It’s a plastic card with a picture on it, but for teens at CHS it is a prized possession. A drivers license.  The day when they pass their driver’s test may be one of the best moments of their pre-adult life.  But this card can also lead to one of the worst moments in teen life – being pulled over.

For police offers pulling a teen over is not always a punishment, but a learning experience so that accidents will not happen. According to the California Department of Motor Vehicles, 52.7 percent of speeding tickets nationwide are given to people between the ages of 16-19. The police focus on teens in hopes that they will become better drivers as they reach adulthood.

Clayton Police officer John Zlatic knows how teens work. Zlatic is the Clayton High School Student Resource Officer and encounters teens everyday and has tried to impart this message to the teens he encounters.

“My philosophy is always to make the person aware of why I pulled them over,” said Zlatic.

Although Zlatic will pull you over for such offenses, he does not always give a ticket. Often he will let a teen slide if they are respectful and courteous.

“I will give a ticket to someone if I pull them over and they are disrespectful,” Zlatic states. “If someone is going to start screaming at me then I figure they’ve talked their way into a ticket.”

In addition, when a police officer flashes their lights, teens need to know that it is illegal not to stop. “The worst way to handle a situation is to fail to stop,” Clayton Field Bureau Commander Stephen Grenier said.

Zlatic believes that the teen’s behavior greatly affects the outcome of the situation.

“The worst thing a teen can do is think that being obnoxious will gain them points with their peers,” Zlatic said. “When you challenge someone who’s in an authority position, it tends to not go well, especially coming from someone that’s younger.”

Late one night senior Alexis McClanahan was pulled over for running through a flashing red light, resulting in a $100 ticket. Though she still got a ticket, McClanahan did learn from the experience. “I was nervous,” said McClanahan. “But I was polite and not ignorant about the situation.” McClanahan believes that she may have received a stiffer punishment had she acted differently.

Although CHS students may not like it statistically, teens tend to drive too fast and carelessly and as a result are more likely to get pulled over.  For the police they are hoping to impart some wisdom early to prevent major accidents later on. As Officer John Zlatic states, “It’s a safety issue.”