exact laws when trailering and being legal when towing to places to wheel but totall ignore having any insurance or tags/registration when riding Harlan. I was just making an observation and pointing it out.

And no, I do not agree with them harassing people that are normally following the rules, illegally searching, etc. Maybe they've had an issue with 'wheelers drinking recently, I don't know, but something sparked this. I'm just saying its hard to justify support in our favor if we aren't doing what we are supposed to do, legally. Remember, POs don't know all the laws, its been proven many times before. Its our responsibility to know the laws before we go somewhere, KY included. Whether they are enforced and to what degree is up to them. Their lack of enforcement is no excuse for us to not follow the law.

However there is no excuse for harassment.
 
JC said:
We are concerned because we were told in person by a police officer that it was ok to drive on the street as long as we were going slow, being safe, obeying traffic laws, etc. And to have them then start writing tickets with no warning is not fair in our opinion.
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If its not in writing somewhere then things can change their minds at anytime. Its unfortunate and they should have started by just giving warnings and letting everyone know that they were going to start requiring everyone to have the tags and registration
 
Leslie said:
There is no total fine amount on the ticket for any of the charges. He did not sign anything.
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FWIW SC traffic tickets do not require a signature nor do they have an amount on them
Usually cops right an amount at the bottom, but it is not required
KY could be the same way.


Either way it sucks chip got ticketed for what we all have done....but its why Ive kept tags and insurance on mine solely for.

Anyone who got pulled to "see if you were drunk" i would have asked for their probable cause and if they didnt have one I would have filed a complaint that is BS
 
Most weekends of big events they set up check points for drunk drivers. We have always run the roads between the trail head and the dairy hunt and rented or cabin from the police cheif and has always told us the same thing. Most of the time if you were buckled up(including shoulders straps) they'd just wave us by and give the enjoy yourself head nod. After hearing all this, I'm getting tags tomorrow.
 
Me personally, I agree wholeheartedly with Rob. It should be a "given" that while using a buggy, a juggy, a truggy or whatever on a government maintained road, you should have that vehicle registered, tagged and at a bare minimum insured.

No one needs to put up a sign to that effect either. It's common knowledge...you should figure it is against the law to operate an un-insured and un-registered vehicle on state or local governement roads, unless you have a written statute that says otherwise.

I said it on our forum..... there is a possibility (as anywhere) that you could have some kid run out in front of you at the dairy hut and you get in an accident (let's hope a minor one) I guarantee the trooper who works the wreck will trump whatever the local LEO on scene says or recommends. Even if the police chief said it was "just fine" to operate that vehicle and you were in the "right", you still have to suffer the consequences legally.... imagine paying for that kid's, or your own, medical bills......perhaps even the impending lawsuit, because you did not have proper liability coverage.

Even if the town said it was ok, there is no way I would take that chance with myself or my family. The financial hardship that could happen would be unthinkable. We are not talking about a broken tail light here or improper signaling!

Face it, it ain't worth it! Drag your stuff to the trail head, make it legal, or run renegade and if you get a ticket, you get a ticket. I do agree that no one should be hassled, for the sake of being hassled.

I'm not a stick in the mud, just a realist.... it can happen and it's best to be prepared IMO.

Disclaimer: I'm not an insurance agent, just a paramedic-firefighter.... i've seen people get sued for accidents (and win) that you would not believe, and I'm talking not a scratch on a bumper. But it happens. I fill out forms for law offices by the dozens in the summer time. I just want everyone to keep their family and livelyhood safe. I'm just looking at this from a litigation view point.


Kentucky State Law on ATV use:

http://www.lrc.ky.gov/KRS/189-00/515.PDF
 
i guess we will find out this weekend because about 10 BDB buggies are going that are not street legal . we talked to the police cheif today who we are renting 2 houses from and he said act like you have sense and if u are out after dark have headlights and taillights and you will be ok. who knows what will happen.
 
