Cops ruined my Friday night

[mylife]

I took work off Thursday night so me and a couple friends decided to drive down to a neighboring Uni and party. It's about 2 hrs away and we didn't hit the road til 8:15 pm. My buddy thought he knew a shortcut but ended up landing us somewhere in the middle of nowhere so we were already running late. I wasn't driving cuz I hate speeding but the guy at the wheel was doin about 75 in a 60 through some small towns. The populations of the 3 cities we went through before getting pulled over was 57, ~300, ~1500. So a cop spots us doin 80 and pulls us over. The guy at the wheel is paranoid like you would not believe so he immediately starts panicking. I tried telling him to settle the fuck down but when we got pulled over cuz he started swerving all over the road trying to put his shoes back on. The cop gets us outta the car and makes us empty our pockets, etc. We have nothing illegal on us, but I had some papers in the car that I stuck in my pocket. He asks a few questions bout why I have those then goes back to his car. This guy was real young, maybe a rookie, so he called another patrolman to come interrogate us. This dickhead arrives at the scene and immediately begins badgering me with questions. (some weak form of social engineering, he'd pause every few seconds to try and remember what his manual says to do) " "Where ya goin? What's in (city name)? Anything illegal in the car? Pretty nice car ya got, how'd you afford that? Can I search it?"

I damn near told him he couldnt search it because they were driving me up the wall but I wanted to get the hell outta there so I could get liquored up and see some tail. So I told him to go ahead and search it, which he did, 4 times. He said he smelled marijuana in there and wanted to know just how much we have hiding in there cuz they're gonna find it. He keeps digging, pullin out all sorts of gadgets to look around. The bastard even broke my wheelwell when he was pullin out some piece to look up to the gas tank. It'd been about 45 minutes and I'm wearin shorts w/ no socks in 50 degree weather so I'm pretty cold and I'm shivering which was taken for nervousness. After a few minutes of silence the rookie cop looks over and says, "It'd be a whole lot easier if you just told us where it is." So I get pissed off and ask to talk to a lawyer and he tells me I can't. They call the K-9 unit and tell us it's gonna be a 1/2 hour before they get there. I'm raging now because it's already midnight and we have another hour to go.

The dogs show up, jump in and out of the car 4 times, don't make a sound, and the guy tries telling me it hit on something! Then he tells me they're gonna impound my car, rip out the stereo, etc. to which I replied, "Go ahead, your dreams of making the newspaper will be unfulfilled." Then he searches the car by himself once more, makes me fill out some paperwork, and leaves us with the other two cops. Those 2 finally let us go after an hour and a half with no charges which was straight but I didn't get in town til 1:45 and the girl I was supposed to visit was already passed out. And the party was over.

What a couple of pricks, eh?

 

[David Schwimmer]

To protect and serve.....

 

[2Thick]

He is not allowed to make you empty your pockets.

I hope you know that.

 

[Devastation]

i'd say a job well done

 

[tuc biscuit]

That is shocking.....the fact that any party would be over by 1:45 amazes me.

 

[MFMan]

Man that was a long post.

 

[Bobber]

Your chick must be a light weight. I have been pulled over while the joint was still burning and it didn't take that long for them to let us go. Sorry bro.

 

[tiger88]

He is not allowed to make you empty your pockets.

I hope you know that.

really? i dont they ask if u have stuff in pockets? then they say take it out? if not they arrest you?? please fill me in

 

[mylife]

people are nuts down there. it's a big XII powerhouse school so football is huge. they start partying after class on fridays and go to bed relatively early to wake up and start priming for the football game at about 9 AM.

 

[2Thick]

really? i dont they ask if u have stuff in pockets? then they say take it out? if not they arrest you?? please fill me in

When a policeman pulls you over they have to state why.

Your friend was speeding so unless they smelled pot or saw drug paraphanalia, they cannot make you empty your pockets.

They can only ask to search your car. If you say no, they cannot do anything but wait for the dog. Then the dog can only go around the car.

If the car does not smell something then they cannot do anything.

The only time they can search your body is if they suspect you have committed a crime. When a officer forces you so sit down or stops you from leaving (after the ticket) then they have arrested you (according to the law) and they have to read you your rights but they must fill out a tonne of paperwork.

Either way you and your friends got hosed and there was not much you could do being in a small town but you should nevetr have played ball with them.

NEVER NEVER NEVER let a policeman get more than your name, address and basic info on where you were going and such.

AND NEVER NEVER NEVER let them search anything. Make sure you say "I DO NOT GIVE YOU THE RIGHT TO SEARCH ANYTHING."

 

[Lao Tzu]

>"I DO NOT GIVE YOU THE RIGHT TO SEARCH ANYTHING."

Cops aren't stupid. When people say that. 99% of the time they're either lawyers, trying to prove a point. Or got something to hide.

Either way. Cops have abide by the law. You're right.

BUT!

They can also turn around and make you WAIT YOUR ASS OFF for 1-2 hours if they want. Cops are under no federal law to make sure the whole process can be done in under 15 minutes so can be on your way to McDonald's.

In a nutshell. Cops can pretty much throw the book at you if they really wanted. There really isn't much you can do sitting on a road at 3am. Your rights come to you when you stand in front of a judge with a complaint. Until then -- you're powerless.

Welcome to America's police state. And after 9/11 -- cops have even more discretion and less overlook. Hell they can even shoot your dog if it moves 1 inch towards them (remember that story few months back?).

-= nav =-

true. using psychological torture and intimidation to coerce people out of invoking their rights is widespread in the police and none will ever be held accountable for it. They know they can just make life really inconvenient for a suspect, look for any chickenshit misdemeanor to fabricate or or bully them out of their rights if they are brave enough to invoke them.

