Ok, I need some advice from people. If any law enforcement officers could reply to this, I would greatly appreciate it. I need serious advice so I am in no way exaggerating anything in this story. I was on my way to school this afternoon and was going somewhere between 70 and 75mph when a state trooper flew up behind me out of nowhere. He pulled me over. When he came up to the car I had the window cracked just enough to hand him my license and registration. He came up to the window and demanded that I put it down all the way. He screamed "Put the ****ing window down" and smashed his hand on the side of my window. I was getting scared now because I did have a pipe in my center console. He asked me if I knew why I had been pulled over and I said now I didn't. This made him extremely mad and he started shouting and cursing at me. He walked over to the passenger side of my car and proceeded to enter my vehicle. When he did I stated that I had not given him permission to search my vehicle. He ignored my completely and opened up my cup holder. He found a small marijuana stem. He came around told me to step out of the car, dragged me to the back, threw me on the hood and handcuffed me. He then continued to shout and my face and curse at me. He took the stem of marijuana and told me to smell it and shoved it up my nose. He then asked me if there was anything else in the car. I told him yeah, there's a pipe. He got it, searched the rest of my car, didn't find anything else. He then took me to the front of my car, told me to lay on my hood and not to move while he decides if he should lock me up. I laid there for a good ten minutes, he came back. He told me to recite the alphabet and then count backwards. He then told me he wasn't going to arrest me even though he should. He said if I tried to appeal the ticket that he would definitely show up to court and he would tell the judge about the pot he found in my car and I would end up looking like a fool and that he hopes I "know the right thing to do." He then uncuffed me, gave me a speeding ticket and told me to get in my car and get the **** out of his site. Afterwards I saw that the ticket stated I was going 89mph and was for $290. Should I appeal this? I think I should because of the way he treated me and the violation of my 4th amendment rights. I think he knew what he did was wrong and that's why he tried threatening me not to appeal the ticket. I have no idea what he would have used for probable cause to justify his search of my vehicle. There was nothing in plain view, and there is no way he smelled anything. It had been 4 or 5 days since I smoked pot in the car. I had sprayed it on two separate occasions following that, plus my friends and I smoke cigarettes like chimney's. The only thing my car would have smelled like is cigarettes and Axe. I think I should try anyways because of the way he treated me and the violation of my rights.
You can appeal and win but it's not worth it cause you could get a charge for the bowl. He had no fuckin right you should have locked the door. that was a pusyy cop
I know I should have locked the door. I had no idea he was going to enter. I knew there wasn't anything in plain view, I thought he was just walking around my car to look in the windows and see if he could spot anything. Next thing I know he's kneeling in my passenger seat. That's something I find really weird too. That he would get into my passenger seat to search while I was still seated in the car.
This state tropper sounds liek a seasoned veteran who just loves to fuck with kids. He's prolly plays the same game with every kid he pulls over and suspects them of holding. He yells and curses at them, threatens them, illegally searches their vehicle and then threatens them not to fight it, then ups the ticket and he knows they ain't gonna do shit for fear of getting busted for the pot. But if someone did fight him on it, they'd have a good case with a good lawyer. And alot of cop cars have dashcams on them so it'd all be on tape.
If he entered the car without your permission than you will easily win and all charges will be dropped. Don't worry about the bowl because they can't do anything about it because the cop fucked up. He probably won't even show up to court and is just talking big to scare you.
No, he didn't file a report. He kept the little bit of weed. We're talking a quarter of an inch stem, and little tiny piece of bud, I'm talking microscopic, and my pipe. Then he wrote me the speeding ticket, which like I said was a complete lie. I was doing 75, I had my cruise control on. The ticket was for 89mph. What I don't get though is for how he determined the speed he checked off both radar and estimate on the ticket. I don't know what to do. There is no way in fucking hell I can afford to pay this ticket, but I'm afraid if I try to appeal it he'll bring up the weed and stuff to the judge like he said he would. I think he knew he did something wrong, because he told me not to appeal it. All I have to appeal is the speeding ticket. A friend told me if he does bring up the pipe and weed he found it would be inadmissible on two grounds, one it's irrelevant, and two he never filed a report or charged me with it in the first place.
yea appeal that shit a stem? i thought it was some straight weed(read the post quick and got it wrong. fuck that like someone said he was wrong for getting in ya car.
The whole thing did basically seem like he was just trying to scare the shit out of me. While he was searching my car he had me standing handcuffed near my trunk. Once he finished he grabbed me, yanked me to the front of my car, made me lay with my face pressed against the hood (really uncomfortable) and told me "Don't fucking move while I decide whether to throw your ass in lock up or just let you go." I had to stay that way for about 15 minutes before he came back and then gave me a sobriety test. He was so unprofessional the entire time. He started screaming and yelling at me from the get go. Like when he asked me why I was pulled over I said no, and he flipped out. Everyone knows you never admit to why you were pulled over. But he started screaming and scared the shit out of me so I said "I guess I was speeding." That's when he walked around and got into my passenger seat.
Why would the fact that you had a stem on you impact an appealed traffic ticket? You passed the sobriety test, right? Also, I'm fairly certain that his ass would be grass if he revealed that he had a case of possession within his grasp and deliberately let it slide. I'd file a complaint with the PD. You've got harassment, illegal search, intimidation, and definitely an exaggerated charge. I would also read up on your state's definition of assault, because in a lot of places it's way more broad than you might think and this would probably meet the definition. It certainly would in my home state of Washington. To the people saying that the stem couldn't be used as evidence because it was obtained in an illegal search: there are plenty of exceptions to that rule. Even if it can't be used as evidence of direct wrongdoing in a trial it can still be used to impeach his credibility as a witness. Check out the exceptions to the rule.
take this to court. he had an indash cam. get a decent lawyer to discuss it with before u do anything drastic. if these are the true facts you were horribly mistreated. he didnt file a report so dont worry about the pot stuff.
Fight it. Although it gets a little complicated to get an officer in trouble for violating your 4th ammendment rights when they find something. I would try. because he went way overboard.
Appeal it. Ask politely for a "Certificate of Calibration" because "you're absolutely positive you weren't speeding". Most the time the police write you tickets without confirming that you were speeding, and without this certificate of calibration they have no proof and it's thrown out. If he brings up the marijuana, deny it. He doesn't have proof because obviously he didn't file anything or else you'd be facing more than just a speeding ticket.
I'd also suggest stopping smoking and start detoxing and tell them you'll do a drug test to prove it. edit: another thing i forgot to mention, don't ask for the certificate until you're in front of the judge. Don't give the officer time to fake one.
technically they cant charge you for anything besides the ticket because it was a unlawful search and seizure. If i were you i would just pay the ticket though because its not worth fighting it. The law can be fucked up sometimes and you should just consider yourself lucky i guess.
meh, i wouldn't settle for that. I'd tell them that you might have been speeding but you know it wasn't over 75 and refuse to pay anymore than 20 dollars/per mph over the speed limit that you were going. (that's california law anyways) Request a certificate of calibration because you know you weren't going that fast. Only do it if you're absolutely sure. Also keep in mind if your truck is lifted, it makes your spedometer wrong. I have to deal with that and it can be confusing sometimes. lol edit: Also by law if you REALLY were doing over 15 mph over speed limit, he should have taken you to jail, which is also proof that you were not.
Yeah I was going to ask for the Certificate of Calibration, I read about doing that online. Could it also help that he checked of on the ticket, under how he determined I was speeding or whatever both "radar" and "estimated?" I mean, shouldn't it be one or the other? If he had a radar he wouldn't have needed to estimate, and if he estimated then he didn't have a radar.