As we told you before when we first showed you the new cop car from Chevy, the Caprice PPV's built on the longer wheelbase Zeta platform, and will come with the 6.0-liter L76 V8 and inevitably a DI 3.6-liter V6. We're looking forward to driving one, but in the meantime we're impressed with the interior space.

According the Connecticut Post, the cruiser in question was traveling at more than 70 mph when it collided with a Mazda at an intersection. Footage of the accident was captured by the dashboard camera of a second cruiser. The video offers no suggestion as to why either car was traveling so quickly. The officer involved in the crash has been charged with two counts of manslaughter by the Connecticut State Police.

This just gives us chills.

[Connecticut Post]

(Hat tip to Craig!) [via National Post]

The local Russian cops in the city of Omsk have begun placing cardboard cutouts of Brad Pitt dressed up as a traffic cop on streets in order to help slow motorists in the most dangerous intersection of the city and, surprisingly, it seems to be working. Omsk officials are stating that accident rates are way down, likely due to motorists slowing down to gaze at the Hollywood hunk.

In the local newspaper, Dmitry Ziryanov, the Omsk official that came up with the ingenious idea, says that Pitt is somewhat of a "colleague for us." We think we'd be able to achieve the same results if we had Megan Fox cutouts throughout our city. [via yahoonews]

The incident happened on May 24 when Trooper Daniel Martin took exception to a "hand signal" the driver of the ambulance made as Martin passed it. When Martin eventually pulled the ambulance over, Maurice White hopped out of the back and attempted to reason with Martin, asking him to let them take the patient to hospital before Martin issued a ticket.

As clearly seen in the video, the situation quickly devolved into Martin assaulting White and threatening arrest. The arrest was never made, but Oklahoma police have informed White that he should be prepared to turn himself in should a warrant be issued for his arrest.

Throughout the incident, the female patient in the back seat can be heard screaming in either panic or pain, maybe both. Her husband captured the cell phone video of Martin assaulting White.

After these videos were shot, the ambulance was allowed to continue to the hospital, where it's driver received a written warning for failing to yield. Officer Martin is now on paid leave pending a disciplinary review.
[via Tulsa World]

Apparently the first car, a TechArt-tuned Cayenne full of businessmen on their way to lunch shared the license plate digits 177 with the violent criminals. We're guessing those flash bangs did a lot of damage to the pricey Porsche. [via GTSPIRIT]

Two more cops arrived in an unmarked car, and moments later, Chad Hastings was freed. According to Hastings, the arresting officer muttered, "Get a new steering wheel lock, it looks like a bloody gun," and told him he was a "a lucky boy," since "any other cop would have had you at gunpoint."

I have to say, if there was a gun that looked just like the Club, it would probably be a space death ray gun, so I think I'd have probably done same thing. [Courier Mail via digg]

The story is told through the three images below, depicting the Google Street View camera car illegally driving down a bus / bicycle / taxi only lane. We also hear the Google driver was heavily doped up on methamphetamine and on the lookout for a singled-eyed man with a patch. Okay, so we made the last part up. Below is the actual eye-witness account.

Here's the story of the incident in Chris' own words:

I'm from Bradford, United Kingdom. I was just going on my lunch break at work today and i noticed a black car that had stopped at a red light. It had a "google" sticker on the side, and a large camera "thing" on the top. I decided to pull out my camera phone to take a pic, but just as i did a police car pulled up right behind it and put on it's lights and officer inside was motioning the car to pull over.

I then realised why, as the car was in the lane to go straight ahead, which was marked "bus / bicycle / taxi only", before i could take another pic, the google car sped off, went nearly the whole way round the block in busy Bradford city centre (the police still following now with lights and siren on!), before eventually pulling into a car park… which just happened to be the car park to the old police station!!!

When i eventually caught up i did manage to get a picture of the police car and the Google car pulled over in the car park, after which the officer got out of the car and started asking me not to take pictures! lol

Also, I'm hoping when they put the street level view for Bradford on google maps, am hoping there will be a cheeky pic of me taking a pic of the google car, which i can then upload to google earth my pic of the google car taking a pic of me (if that makes sense?!? lol)

That is the suck.

