In 35 years of driving, I've gotten one speeding ticket. One. And, based upon the attitude of the ticketing officer, there was NOTHING  I could've done to get out of it. Not even the little show that motorist Steven Brundage performed for police in upstate Scotia, New York, last Friday night would have worked for me.

What little show?

 

Brundage told the Daily News he never thought he would be performing a magic trick during a traffic stop but when the officers noticed the playing cards in his car they asked if he played poker.

 

"I said no, actually I'm a magician,' and they were like 'Oh, that's cool'," he said.

 

They asked if he could show them a trick and Brundage obliged. He got out of the car and one of the officers agreed to record it with his camera.

 

So, to set the scene, it's 3am, and Steven had been pulled over for doing 42mph in a 30mph zone. Then, the magic, well, worked it's magic.

 

He said he never asked the officers not to give him a violation.

 

"When I got pulled over I didn't think I would get a ticket," he said. "When I did the trick I was 99.9% sure I wouldn't."

 

But if the officers chose to be a not-so-great audience that was completely their decision, Brundage said.

 

"I had absolutely no power in that situation," he said with a laugh.

 

Here's what happened next:

Scotia police Chief Peter Frisoni says it wasn't the magic that got Steven out of the ticket.

 

Though he was speeding Frisoni said the main thing the officers are watching for at that time of night is reckless or drunken driving, and Brundage was doing neither. There was no evidence he had been drinking and everything checked out with his license and registration, the chief said.

The weather conditions were not treacherous, he added.

 

"The officers in that situation have discretion and they chose not to give a ticket," he said. "From what I understand he didn't say, 'I'll show you a magic trick if you don't give me a ticket' and they didn't say, 'Will you do us a trick to get out of a ticket?'"

 

The chief said he thinks the video, which features very cordial dialogue between Brundage and his officers, is a positive reflection for his department of 12 officers that cover the "close-knit" 2-square-mile town with a population of about 8,000 people.

 

Alright, to recap, don't speed. But, if you do, it doesn't hurt to be courteous, and having a cool magic trick at your disposal never hurts.

 

 

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