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Police searches of cars.. What are my rights?

ilikeacid

ilikeacid

Bluelighter
Joined
Mar 30, 2006
Messages
975
Hypothetical situation:

Driving along minding my own business and a cop car pulls me over. Cop asks usual questions, then asks me to step out of the car while he sticks his head in and begins opening up my glove box and centre consol..

What are my rights in this situation? Do they have to have a warrent to do a basic search such as the one mentioned above? Are they allowed to search more indepth if they don't have a warrent, say, looking for secret compartments? And if they found a secret compartment with something illegal in it without a warrent, would that be considered a violation of my rights?
 
Thats bullshit they have to ask permission 1st. That's not to say that they will obey because I have had an officer tell me because I refused his search it made myself look "suspisious"....
like Jay-Z puts it:

I steppin outta shit all my papers legit

PIG:Well do you mind if I look round the car a lil bit?

Well my glove box is locked so is the trunk in the back and I know my rights so you gonna need a warrant for dat=D
 
Yeah thats all good for the U.S but are cops allowd to open up "containers" inside your car without a warrent in Aus? I know they have to ask for consent to do a full search, but are cops allowed to generally stick their flashlights in the window and nose around without permission?
 
ilikeacid said:
Yeah thats all good for the U.S but are cops allowd to open up "containers" inside your car without a warrent in Aus? I know they have to ask for consent to do a full search, but are cops allowed to generally stick their flashlights in the window and nose around without permission?
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People should be careful not to confuse U.S laws and protections with what goes on in Australia.

The following is in regards to the Police Powers Act of Queensland, similar laws probably apply in most states.

Searching Persons without a Warrant

The Police Powers and Responsibilities Act permits police officers to search persons without a warrant.

The authority of the police to search a person without a warrant is dependent upon the existence of a 'prescribed circumstance'. If a police officer reasonably suspects that a 'prescribed circumstance' exists. The prescribed circumstances in which an officer may search a person without a warrant includes circumstances in which the person is reasonably suspected to be in possession of:

  • a weapon, knife or explosive;
  • an item which the person intends to use to cause harm to any person;
  • a dangerous drug;
  • stolen, illegally obtained or tainted property;
  • evidence of the commission of an offence punishable by a minimum of seven (7) years imprisonment, which the police officer reasonably suspects may be concealed or destroyed if a search is not conducted;
  • an implement of housebreaking, motor vehicle theft or drug use.

Searching Vehicles without a Warrant

An identical set of rules apply to police searches of vehicles without a search warrant. A police officer may stop and search a vehicle, together with anything in it, if any of the above ‘prescribed circumstances’ exist.

When searching a vehicle, the police are allowed to enter, re-enter and stay in the vehicle as often, and for as long, as is necessary to properly carry out their search. The police also have the power to move a vehicle to an appropriate place for a search, in particular if it is impracticable to search the vehicle where stopped.
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From Advice provided by Ryan & Bosscher Lawyers - Brisbane.

Also these threads have relevant information

Police take down some tweak
car searches
 
Refuseing a serach doesn't give them reason to take a search. Iv been told however when you pull that card the cops says "Have you been smokeing pot? I can smell pot!" and does the search anyway.
 
static_mind said:
Refuseing a serach doesn't give them reason to take a search. Iv been told however when you pull that card the cops says "Have you been smokeing pot? I can smell pot!" and does the search anyway.
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And when he doesnt find any you sue.

Infact, if i ever have a cop pull that crap on me im going to tell him that im going to sue for harrasement after h e doesnt find any drugs in my car.
 
Once again australian laws are a little unfair. You really have not much defence for that sort of intrusion.

Your only weapon's are your questioning there actions. They start going through your glove box, you either let them do it(hopin ur not stupid enough to put shit in there) or ask them if they have the right to do that? It removes any sort of 'assumed consent'.

They may make a statement that they are going to search your car(which they can), but the only thing you might be able to try is ask if that statement was an order or a request... and maybe outlie sum appointments/time constraints this is obstructing.

Once again australians have less rights then americans to privacy. Be non offensive and cooperative. But always be sure the statements they give are not just cleverly masked questions signing away your consent.

Suspicion is a bitch
 
Hehehee, you think cops follow the rules ? That they won't just lie and say you gave consent ? After all, you're the druggy. Who is the judge going to beleive ? Sadly, most police do NOT have morals and do this all the time.
 
