Here is a question that may be part of what you wonder most of your life and feel like it happens to be in the same category as the “why did the chicken cross the road” discussion. While you might think that police officers don’t receive speeding tickets and all they have to do is flash their badges and they can get away with most of the minor infractions the rest of us are guilty of there is some evidence to the contrary. Over the years we’ve been presented with information that leads us to believe the opposite of what has happened in Sperry, OK recently.
The area of Sperry, OK is the small northeast town of this state and its surrounded by wide open roads that make it easy to speed and get where you need to go in a hurry. Unfortunately one of the police officers in the area was caught on video diving at speeds that reached as much as 75 or 80 mph, which was well over the legal limit and a speed that would have earned anyone else a large fine that would have needed to be paid or require and appearance in court.
For years we’ve been told that police officers can get away with speeding and if this particular officer hadn’t been caught on video it’s possible he would have gotten away with the act of speeding as well. In fact, this particular officer openly admitted he’s not sure if he would even have a ticket to consider if the video hadn’t been taken, but now that there is a video in place, this officer has written himself a speeding ticket that amounts to a $300 find that he has stated he will pay in full and on time.
The officer that was caught speeding on the video is none other than the Sperry Police Chief, Justin Burch himself. He has since posted an apology on the department’s Facebook page admitting the speeding was wrong and that he should have been more cautious and careful on the road. Although Burch may not have issued himself a ticket if he wasn’t caught on video, he states that he must be held accountable as much as anyone else would be expected to be held accountable as well. He doesn’t want the message that he’s above the law to be part of his term in service and will pay the ticket he issued himself.
This should answer the question of whether or not a police officer can actually receive a speeding ticket, which in this case came from himself. We may have been told differently over the years, and there may be instances when officers do get away with actions they shouldn’t take, even if they don’t harm anyone at the time, this Police Chief has the right idea. Even though he says he had a reason for speeding, he hasn’t excused himself and is setting an example for the community he serves.
This post may contain affiliate links. Meaning a commission is given should you decide to make a purchase through these links, at no cost to you. All products shown are researched and tested to give an accurate review for you.
