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This weekend I had my first traffic stop while carrying. Although I've had my CHL for almost ten years and my lead foot earns me a defensive driving class every couple of years or so, my tickets were always going to or from work where I can't carry without risking getting fired.

This time my wife and I were house hunting in Rockwall County. We were done for the day and heading home. I had set the cruise control and we were sharing our thoughts about the properties that we had toured. Honestly, I must not have been paying as much attention as I should have been. I never saw the speed limit reduction signs nor the trooper. I have no idea where he was until he was on the road several car lengths behind me with the lights on.

When it was clear that it was me he wanted, I pulled over, released my seat belt, got my wallet out and waited for the trooper to approach. He chose the passenger side, which is out of traffic. He said the stop was due to my speed. I apologized and told him I had the cruise set. He said I was going 67 in a 55. I apologized again and said I wasn't familiar with the area and I had no idea I was speeding like that. My wife mentioned that we were house hunting. He said, "yeah, it drops from 65 a ways back". In response to her he asked, "where y'all from"? I told him where we currently live. He mentioned that there are many LEOs in the area and they are quite active to which I said "That's good to know" or something similar.

At this point he still had not asked for my DL or anything. I said, "Officer, let me give you my information." I passed him my DL, insurance, and CHL. He looked at the insurance card and CHL and passed them back to me without saying anything. He took my DL back to his car where another trooper seemed to make the computer queries. After a couple of minutes he came back with a warning and cautioned me to watch the speed limit signs more carefully and have a nice evening. I assured him that I would.

To me, this is a fantastic encounter. At that much over the limit, I clearly deserved a ticket. The fact that I didn't realize I was speeding that much is beside the point. I should have been paying more attention. More importantly, the fact that I was carrying was a non-issue. IMHO, this is exactly how it should be unless the LEO has some specific reason to be concerned.

Kudos to the Texas Department of Public Safety. I believe that this trooper was a fine example of following not only the letter but the intent of the law. Even if he had given me a speeding ticket I would be writing the same note of praise for how the traffic stop was handled.

SA-TX