Helena Police Officers have little to do in this sleepy, but growing suburb of Birmingham. The stretch of Highway 52 between Highway 13 and Highway 17 is notorious for bringing your driving taxes to the pockets of Helena’s police officers. The speed limit is 40, but any vehicle could safely travel through this stretch at 55 mph in any conditions. I don’t know that they ever stop their nonsense, but the cops seem to be in higher concentration during Friday evenings, all day on Saturdays and Sundays after church (the times when I am usually driving near home to see them.) I live here and have never been caught, but that’s because I see them pulling people over and issuing 44mph tickets. If they are stationary, they usually wait for you at Helena Intermediate School or at the firestation or at the Cahaba River bridge. They seem to be more succesful when they are hiding behind moving traffic while aiming their radar at oncoming traffic that can’t see them behind the car they are following or while they are rounding the numerous corners. They will give you a ticket if you are speeding at all. They love ticketing teenagers and motorcyclists. They have nothing better to do. I have actually seen them top a hill in the wrong lane in ‘hot pursuit’ of a speeder while motorcyclists coming the other direction were ditching themselves to keep from getting hit by the cops head on! I feel the tyranny, but I don’t know what to do about it. When I was home shopping "The safest place to raise children in the U.S.A." per capita was a horn I heard blow several times.