This cop was an ass

[shoteen95]

Searches. haha.

Your giving this kid false info. What tv show did you watch that makes you think a cop needs a warrant to search your car. Im sure the guideline to your entire life is the internet, but please know in the real world things work a little different.

I'm pretty sure it was in a Rap song.

Regardless, to the "OMFG HE NEED WARRANT!" crowd, go take intro Criminal Justice at your community college. Or ****, just watch cops...how many times do the police call the court to procure a search warrant before going through some rednecks car?

 

[RStalveyARFF]

Jay is right. They use probable cause on anything. I tow cars for the State Police and 3 area towns and they search cars even if I'm towing it for an expired registration. ****, last time I towed a car for an unlicensed the officer simply asked if he could look around the vehicle. Woman said yes and he literally did a walk around outside, shining his flashlight in. Stopped at the passenger door, reached inside and voila! A bag of marijuana. I know the cop, he didn't plant it, just a stupid lady that decided not to hide her stash when she got pulled over.

 

[Mr95Gl]

I also gotta agree with the above. Living here in the city, it happens more often then you think. Yes legally, they need a warrant to search your car, but depending on why they pulled you over is enough "probable cause" for them to search without one. Since I know I don't carry anything illegal in my car, I just ask them if they'd like to search it to make them feel better, and 99% of the time they don't.

Either way, get some pictures of the scene ASAP. Its obvious that this cop was an @$$. Its unfortunate that a few rotten apples can spoil the bunch in some people eyes.

 

[93rev2sev]

Deep thoughts, by rev2sev.

If this had happened at 7:45AM in the viscinity of a high school or college, I don't think a search would have taken place.

The fact that there were 3 people in the car, at night..."blowing stop signs", toss in a little imaginary weed smell and I think the court would appreciate that you were searched.

That being said, the police were probably aware that the stop sign was obscured and were probably doing a little "fishing". Even if the sign was obscured, they have the right to pull you over(they are not obligated to get out of their cars and straighten it-they probably reported it a week ago). They can then take that as an opporunity to search cars packed with young people at night.

But they didn't find anything...so the search was just an inconvenience (and the mannor in which it was conducted was degrading---typical cop action). If they HAD found something, you might still be OK. It might be possible to successfully argue that the search was illegal, based on the fact that the reason they pulled you over in the first place was an obscured sign (it's the municipalities responsibility to maintain signage). You might then have to prove that the sign was down for a long time and the municpality failed in it's responsibility to fix it. If you've ever been pulled over at that sign before, you would have a hard time proving you didn't know it was there.

In the event of a malfunctioning traffic control device, someone reports(probably a cop) that a sign is "partially obscured". There are standard operating procedures for events like these. I'm sure they vary from place to place. But the officer is either going to man the intersection with overheads on or simply report it and wait for it to be fixed. I'm guessing the latter is what set up this "search and seizure" trap.

 

[egroce11]

Searches. haha.

Your giving this kid false info. What tv show did you watch that makes you think a cop needs a warrant to search your car. Im sure the guideline to your entire life is the internet, but please know in the real world things work a little different.

Utah State Police Officer Standards and Training, Army MP training

rstalveyarff, yes, anytime a cop tows a car like for illiegal, expired plates or something he dreams up, (like the smell of weed) he should do an inventory of the towed car and anything he finds can be used in court. If it's in plain view it can be used also.

Using threats on people by a cop is crap but used a lot, it needs to be reported.

Take the ticket to court and inform them about the threats, They can't do anything about the search but maybe this badge heavy cop will learn something

 

[ty91sho]

every cop that i have been pulled over by has been an ass. most of its because iam 19. i have been pulled over 6 times and still no tickets because everytime i get pulled over they tell me i was speeding but i was not, i set my cruise at 60 and they tell me i was going 68? ok sure i was (just one ex.). they make up a story that iam lucky that iam just getting off with a warning. they pull me over because its a kids car and it late at night. i have had to do the breathilizer 3 times and nothing. and when i blow and it comes up goose eggs you should see the officers faces. one guy actually wanted me to blow again to see if it was not working correctly. but if you blow 0's once they cant make you blow again. and they sure as **** cant make your passengers blow if you blow 0's. its a way of the life of being "kids" you just have to deal with it till you get older and some respect from them.

