This morning I saw a great example of our city dollars at work ... and another fine example of the Bakersfield PD.  I was cruising north on Chester through Truxtun Ave, a motor cop was about to turn onto Chester from Truxtun in front of me, but must have changed his mind, instead he turned right after I passed him. 

I was probably going about 40 when I entered that intersection, then dropped just below 35 after I crossed it.  Mind you, I slowed down because I know the speed limit downtown is like 25 mph ... It crossed my mind that he could pull me over.  Instead he cruised in the lane next to me just in front of me, we both ran through yellow lights then stopped at a red on the corner of 19th and Chester.

As I sat there looking around at the pedestrians (you never know what you'll see on a corner Downtown), he suddenly turned on his lights, turned and drove across the crosswalk.  "WHAT?!  Is he really too lazy to wait for the light to change?"

There was a young woman walking south on Chester, she was dressed like she probably worked at a boutique, and I had watched her look left and right, then cross in the cross walk toward Vest Drugs.  I watched the motor cop pull up beside her, and I saw her expression go from "la Dee da, it's a nice morning, I'm walking to work" to "WHAT THE?!"  I think she was even looking around for cameras thinking she was being PUNKed.

Sure enough he "pulled her over" and as my light turned green he turned back and looked at me staring out my window with a completely dumbfounded look on my face as I watched her begin to open her purse to most likely produce her ID.  I was so stunned I was actually talking aloud to myself, "Oh my god, he is not seriously going to ticket her?  He is!  What a pig!  There weren't any cars coming her direction, she looked both ways, BOTH WAYS!"

But ladies and gentlemen, she has crossed on a red light.  Better way to put it - she had run a red.  Well, walked ... but you get my drift. 

I was so tempted to go back and say to him,"If you are really that bored and need to issue tickets, why don't you park your bike on my street today and radar for a few hours".

Classic.