[via neatorama]

Officials in Pinal County, Arizona have recently terminated their contract with Redflex, the company currently providing speed camera coverage for the rural area. Reasons for the termination include negligible income from the program and a doubling of accident-related deaths on the applicable roadways.

The two camera vans shuttered 11,416 times during the period between September 2007 and last month. Of those snaps, 7,290 resulted in tickets, but only 3,711 were paid. Those paid tickets resulted in $134,199.43 of gross profit, but the county only saw a net profit of $12,391.58. After running the numbers through a very complex series of algorithms, we arrive at the total cost of the speed camera program, which is a whopping $121,807.85.

Instead of the failed camera program, county officials hope to reinstall actual police officers to do the ticketing, thereby upholding the motorist's constitutional rights to face their accusers.

Constitutional Rights 1. Speed Cameras 0. Booyah.

(Hat tip to Jeff!)

[AZCentral]

The annual nationwide study of 1.7 million vehicles receiving traffic code violations by ISO Quality Planning in California, reveals Hummer H2s and H3s sit atop the list of most ticketed vehicles. Below, the full list of the top ten most and least ticketed vehicles.

Here's the San Francisco-based company's methodology:

Traffic code violations data for a one-year period from 2007 and 2008 were used for the study. Vehicles that were discontinued for more than 10 years were not included in the analysis. Violations were standardized based on the number of violations per 100,000 miles driven for each model. That standardization accounts for the differences in average annual miles driven by different models. Each vehicle model’s violation count per 100,000 miles was compared with the average across all the models to identify the 10 models with the highest and lowest violations, as compared to the average. For example, Hummer drivers were 4.63 times more likely to get a ticket, as compared to the average.

The study found these are the ten most ticketed vehicles, in order from most ticketed to least along with the percentage above the average:
Oh Hummer, why must you consume our pocketbooks? We love you when you run over things, play in the water or transform into a mysterious quasi-governmental robot. With the price of gas coming down, things between us have been more livable, but we still can't afford your ravenous addiction to gasoline. Maybe this is why GM is trying to off you.

Now for the other side of the ticketing coin. The ten least ticketed vehicles in the country, this time from least ticketed to most, along with the percentages less they receive tickets from the average are:

Buicks, Olds and big Chevys? Shocker. An interesting side note: Chevy Tahoes and Hummer H2s are basically the same vehicle mechanically — why the huge difference? Our guess may be it has something to do with the mind-set of the people who drive them. Remember, sometimes stereotypes are stereotypes for a reason — at least when it comes to the type of people who purchase certain vehicles.

[Newsday via Motive Forums, ISO Quality Planning]

Photo Credit: Flickr

The Road Crime Unit of the South Yorkshire Police will use the Evolution X radio cars, along side a fleet of Evolution VIII and IX police cars, to trap speeders. In addition to the speed, the style and the scary image it presented in your rear-view mirror, the cars come equipped with the new Automated Number Plate Recognition system. The Evos will "hunt" in packs of three in order to provide a deterrent for anyone in the mood to end up on the BBC News.

SOUTH YORKSHIRE POLICE HUNT IN PACKS WITH THEIR LANCER EVOLUTION TRILOGY

* Lancer Evolution X to be used in the Road Crime Unit
* Inspector praises Evolution’s strong visual impact, performance and safety credentials
* All-new Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system adds extra value to crime stoppers

Evo X Has Excellent Pursuit Capabilities
The new Police specification Evolution X has arrived with South Yorkshire Police to the great delight of its drivers, and the chagrin of local villains. The new car will be used alongside the ever present Evolution VIII and IX in the Road Crime Unit where proactive road policing is the mission and officers will be driving the new car in cases involving drug dealers and car thieves. “The Evo X was the car of choice because of its excellent pursuit capabilities and the fact that so much time and effort has been put into maximising performance whilst minimising the risk of accidents” Inspector Slack explained.

The Hunted Will Give Up
The new member of the team will be used on the same missions and at the same time as its previous-generation siblings, creating such a strong visual impact that the vehicle being pursued will often simply give up the chase and pull over, knowing they won’t be able to out-run the RCU. What is more, the Police Evolutions ‘hunt’ in packs of three, which, Inspector Slack explained is often enough of a deterrent that high-speed chases are avoided.

