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Cops TV Show- First Amendment Rights Violation

By Rebecca Rosenburg, published May 06, 2008
Published Content: 60  Total Views: 17,067  Favorited By: 15 CPs
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What exactly is probable cause for a police officer to detain you and search you, including your body cavities? Well, I always thought you had to be breaking a law or at least a traffic ordinance or the police had to see evidence with their own eyes. I guess not.

The following case is an actual, real life example of abuse of power. The actions of the police officer violated this U.S. citizens rights as guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States.

A police officer sees a person sitting in a vehicle at 2 o'clock am. The last time I checked, this wasn't against the law. The officer walks up to the "suspicious person", a white male who appears to be between 30 and 40 years old. The officer tells the man to keep his hands on steering wheel and asks why he is there sitting in his vehicle. In America, we have to explain to the police what we are doing, just because they want to know? The man answers the officer, saying he was waiting to talk to someone about a contract job. The officer doesn't like his answer, so he tells the guy to get out of the car and put his hands on the hood of the officer's car. The man complies, and the officer continues to question him about his reasons for being out so late. The officer asks the man to consent to a search, and the man gives permission. The officer believes that the man has an illegal substance in his mouth and requires (not requests) him to show the officer the inside of his mouth. Last time I checked, permission to search didn't include body cavities! The officer claims he sees "something white" in the man's mouth (Perhaps teeth?) and starts handcuffing him while reaching inside his mouth. Other police officers assist, reaching into the man's mouth and restricting his breathing. During this entire time, the man is never told he is in custody, under arrest, or has the right to an attorney or to remain silent.

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Youre tryin to make is sound like if cops pulled u over, asked to search, you say yes, and then they grab you hold u down and start putting fingers in ur mouth for the hell of it? That didnt happen here. They could tell he had drugs and didnt spit them out when ordered too. At that point they follow procedure: The officers held him down and stuck there hands in his mouth to get the drugs out. Theyre supposed to get the guy to spit out the drags ASAP ie choke him if they have too. If he swallows the drugs he might die! At that point they would rush him to the hospital to have his stomach pumped. Police would rather not do that. They hold him down and put fingers in his mouth because theyre tryin to save his stupid life and get the drugs out. Again, just following procedure. He didnt swallow them, the cops did a great job and saved his life too. No amendment violated.

Posted on 06/14/2008 at 10:06:31 AM

 
It doesn't matter if he was/is guilty of a crime, or had drugs. My point is that the ends do not justify the means. If I were to give a police officer permission to search me, I sure wouldn't mean that permission meant he and other officers could hold me down and stick their hands in my mouth!

Posted on 06/10/2008 at 12:06:38 PM

 
The cop went on his instincts. This guy was parked in an area where there is alot of drug deals. He said he was waiting for someone....thats all the cop needed to hear. A cop knows when someone is lying. They deal with it allll day, and everyday. Every dispute they go to, half the people are lying. They know when someone is nervous, that they are hiding something. The guy gave consent to search. Why? Because they think if they say no its means theyre hiding something, so they always stupidly say yes. The cop could tell he had something in his mouth by how he was talking. The guy had drugs in his mouth and was arrested for it.! hello?This is a good thing. The only laws broken were by the crack head. Stupid article because yes, she forgot to mention HE HAD DRUGS! The police officer did a great job

Posted on 06/07/2008 at 7:06:25 PM

 
:)

Posted on 06/07/2008 at 3:06:31 PM

 
If simply sitting in one's car in the middle of the night is "reasonable suspicion" then I am guilty almost every night! I sit in my car at all hours of the night to smoke. When I travel I often pull over at night to rest a minute, smoke, or talk on my cell. If I ever gave a police officer permission to search me, I certainly wouldn't mean he could put his hands in my mouth!

Posted on 05/21/2008 at 12:05:04 AM

 
"What exactly is probable cause for a police officer to detain you and search you, including your body cavities?" Probable cause is not required. In the Supreme Court's decision in Terry v. Ohio, the court ruled that an officer needs only "reasonable suspicion" that a person has committed, is committing, or is about to commit a crime to detain a person for a period of time. Reasonable suspicion and probable cause do not come in to play when a person has given consent to be searched, as occurred in this situation. I don't know the full situation, and I'm not a lawyer, but from what you described, it doesn't appear that anyone's rights were violated. First off, a guy sitting in his car at 2 a.m. is generally suspicious enough for the officer to investigate. It may not be illegal, but it can certainly be suspicious. This could give the officer reasonable suspicion to question and detain the individual for a short period of time. But we must also consider other factors that weren

Posted on 05/19/2008 at 12:05:04 AM

 
I think I remember the one you're talking about, although this has happened many times on Cops. I really can't stand the show because of this but my husband is hooked on it. Great article. :)

Posted on 05/18/2008 at 5:05:39 PM

 
This is a great article, I still to this day have never met a "good" police officer, if anyone ones of one, tell them california is in need!

Posted on 05/15/2008 at 4:05:54 PM

 
By the way, I see numerous rights violations on "cops" all the time. Most are minor, but policing is not black and white, it is gray. I have encountered hundreds of scenarios that are not covered in the law books; you just have to use your best judgment and hope that you can articulate it well.

Posted on 05/10/2008 at 8:05:04 AM

 
So I am not going to even come close to defending the officers putting their hands inside the mouth of the guy, but this was common back in the 70's, 80's and even into some of the 90's... But, the US Supreme Court has held that officers can approach a parked car, for any reason, at any time. This started out as a "Consensual Encounter," meaning that officers can approach any person, at any time to start a conversation. If the person does not want a conversation, that is their right. In short, I don't have a problem with how this encounter started, as I have gone up to many parked cars to ascertain what the person is doing. Perhaps he was waiting for his friend who was out robbing a store!!!

Posted on 05/10/2008 at 8:05:26 AM

 
Yes, the cop did go way to far. Though I am not shocked. We have no "rights" anymore, no matter what our Goverment say. Good article.

Posted on 05/09/2008 at 2:05:48 PM

 
Great article - Thank you !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted on 05/09/2008 at 12:05:13 PM

 
wow interesting read, well written!!!!

Posted on 05/08/2008 at 6:05:52 PM

 
Sorry about that last comment. You clearly stated that the male was between 30 and 40 years of age and I actually read those words and spaced out, being up till 3 am. In any case, searching someone's body cavities? That really seems beyond the pale.

Posted on 05/07/2008 at 7:05:52 AM

 
Truly interesting! I assume the person was also of adult age. When it comes to rights, those who are minors here do have to adhere to a curfew and are allowed to be stopped and have to show proof of age if there is a question about that, similar to the type of ID required if a person who looks young asks to buy cigarettes or alcohol.

Posted on 05/07/2008 at 7:05:41 AM

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