 

[Jonny Cash]

every cop that i have been pulled over by has been an ass. most of its because iam 19. i have been pulled over 6 times and still no tickets because everytime i get pulled over they tell me i was speeding but i was not, i set my cruise at 60 and they tell me i was going 68? ok sure i was (just one ex.). they make up a story that iam lucky that iam just getting off with a warning. they pull me over because its a kids car and it late at night. i have had to do the breathilizer 3 times and nothing. and when i blow and it comes up goose eggs you should see the officers faces. one guy actually wanted me to blow again to see if it was not working correctly. but if you blow 0's once they cant make you blow again. and they sure as **** cant make your passengers blow if you blow 0's. its a way of the life of being "kids" you just have to deal with it till you get older and some respect from them.

Well you gotta put yourself in their shoes for a second. Hundreds of kids in suburban America **** themselves and others each year. When kids drive around drunk and **** themselves, parents greiv, and do everything in their power to make it stop, they point fingers, etc. You being harrased is more than likely a result of that kind of stuff going on.

When its late at night, and theres 3 teenagers in the car, its a 9 out of 10 chance theyre banged up. I know I was at that age. I grew up in a city where you rarely get puled over, so i pushed my luck over and over. It was hanging out on the street that would get you pinched. At that age, when kids get charged with DUI its for the better. You learn the consequences early on before you go and **** someone.

So if your not drinking when your driving around late-night, just make sure you have nothing on you, because you can be searched at any time. Just know your rights, and keep the chronic at home.

 

[ty91sho]

Just know your rights, and keep the chronic at home.

ahhahah ok, i know what you mean, i just get kinda mad at them sometimes when they pull me over for no aparent reason and make up a story that i was speedin. oh i forgot to tell you that i asked him show me the radar and he said it was built into the car and couldnt show me. so that sucked, after that i just shut up and waited till he let me go.

Sammy-D whats the latest on the court and things?

 

[MotorMouth]

Not to be rude here guys but it always amazes me how many people comment about laws and regulations that they have little or no understanding of. Before anyone gets mad at me yes I do work in law enforcement and I am fimillar with Minnesota law.

Sammy, I'm not sure if you are aware or not but just paying the citation is an admition of guilt. If you pay it the citation will go on you're record (this is probably something you are aware of but I thought I would mentions it). You may find this interesting though.....

169.06
Subd. 2. Placement and maintenance on trunk highway. (a) The commissioner shall place
and maintain such traffic-control devices, conforming to the manual and specifications, upon all
state trunk highways as the commissioner shall deem necessary to indicate and to carry out the
provisions of this chapter or to regulate, warn, or guide traffic. The commissioner may construct
and maintain signs at the entrance of each city, which sign shall have placed thereon the name
of the city and the population thereof. The commissioner may construct and maintain other
directional signs upon the trunk highways and such signs shall be uniform. The commissioner
may authorize variations from the manual and specifications for the purpose of investigation and
research into the use and development of traffic control devices. When such authorized variation
pertains to the regulation of traffic, notice of the intended regulatory purpose shall be published in
a qualified newspaper of general circulation in the area where the research is being conducted.
(b) No other authority shall place or maintain any traffic control device upon any highway
under the jurisdiction of the commissioner except by the latter's permission.
Subd. 3. Placement and maintenance by local authority. Local authorities in their
respective jurisdictions shall place and maintain such traffic-control devices upon highways under
their jurisdiction as they may deem necessary to indicate and to carry out the provisions of this
chapter or local traffic ordinances, or to regulate, warn, or guide traffic. All such traffic-control
devices hereafter erected shall conform to the state manual and specifications.

If presented the right way it may help you if you decide to take this to court as maintance of the sign is the responsibility of the jurisdiction that it is located in. If the sign remotely resembles the picture you have it is not being maintained properly. Like others here have said, document, document, document. Take pictures of the intersection and find out where it is, state, county or local road. This will determine who is responsible for the maintance (or lack there of). The question that you may recieve though, is this a road that you travel often? If no this may help, if yes than they will say you should have been aware that the intersection has a stop sign and should have known better.

Just info for ya..........do with it what you will.

 

[kmat]

I like the picture!

 

[wood_e]

was it a Plymouth cop? They're ********.....

 

[MycroSopht]

Should have brought the car to a detail shop and got an estimate on the cleanup cost of the spilled pop.. haha