Arrest, Search, Seizure, Warrant Unlawful Procedures?

[ericschevy2004]

Last night I was pulled over by the police while leaving a bar. The female officer was waiting down the street, waiting for me to leave which leads me to believe she had already ran my plate and checked my record. When I asked her why she pulled me over she replied "I will tell you later". She than asked me if there was anything in the vehicle she should know about and I replied "no". She then asked me to step out of the car, frisked me, cuffed me and placed me in her car. She then searched my car and passenger. She then finally told me why she pulled me over. She lied and said she pulled me over because I didn't use my turn signal and didn't come to a complete stop which I DID! She then gave me a ticket for a restriction violation because I was driving past my curfew because my passenger had been drinking. This officer had no valid reason to pull me over, didnt read me my rights, and frisked me (which Im pretty sure it's illegal for a female officer to frisk a man) Do I have a case

 

[mightymoose]

No. You have nothing.

 

[jharris352]

Moose, what reason would she have to frisk him, cuff him, and put him in her car?

 

[ericschevy2004]

Moose, what reason would she have to frisk him, cuff him, and put him in her car?

Yeah, I'd like to know as well...

 

[ericschevy2004]

All she was concerned about was searching me, my passenger and my vehicle. She seemed distraught when she found nothing and could only get me for a restriction violation. She thought she hit the jackpot when she pulled me over..

 

[raskalnikov]

OK, are you on probation or on parole? Why is your license restricted. Are you allowed to be in a bar?

Will your witness/passenger be able to confirm your story?

Did you give her permission to search your car?

What county is this in?

 

[mightymoose]

He likely consented to the vehicle search without realizing it. The info given didn't seem to contest the vehicle search, so I take that to mean it was legitimate. Usually when asked if there is anything illegal in the vehicle the question is promptly followed with "You don't mind if I check, do you?"

Frisking him and his passenger prior to the search is a matter of officer safety and is routine. Placing them in the car is for the same reason and is only a detention while she searched. I do the same thing when I search a vehicle and don't have a backup officer. It's too easy to be attacked from behind while your back is turned during a search.
She did the search, apparently found nothing, then wrote the citation for curfew and released him. It's very routine.

Also, since curfew is an issue here, I am assuming we are dealing with a juvenile. A juvenile may automatically be detained and searched due to a curfew violation.
This person was detained, not arrested, and was cuffed for safety reasons due to the search.

Considering that very few people actually make a complete stop at stop signs, I would bet that this person did roll the stop, even if it wasn't blatant. I haven't stopped someone yet that admitted to having rolled a stop sign even though I had just watched them clearly do it.

There is also no issue with men searching women or women searching men, though usually if someone of the same gender is readily available then they will do it.

This whole scenario sounds very routine to me. The officer probably thought she was going to find alcohol or drugs and worked an angle to search the vehicle. For all we know, and I'm just speculating of course, she smelled marijuana when she approached the car. That alone would justify everything that followed. She didn't find what she wanted and let them move along. No harm, no foul.

 

[raskalnikov]

Some counties their police cruisers come equipped with cameras, so, if this is one of those counties and your story holds up, you could definately fight it successfully.

 

[mightymoose]

Oh, good point... I totally missed the probation/parole angle.
The poster said that he thought the officer had checked his record by running his plate... that makes things even simpler if he is on parole or probation.

 

[mightymoose]

Some counties their police cruisers come equipped with cameras, so, if this is one of those counties and your story holds up, you could definately fight it successfully.

I'm not so sure about that. A video might help to argue having rolled the stop, however the citation was for a curfew violation.

 

[ericschevy2004]

OK, are you on probation or on parole? Why is your license restricted. Are you allowed to be in a bar?

Will your witness/passenger be able to confirm your story?

Did you give her permission to search your car?

What county is this in?

No, I'm not on probation or parole, my license is restricted because of an at'fault accident several years ago. My witness can and will confirm my story.
I did NOT consent to a search and was not even asked. I WAS NOT read my rights at all. She was waiting down the street for me to leave and was ready to do or say whatever it took to pull me over. This was in kent county. She OBVIOUSLY had already ran my plate and record being that the first words out of her mouth were "Is there anything in the vehicle I need to know about" because I have a possession of drug paraphernalia record when I was a teenager, I'm 30 years old now.