Evo X Has The Latest Software and Hardware
Not only will the new Evolution X be one of the most capable performing cars, it will also be fitted with the latest Police hardware and software combinations. The onboard Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system allows officers to check who the vehicle is registered to and if there is anything remotely suspicious about the vehicle.

[Source: Mitsubishi]

It turns out the fault lies in the column shifter which "may become disengaged from the steering column mounting bracket and cause an incorrect transmission gearshift position display." The concern is that an unwitting officer could goose it in the wrong gear and wreak a bit of the old ultra-violence. It would have been a great excuse for the gentleman who mowed over that Crown Victoria in his Camry. "I don't know what happened officer, the display said D!"

On the other hand, somebody better warn Jake and Elwood.
[GoodCarBadCar Via Autoblog]

It turns out that there are only so many drunk idiots in Morgan City, and police recognized Dawson as someone they'd previously arrested. The next morning he was found at his grandmother's house and taken into custody, later pleading guilty to an evasion charge. And the golf cart? Officers believe the cart's electric motor was replaced with a car engine, allowing it to leap ditches and get away from police cruisers. We say "believe" because the cart has since disappeared, meaning that it is ready for more nuisance-making in the future. (Thanks to Ray for the tip!)

[Photo: STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Image. Standard.net]

Though some scoff at the expense and the Alex Jones folks don't like being watched, we'd point out that the city is making a big deal of putting up signs at busy locations letting them know the copter is watching them. We think this means it's mostly a bluff intended to get speeders to change their behavior and tickets will likely be handed out by these beautiesmost of the time. [ This Is London photo, Dave Manders/Essex Police]

Acutal Press Release

Sheriff Leon Lott unveiled the armored personnel carrier (APC), having the Richland County Sheriff’s Department Special Response Team (SRT) demonstrate the functions and abilities of the SRT and APC. Sheriff Lott was accompanied during the press conference today by the South Carolina National Guard who will assist the Sheriff’s Department with training, maintenance and general support for the operation of the APC. The APC was purchased under the “1033 program” which falls under the State Budget and Control Board, General Services Division. The program allows law enforcement agencies to receive military surplus – the Sheriff’s Department pays a fee per year of $2,000 from our general fund budget to acquire access to equipment, worth thousands of dollars on the open market. Sheriff Lott stated that during the Army’s use of the APC, the Federal Government paid over $300,000 for each M113A2 APC. Sheriff Lott stated that “1033 program” is a great resource for improving the effectiveness of the Sheriff’s Department while saving the citizens money (Mr. Ron Cathey runs the 1033 program for South Carolina and his number is (803) 896-7628).

The armored personnel carrier (APC) will provide additional assets to the Special Response Team (SRT) as they deal with a wide array of threats to our citizens. The Special Response Team involves two dedicated seven-person teams - SRT members are part time and have regular full-time duties. Sheriff Lott stated that the members of SRT have been trained to address barricaded suspects, hostage scenarios, high risk warrants, engage in active counter measures, crowd control, and hostile environmental situations. All SRT operators are required to be Hazardous Material Technicians to better serve the populous in the ever-changing threats to our country — all SRT members are a part of the Richland County COBRA (Chemical, Ordnance, Biological and Radiological) response team as we prepare to protect our citizens from the threat of explosives, chemical hazards or spills, or biological release. SRT utilizes different forms of weaponry (both less-than-lethal and lethal) in order to address any threats to our citizens.

Sheriff Leon Lott extended his appreciation to the citizens of Richland County and to the State Paper for their contributions in naming the APC (the State held an online search to garner public assistance on naming the APC). The purpose in obtaining this equipment is the protection of life and our protection of our communities – that the mere presence of the APC will prevent loss of life or injury to any and all citizens. Sheriff Lott stated that the name selected from the entries will be “The Peacemaker” because that is the APC’s purpose and the bible refers to law enforcement in Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God”. Sheriff Lott hopes to always bring resolution to all conflict through peaceful means.

