[pest]

FWC has broader powers in the state of Florida than any other state law enforcement agency. The guy could have made things very difficult and the last thing you ever want to do is to tell a cop what he can and cant do.

Joe - you would have made a big mistake trying to do what you said. He would have had you on the side of the road for hours while he searched your car. FWC is the only law enforcement that does not require search warrants to search your home or car and their required probable cause has less restrictions. he could have said he suspected you of having out of season game or drugs in the vehicle. His jurisdiction is the entire state, 5 mph over the speed limit is speeding and radar is not needed to write a ticket. You might have had a pretty good case to fight the ticket, but he still could have wrote it and very, very likely his superior would back him up. Make no mistake, these guys arent park rangers, they are cops.

I have made the mistake of making smart ass comments to them before only to pay the price by having my boat and safety equipment inspected to insane standards and having all of the contents tossed and searched.