sober driver driving rollers around.. laws?

topofthetrees

topofthetrees

Bluelighter
Joined
Sep 21, 2008
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Location
Dallas, TX
I'm not quite sure where I should post this but since there was a possession question not too long ago, I'm hoping this is okay..

[post edited to conform with forum guidelines -bq]

Suppose one of my friends was willing to drive two people who were rolling in his car. Here's the issue:

In the past, the driver has been pulled over for having his front license plate on his dashboard instead of front bumper. He was arrested and put in jail for having a pipe in his car which also smelled of weed. (He wasn't busted for possession because all the cop found was a few seeds.) Anyway, he spent two nights in jail on those charges and has yet to have the matter cleared up in court.

My question is this - if on the off chance the car he was driving as a sober driver were to be pulled over we with two people rolling in the backseat, would anything happen to him as a result of those past charges? He would be 100% sober.




(I have blue-green eyes so simply "acting sober" isn't an option.)
 
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You two having huge fucking pupils and acting like you're high is enough probable cause to search the car. Expect to be searched if you do get pulled over. Make sure you guys don't bring anything with you and you should be fine.
 
While one would assume that having a sober driver take responsibility for transporting individuals who are inebriated as being viewed as a positive application of harm reduction, one should never put it past LEO's to take advantage of the situation to shake people down in an effort to run them through the system.

The best place to party is in the privacy of your own home.
 
Can your friend get in trouble for doing nothing wrong at all? no.


What the?
 
beasters said:
Can your friend get in trouble for doing nothing wrong at all? no.


What the?
Click to expand...

No, but having two people in the car pinging like mad is enough cause to have the car searched & having been done for the pipe previously the police aren't going to be nice about it. As long as none of you have ANYTHING illegal in your possession or in his car and he makes it clear he is just being the responsible one by being designated driver then all should be sweet.
 
Even if it's night time, sunglasses. Passengers don't have to prove that they're sober on demand.
 
Does anyone know if dilated pupils can be used as probable cause?

If so, what other conditions beside drug use can cause dilated pupils?

If dilated pupils can be used as probable cause (or as part of a conglomerate), has it been successfully argued against in any cases you know of?

I remember when Drug Recognition Experts were about to become en vogue, an idea that seems to have fallen by the wayside. Anyone know why we don't hear about them anymore, and if there's a good reason to throw that idea out the window, maybe it's a good one as well not to let Joe Cop play doctor except in the limited capacity of administering a breathalyzer?
 
tobala said:
Does anyone know if dilated pupils can be used as probable cause?

If so, what other conditions beside drug use can cause dilated pupils?

If dilated pupils can be used as probable cause (or as part of a conglomerate), has it been successfully argued against in any cases you know of?

I remember when Drug Recognition Experts were about to become en vogue, an idea that seems to have fallen by the wayside. Anyone know why we don't hear about them anymore, and if there's a good reason to throw that idea out the window, maybe it's a good one as well not to let Joe Cop play doctor except in the limited capacity of administering a breathalyzer?
Click to expand...

Taken alone? Not sure... but there'd be a totality of the circumstances test here. So we've got the two guys rolling the backseat, bouncing around, saying God knows what; a nervous driver, perhaps sweating, with dilated pupils; and who knows what else. I agree with your suggestion that partying while driving is probably not a good idea.

In response to another suggestion in the thread above to wear sunglasses while driving at night... unless you are in a Blues Brothers movie, this is a bad idea.
 
Sunglasses at night are 100% legal and not grounds for reasonable suspicion or probable cause.
 
Sunglasses at night while you're driving? And the officer asking the driver to remove the sunglasses will be what? An illegal search?

No idea what the law is in your state. But I think the idea here is not to push to the absolute limit of the law, where the judge would ultimately have a great deal of discretion, but to avoid situations in which you need to wear sunglasses and become nervous when a cop pulls you over. Because, frankly, once you're in gray areas, it becomes very difficult to predict how the system will handle the case.
 
The driver has everything to worry about. He is in control of the vehicle as well as all the occupants and whatever contraband may be in the vehicle.

But the worst outcome of this has nothing to do with what may happen that night. Consider this scenario :

Sober driver and two friends "rolling" riding around town at night. Patrol officer pulls them over for whatever reason. Patrol officer notices strange behavior from the vehicles two backseat occupants. He asks for permission to search the vehicle. The driver knowing that there is no contraband in the car gives permission. Well it just so happens that this patrol officer is a rookie and he needs to call some assistance during the search for possible narcotics. Well low and behold a drug agent shows up to assist in the search. The police ask for ID's from all the occupants so that they can determine whether or not there are any warrants/holds on the occupants. During this time the drug agent writes down all of the occupants information, as well as the information on the vehicle. (He does this because he KNOWS that the backseat occupants are under the influence of SOMETHING) Now the search nets nothing and the guys are realeased, but the drug agent begins to investigate into possible narcotics activity at their homes, work places, schools, etc. The occupants of the vehicle (thinking they have gotten away scott-free continue in their lifestyle as normal). Six months later they are all arrested leaving a drug dealer's spot where they had just purchased 20 tablets.

The main point I want everyone to realize here is that the authorities are not as dumb as we think/wish they are. Everytime we buy or sale narcotics and are not arrested we feel as though we have once again stayed one step ahead of the cops. But let me tell you from personal experience -- you will never know they are investigating you until they arrest you. They may let you get away with something countless times just waiting for you to either slip up or until they have enough evidence to make an arrest. Patrol officers stumble across drug cases (mainly during traffic stops), but drug agents make drug cases.

Whatever the case may be, if you are going to ride around rolling, or drive people around who are rolling/tripping you must be ready to deal with any outcomes. I don't know about some of you guys on this board, but I have been involved in the "game" since 1994, and I know of pills that you couldn't "control" yourself if you had to. Ive seen pills that just hit you suddenly and there is nothing you can do about it. Not the type thing you would want to happen during a traffic stop!!

Hope this was helpful
 
Coolio said:
The OP said the driver is sober and not wearing sunglasses. The driver has nothing to worry about.
Click to expand...

Ah. Sorry, I think I misread the OP's post when he was talking about his "friend" driving around the two people rolling.

Sure, if you're in the backseat, wear sunglasses. Of course, the officer still might say "please remove the sunglasses" and whether that's improper/illegal... I have no idea. Neither will the judge.
 
OP's question: "would anything happen to him as a result of those past charges?"

"... he spent two nights in jail on those charges and has yet to have the matter cleared up in court."

Is he out on bond? Is he on probation? Would he be driving out of their jurisdiction? Would the new cop report back to the judge that he saw your friend has eclectic friends and thus should sentence your friend with full force? Do cops even chat with judges like that?

jkashkdha. no.
 
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