[RCSD via Reason]

It's those funny switches hidden in the ashtray that give away this 3-series as an undercover police car. The good chap who runs BridgeToGantry spotted it lurking around, we're assuming for off-track hoons or anyone engaging in fun stuff drifting while overtaking. [BridgeToGantry]

Suitability Parameters:
Speed Merchants: No
Fashion Victims: No
Treehuggers: No
Mack Daddies: No
Tuner Crowd: No
Hairdressers: No
Penny Pinchers: No
Euro Snobs: No
Working Stiffs: Yes
Technogeeks: No
Poseurs: No
Soccer Moms: No
Nascar Dads: Yes
Golfing Grandparents: No

Also Consider:
• Ford Crown Victoria P71
• Chevy Impala 9C1
• '74 Dodge Monaco
• Increasing road safety by encouraging good driving behavior and motorist education instead of focusing on narrow-minded and ineffective speed enforcement

Vitals:
• Manufacturer: Dodge
• Model year: 2008
• Base price: $29,160
• Price as tested: $29,740
• Engine type: 5.7-Liter OHV V8
• Horsepower: 340 @ 5000 RPM
• Torque: 390 @ 4000 RPM
• Transmission: 5-Speed Automatic
• Curb weight: 4150 pounds
• LxWxH: 200.1" x 74.5" x 58.2"
• Wheelbase: 120.0"
• Tires: P225/60R18
• 0 - 60 mph: 5.9 seconds
• EPA fuel economy city/highway: 15/23 MPG
• NHTSA crash test rating: ***** front

Also see:
• 2008 Dodge Charger Police Edition, Part One
• 2008 Dodge Charger Police Edition, Part Two

Acceleration: ****
On paper, 340 HP may not look as impressive today as it once did, but when you stomp on the go pedal and wake up the four Hemi V8 cylinders that were taking a nap to save gas, those horses feel plenty strong indeed. Maximum power from the 5.7-liter mill comes in at 5000 RPM, and 390 lb-ft of torque is cranked out at 4000 RPM. And while it may not be exceedingly loud, the Hemi does provide a snorting soundtrack.

Braking: ***
With ABS and vented discs on all four corners, stopping performance is adequate, especially considering the massive size and weight of the Charger. What's important is the car feels stable and controlled during emergency-stop situations.

Ride: ***
Benefiting from the Mercedes-derived four-wheel-independent suspension, the Police Charger certainly feels better than the softly sprung solid-axle boats of yesteryear. But the sheer size of the car may make you feel a bit like you're in an SUV that's been hunkered down a few inches, though overall the ride is comfortable enough for a day's worth of patrolling.

Handling: **
You don't expect a car like this to go around turns well, and it doesn't. Body roll isn't as bad as some cars, but there's lots of understeer. Even with the traction control off, the car is hard to coax into a powerslide. You'll be fine chasing down a murderer in an Iroc-Z on the expressway, but you'll need to call-in a roadblock to catch a Porsche on a winding back road.

Gearbox: *
There's just something so nostalgically right about a column-shifter in a big American car. The five-speed automatic works fine for normal driving. However, the autostick feature is nearly worthless. Even my small thumbs struggled to properly operate the tiny +/- button for manual shifting.

Audio: *
The bargain basement stereo isn't impressive, though if you're busy listening to your police radio, we imagine it's sufficient.

Toys: **
With no sirens, no radios, and no flashing lights installed, our Charger had nothing to play with. If you want to install all the cop goodies, the Charger's ready to go with an upgraded battery and alternator — and all that would have moved the star rating to the top. Still, the spotlight is fun for making punk teenage drivers squirm night driving on unlit country roads.

Value: ***
Though we hear it all depends on what kind of deal your municipality can strike up, a Hemi-powered Police Charger starts at just over $29,000. That's pretty good if you want a brand new muscle sedan. Though a Ford or Chevy will cost less if you just want a cruiser. That's not even mentioning the endless supply of pre-abused P71 Crown Vics that are practically given away at police auctions.

Overall: ***
The Dodge Charger Police Edition is a squad car with the attitude to intimidate bad guys, and the muscle to run them down. It takes old-school flavor and brings it up-to-date, while retaining the simple charm of a big V8-powered American cruiser. So what do you say? Is it the new Bluesmobile or what?

Also see:
• 2008 Dodge Charger Police Edition, Part One
• 2008 Dodge Charger Police Edition, Part Three