I've had my fair shair of car searchs by police during teenage years. Never been pulled over and searched, but rather its always happened when theres been a few people in the car and its been parked in a dark quiet carpark, and the cops just seem to drive by and see us as a suspect target. Regardless of the legality, they will go thru most of your shit, like the glove box, centre box, backs of seats, and if theres any bags visible they will most likely want a look thru them aswell. They give off the usual bs excuses about something sus happening in the area and use this as their reason for searching.
 
psychetool said:
Hehehee, you think cops follow the rules ? That they won't just lie and say you gave consent ? After all, you're the druggy. Who is the judge going to beleive ? Sadly, most police do NOT have morals and do this all the time.
Click to expand...

This is why I also plan to have a camera installed to record video and audio when i get pulled my cops.
 
rowland2110 said:
This is why I also plan to have a camera installed to record video and audio when i get pulled my cops.
Click to expand...
actually a killer idea rowland
 
rowland2110 said:
This is why I also plan to have a camera installed to record video and audio when i get pulled my cops.
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So you plan to secretely record video of any future searches and also threaten to sue police if they search you.

I'd hardly think a threat to sue is going to worry many police. How many people are searched every year for drugs and nothing is found; either body search, vehicle search or searches based on sniffer dogs "outing" someone... how many of these infringements of civil liberties ever results in successful litigation against the police?

Hardly ever... and before people mention the Tasty raid; this was an exception where police were deliberately humiliating the victims who were able to argue that they were persecuted against on the basis of sexual identity.

Acting like a bigshot when police are searching you or your vehicle isn't likely to improve the situation much in your favor.
 
hoptis said:
So you plan to secretely record video of any future searches and also threaten to sue police if they search you.

I'd hardly think a threat to sue is going to worry many police. How many people are searched every year for drugs and nothing is found; either body search, vehicle search or searches based on sniffer dogs "outing" someone... how many of these infringements of civil liberties ever results in successful litigation against the police?

Hardly ever... and before people mention the Tasty raid; this was an exception where police were deliberately humiliating the victims who were able to argue that they were persecuted against on the basis of sexual identity.

Acting like a bigshot when police are searching you or your vehicle isn't likely to improve the situation much in your favor.
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You Ausisie sound like total dicks are they on power trips.....u know the saying give a man a gun...................................
I have a problem with the Police anyway, just for the way I looked or act high although they are right. I usually was smart enough to have a good hiding place when I was young. But cops will use any excuse to get you into custody. I grew up in Mobile Alabama and the cops look and act like the dukes of hazzard cops=D But thats the main thing I love about Europe. I have never been approached by anyone and only talked to traffic cop for directions.

But back to the topic with electronics come down in price so quickly, that eventually it would be prudent/smart to use video survealance in thier car, u already see it in BIG sadans and mecrededs "rear viewfinder". I myself have two cameras that I am not doing a damn thing with. The next time I get stopped I'll turn them on 4shur dudeFight the power thats fighting us NWA:eek:

Infact I'm gonna put it in the car right now....is there a certain temperature digital cameras shoulnt get above ..surely in paper work
 
What happens if say, I've created a secret compartment in my car that is not that accessible unless you really do an absolute strip search of the car.. like removing pannels, pulling everything out of the car first, generally fucking up my shit! To do that kind of search they would really need a good reason to begin wouldn't they?
I generally look pretty innocent, I'd never be rude to cops and I never smoke pot before driving with drugs in my car (anymore).. So if they started searching my car and I really hadn't done anything wrong other than maybe, having a tail light out or speeding a little, could I sue their asses if they started invading my privacy like that?
 
Well if your going to all this trouble to conceal something so well in your car maybe the Police do have a good reason to be monitoring you, following you arround and searching you.
 
Maybe.. but maybe I'm just careful, and maybe the compartment is well hidden but easily accessed if you know where to look, though very hard to find if a complete strip search of the car isn't done..
Just wondering what the likelihood of that would be..
 
I think its unlikely for a cop to search the car in huge detail unless they strongly suspect they will find something. That said, a friend of a friend told me that when he was a kid, he was in a car transporting a (relatively) small quantity of weed. It was concealed in the frame of the door, and sounded rather disreet by the amount of effort it had apparently taken to get it in there in the first place. However, the car was pulled over by police officers randomly, and they claimed they could smell the weed as they approached the driver. Every part of the car was gone thru, even ripping the whole dash board off, aswell as removing seats and carpet. Eventually the weed was discovered, and all those in the car were punished by the law.
 
^^Thats crazy! Shit, if they did that and didn't find anything I would sue their asses so hard! Still, weed does stink out the whole car, so my days of driving bud around are over ;)
 
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