 

[Austin316]

yea ruined my night too, I got a 125 dollar speeding ticket. The minimum ticket is 100 dollars so I wasn't that much over but fuck! if I was a girl Id of started bawling and gotten out of it

 

[Taps]

I got pulled over on a random spot check today. This is basically the conversation I had with the cop.

Cop: Have you had anything to drink tonight?
Me: Nope, just got off work.
Cop: Any drugs or alchohol in your car?
Me: No.
Cop: Do you mind if I have a a look through your car, sir?
Me: Ummmm...legally, do I have to let you?
Cop: No, you don't.
Me. Then, no. You can't. Sorry.
Cop. Ok, have a good night, sir. Drive safely.

I did notice that some of his buddies had other cars pulled over and were going through the trunk, backseats, etc. Guess you can just say "no" and that's it...

 

[2Thick]

I got pulled over on a random spot check today. This is basically the conversation I had with the cop.

Cop: Have you had anything to drink tonight?
Me: Nope, just got off work.
Cop: Any drugs or alchohol in your car?
Me: No.
Cop: Do you mind if I have a a look through your car, sir?
Me: Ummmm...legally, do I have to let you?
Cop: No, you don't.
Me. Then, no. You can't. Sorry.
Cop. Ok, have a good night, sir. Drive safely.

I did notice that some of his buddies had other cars pulled over and were going through the trunk, backseats, etc. Guess you can just say "no" and that's it...

You are all about personal rights.

You did the right thing.

 

[Taps]

Fuck da police.

 

[ZKaudio]

This is a useful thread. Bump for more x-pd's w/ advice on how to handle situations like the above ^

 

[AAP]

Let me put just a little twist on this... which may/may not be legal depending on who you ask...


If you are on probation for anything... and you get stopped, depending on the terms of your probation, the cops can LEGALLY search you and your car and make you take a breath test (even if the original charge was not DUI or suspected DUI).

Sometimes when you have a prior drug charge (or violent crime) the conditions of your probation include random unannounced drug tests and inspections. Most people will think this means that when they go down to their P.O. officer, the officer can make them take a drug test at anytime. (Which they can). Little does anyone know that a cop can invoke the courts ruling against you in his favor if need be. So you get stopped for jay walking or littering one night while walking down the street, the cops can require you to a breath test on the spot. Which if you flunk, even a wee bit, you can have a charge of public intoxication as opposed to the jaywalking charge he stopped you for. As far as the inspection part goes, as most people on probation knows, a P.O. can come visit unannounced at your residence or search your car when you report in. Most P.O.'s do not do this simply because it is time consuming and they are usually overwhelmed by clients and backlogged cases. Not to mention in Florida very few people show up in probation in their own car simply because with possession - even a first offense - you lose your license for two years. (which is both good and bad in my opinion.)

 

[tiger88]

nice post bump.....2thick thanx......any more info from the boys?

 

[mylife]

nice post bump.....2thick thanx......any more info from the boys?

refuse the initial breathalyzer, always ask to have an independent chemical test. also, refuse field sobriety tests if there's a good chance you'll fail, it's just another thing that can be used against you in court.

always refuse a search if you have a reason to, especially late at night. they're required to obtain a warrant which many judges don't care to be bothered by in the middle of the evening.

always ask to see the radar if you receive a speeding ticket.

always speak to a lawyer before opening your mouth to the cops. it's not an admission of guilt and he/she knows much more than you concerning the law.

 

[ZKaudio]

If you refuse the sobriety test in ca, you automatically lose your license for a yr i think... it's like an admission of guilt.

 

[mylife]

i meant only refuse the initial breathalyzer. you want to delay the process as much as possible so your BAC is lowered. you can do that by either requesting an independent chemical test (blood test at hospital) or waiting until you're back at the station to take the breathalyzer.

 

[F117A Active Stealth]

Cops can be pricks here in Canada too, but here it's more bark than bite because the law ties their hands! bwahahahahaha!!!

On a serious note, I think that's a bad thing. Cops should have more rights to protect the law and a little more liberty doing so. The catch should be stiff penalies for them IF they abuse that liberty.

I want to get into Law Enforcement soon, and here in Canada at least it's a little bit nicer to work in that field (the jackass level here is about 5 times less than the States Hope I didn't offend anyone)

 

[Ashamed]

At least you see cops there... you can go for weeks without seeing a cop drive down the streets in any town or city in the UK....

You can have a good long run as a criminal in the UK....

 

[tuc biscuit]

At least you see cops there... you can go for weeks without seeing a cop drive down the streets in any town or city in the UK....

You can have a good long run as a criminal in the UK....

We got 'community policemen' in our area now.

 

[tiger88]

damn thanx guys........i will give karma to you hell raisers who helped me......please keep it coming......this is the only place i learn stuff like this

 

[Devastation]

damn thanx guys........i will give karma to you hell raisers who helped me......please keep it coming......this is the only place i learn stuff like this

interesting none the less anyways

 

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The cop gets us outta the car and makes us empty our pockets,

Illegal

"Where ya goin?

That information does not concern you and I consider it personal.

What's in (city name)?

That information does not concern you and I consider it personal.

Anything illegal in the car?

No

Pretty nice car ya got, how'd you afford that?

That information does not concern you and I consider it personal.

Can I search it?"

No

So I get pissed off and ask to talk to a lawyer and he tells me I can't.

Anything said after that including where the illegal materials if any would be inadmissible

They call the K-9 unit and tell us it's gonna be a 1/2 hour before they get there.

You now can revoke his permission to search

makes me fill out some paperwork,

You do not have to fill anything out. It’s not your job.