Ever use your ostomy or jpouch as an exucse to get out of a ticket?

I think that you would be surprised at the number of cops that have gut issues and can truly appreciate the availability of a good bathroom.

lol...yep a few times. I even used it to get a friend out of a ticket. Well actually I used UC. She was talking on the phone and driving, and we were going around a bend, and there was a cop and dead-stop traffic. Anyway, I basically started freaking out saying that she was on the phone with my doctor, and please please please I couldn't wait and had to get to a restroom immediately. Every time he started asking for her license I would start freaking out more! So Finally he let us go, and got a cop to guide us out of the traffic. Most people do not know what it is. A couple of times the cops asked me what is UC? I say its a digestive disorder, that involves intestinal bleeding, and I need to go home and take my medication.I really was speeding because I wanted to go home to go to the bathroom though, and a cop is the last thing I needed in time like that.

In October 2011 I got a speeding ticket going 86 miles per hour in a 65 mph zone on I-87 in upstate New York south of Lake George. The truth is that I was speeding because I was trying to get to the next rest area or exit so I could find a bathroom. When the female NY State Trooper asked me why I was going so fast I told her I was looking to get to the next rest area/exit to find a bathroom as soon as possible.

The truth is my continence is really good with the J Pouch, but I had been driving from Canada and I had been on the road for several hours with no stops. But, she gave me a ticket anyway.

When the summons came from the Court, I pled guilty, but in the box where you can add "other comments" to explain your plea, so that the information might be considered in sentencing/punishment, I explained that I had a J Pouch and needed to get to a bathroom.

I got hit with 2 fines which totalled $500. I had to pay one fine of about $200 to the Court and then an additional fine of $300 to the NY State Department of Motor Vehicles. At least they let you pay off the second fine in annual installments.

It was actually my first speeding ticket since I was in law school in the late 1980s.

Yup! Although, truly, it was an emergency. I got pulled over and showed my "Medical Emergency" card, the cop laughed and directed me to a park with an outhouse.

When he saw me take off in my car and then run like a bat out of hell for the bathroom, he apologized profusely and let me go.

I know a lot of people in law enforcement and you have to understand they're given the 'i have to go to the bathroom' line almost daily as a reason for speeding. If you go that route you should either give them something official looking that says you have an issue, or just pull up your shirt and show them the ostomy/scars which is what I have done in the past. Even then it's 50/50 at best and depends widely on who you're talking to.

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just pull up your shirt and show them the ostomy/scars

You know, I did not think to do that, and I like the idea generally. But I was pulled over by a young female New York State Trooper who had the most serious looking face and she asked me not to move. What if I pulled up my shirt and she thought I was going for a weapon and she got a little trigger happy? I was watching her movements as she approached my vehicle and she was acting super cautiously like she thought I was a real criminal. And she asked me a ton of questions and I had one simple one, "how far up ahead in the road to the next bathroom?", and she did not answer it.

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What if I pulled up my shirt and she thought I was going for a weapon and she got a little trigger happy?

Use common sense. You don't want to be ripping at your shirt as someone walks up but slip it into the conversation as you hand your information over. Always be respectful. These people get lied to 95% of the time. "officer/trooper (learn the difference) I'm sure you hear this all the time but I'm having a bathroom emergency. I have intestinal issues, I've had a lot of surgeries here look at these scars" and calmly pull up your shirt from the mid/upper area enough to show some of the scaring. You don't have to rip your shirt off, a couple inches will do. If you have a button down on you can pull it open from the middle. no fast movements.

LionsPride - I agree. Law officers often get a bad rap and that's unfortunate. I have family and friends who are in law enforcement and are firefighters. We all just need to be a little more respectful and a little more aware of an officer's (or firefighter's) job (no troopers out here so I think I'm good on that). I can't even imagine being in law enforecment in Seattle these days. I don't know how they hold it together with all those people out to shoot them.

And I feel the same about the TSA - if they need to xray, grope, question me, or rifle through my carry-on baggage that's fine with me because the alternative to no screening is much more scary. They have a thankless job but they are there for our protection.

kathy

Just like any other profession there's good cops and ****ty cops but I try to remember what it's like to do their jobs. Especially if you're in an urban area like much of my family. They deal with the worst of society on a daily basis year after year and it takes a toll on their eventual outlook.