 

[mightymoose]

Depending on your local laws, your vehicle may have been searchable simply based on your driving while restricted. We can only speculate what other information the officer was acting on. She may also have been acting on informant information that you are not aware of.
She was not required to inform you of your rights.
You have no way to know if she checked your information in advance, and even if she had, there is nothing wrong with that. Besides, we can not assume that the registered owner of a vehicle is the person actually driving it. The officer apparently observed a couple of minor traffic violations and made the stop.
Had she actually found something during the search then there would be a lot more scrutiny here, but on the surface, it all appears routine and well within any department policy.

 

[ericschevy2004]

Some counties their police cruisers come equipped with cameras, so, if this is one of those counties and your story holds up, you could definately fight it successfully.

I knew she was behind me, I made sure that I did nothing wrong! I did come to a complete stop because there was traffic coming. If her reasoning is legitimate then why did she let me get almost 2 miles down the road before she lit me up?

 

[raskalnikov]

If the stop isn't right, then what comes from the stop can be dismissed.

Definately fight it.

 

[ericschevy2004]

Depending on your local laws, your vehicle may have been searchable simply based on your driving while restricted. We can only speculate what other information the officer was acting on. She may also have been acting on informant information that you are not aware of.
She was not required to inform you of your rights.
You have no way to know if she checked your information in advance, and even if she had, there is nothing wrong with that. Besides, we can not assume that the registered owner of a vehicle is the person actually driving it. The officer apparently observed a couple of minor traffic violations and made the stop.
Had she actually found something during the search then there would be a lot more scrutiny here, but on the surface, it all appears routine and well within any department policy.

Well, What kind of fighting edge do I have being that I was only driving because my passenger was impaired?

 

[mightymoose]

You don't have a valid argument.
Call a taxi, take the bus, or call a friend to pick you up.

You aren't going to be able to fight her reason for stop. It will be your word against hers and you will lose. Even if you didn't commit the violation, if the officer believed that you did, then the stop is good.

It is not unusual to stop someone down the road from where the violation was committed. That could be due to police radio traffic, or the officer waiting for an ideal place to make a safe stop.

 

[raskalnikov]

Well, What kind of fighting edge do I have being that I was only driving because my passenger was impaired?

That reasoning won't help you at all. What will help you is if the stop was wrong, especially if the video agrees with your story.

 

[CdwJava]

Last night I was pulled over by the police while leaving a bar. The female officer was waiting down the street, waiting for me to leave which leads me to believe she had already ran my plate and checked my record.

So ... you are stating that you believe she had prior knowledge that your license was restricted or that you were in violation of your curfew and that you were out of compliance? That, in itself, can be sufficient reasonable suspicion to justify the stop.

She then asked me to step out of the car, frisked me, cuffed me and placed me in her car.

The courts - including the USSC - have ruled that an officer can ask you to step out of the car for little to no reason. The "frisk" requires minimal probable cause, but since no evidence was discovered on this frisk there is nothing to contest or suppress.

Putting you in his car is also not uncommon as a safety issue.

She then searched my car and passenger.

Was your car subject to impound? if so, then an inventory is allowed prior to the impound. The search of your friend is an issue for your friend.

Were you under arrest for the curfew violation? Cited? Transported? Car towed?

Was this a true curfew violation (as in, you are under 18)? or, is this a driving restriction or some kind of probation or parole restriction?

She lied and said she pulled me over because I didn't use my turn signal and didn't come to a complete stop which I DID!

Apparently she believes you did not signal properly or come to a complete stop.

She then gave me a ticket for a restriction violation because I was driving past my curfew because my passenger had been drinking.

Not a legal exception, I'll wager.

This officer had no valid reason to pull me over, didnt read me my rights, and frisked me (which Im pretty sure it's illegal for a female officer to frisk a man) Do I have a case

The officer apparently alleges that you did violate the law and was justified in the stop. You can argue this in court.

Your Miranda rights only apply after you are arrested and you are being interrogated. Some 90 percent of arrests will NEVER require Miranda rights to be read.

A female officer can frisk a man, and a male officer can frisk a female.

Bottom line here is that your actions resulted int he contact, not the officers. Had you not been operating a vehicle in violation of whatever curfew restriction was in place, you would not have been caught.

- Carl