We were eating at the Corner Cafe (Friday night), and the law circled the building several times, and I thought nothing of it. I pulled out behind a deputy sheriff and in front of a city cop. The city cop through his lights on me and the county blocked the road, like i was going to run or something. His first words were "How much have you had to drinck today?", and I said nothing I don't drink. Then he asked if I had tag and insurance, and I said no. He said what do you do at home for tag and insurance and I said I don't drive on the roads at home. Before it was over there was an Everts city cop, a Harlan county cop, an off duty State Trooper, and the Sherrif of Harlan county, all there where we were pulled. Finally the Sherrif told them just to give us a verbal warning. He also said that they were going to crack down on the ATVs. I told him that we all were law abidding citizens and wanted to do the "right thing". I asked him (Josh Howard deputy sherrif), would I be legal if I towed to the train tracks at the Baileys Creek Trail Head, and he said no, you will still have to get on the pavement.
On Saturday night I met the Mayor (Burl Fee) at Buddys Crevron. I introduced myself and proceeded to tell the story from Friday night. He said that to be legal that we have to have tag and insurance. He went on to say that he had a long talk with the city cops on Friday night and told them that they were to stop harrassing us. He also told me that we would not be harrassed any more that weekend. He also said that if myself or anyone else in our group got stopped to tell the law to call him at home and he would take care of it.
In a day where we spend a ton of money on insurance, I'm unwilling to pay anymore on insurance. How can you stop ATVs for driving on the streets, when you have flashing signs, warning people of "ATVs on the street"? All we want is a clear understanding of what they expect of us on this issue. The city has an ordinance that allows this to be exceptable, but the county and state say that they don't have to go by the ordinance. We asked the law enforment, when is the state, county and city going to get on the same page?
It looks to me like the burden falls on Harlan county, they are collecting fees to ride in the park now. If it's not legal to drive the crawlers on the street, then they need to put a large parking lot in for trucks and trailers.
And besides, in N.C. you can't get a tag if you don't pass inspection, how many trail rigs can pass N.C. inspection?
 
jlshermanjr said:
And besides, in N.C. you can't get a tag if you don't pass inspection, how many trail rigs can pass N.C. inspection?
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is the old car loophole still present?
Aka pop a VIN from an old VW or something on the buggy, it will be old enough for the most basic of inspections? And go from there?
 
It almost sounds like the City Police are OK with folks driving on the roads - but the sheriff (county) and State HP are making it an issue. They (the county on HP) might be ensuring the City is enforcing the laws. It has to put the Local Police in a bind when a county officer pulls up as they are doing stop and looking over their shoulder to ensure they (local PD) follow the 'letter of the law.' Not being a police officer - or having stayed in Holiday Inn last night - does not make me an expert on these matters. But I sure wouldn't want to be the local officer with the two others standing over my shoulder critiquing my actions..and possibly making a compliant to an agency that handles my police certification.

Yager is right in statement - they just need to let folks know how the want handle it and then be fair consistent in the application of their policy. From that point - folks can make up their own minds if they want to spend money in that town - or the next one over.

The folks posting about their tickets are being reasonable - they were told one thing - and another thing happened. They (the folks with the tickets) have a right to be disappointed in getting them because they understood it was OK to drive their buggies.
 
:popcorn:
91oneton said:
i guess we will find out this weekend because about 10 BDB buggies are going that are not street legal . we talked to the police cheif today who we are renting 2 houses from and he said act like you have sense and if u are out after dark have headlights and taillights and you will be ok. who knows what will happen.
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:popcorn:
 
anyone getting a ticket call me and I will see what I can do.
I might not can get it fixed but let me see what I can do.

We are working on this issue. Their is plans for a big gravel parking lot so everyone can park. It jsut takes time.

I am sorry that everything isnt clear about the road driving.

I will try and find out the real deal to put this into stone.


606-573-9986
Call me after 10pm to get me.
Ronnie
 
If this is so and they don't hurry with making a huge trailhead/campground facility, then I see alot of revenue being lost. And still maybe more, if people are camping and not as easily able to drive to the resteraunts and such then even more revenue may be lost. I liked the idea of giving money to the local economy while up there, but if it's a hassle to load up and haul back to the house that is rented every evening, then drive to the resteraunt with buggy in tow then I'd rather pack some steaks and such and unload 1 time and camp at the park and eat there.
 
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