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People are telling me that the State Troopers seem to be providing a good deal of “protection” in West Easton. Of course, their protection seems suspiciously directed at trying to create *revenue at the expense of West Easton residents.

One resident reported that a State Trooper positioned himself in the parking lot of Safety First this morning, facing Keystone and the park. That would be the portion of Keystone Street with the 15 mile per hour zone.

For those who may not be aware, Pennsylvania only allows State Troopers to use radar guns. This makes it extremely easy for them to shoot a passing vehicle with radar and get an accurate readout of exactly how fast they are traveling.

Another resident found a State Trooper (the same one?) parked in the alley behind her house today, giving the Trooper a hiding position to observe vehicles that might use the “rolling stop” method at the stop sign on Spring Street.

Now, my hope is that the Troopers are looking for those who are running through the stop signs. I’ve seen plenty of those go by my house. But I also know that there are law enforcement officers who will ticket a vehicle if they don’t see those tires come to a complete stop for a full second, behind the stop sign.

We never got this much attention from Easton Police, who were looking for the type of serious trouble that might come from outside our borough. Unlike these Troopers, Easton Police treated us as neighbors. To my knowledge they never set up speed traps or worked diligently to generate tickets by hiding near stop signs.

By the way, if they are parking on private property, including driveways, or parking lots of private businesses, the owners can insist they move.

*I’ve been informed that the revenue generated through tickets issued by State Troopers in West Easton is actually shared with West Easton.

Update 1/8/14

The State Troopers went through much of the borough last night using a spot light.