When you get pulled over...........?

Question

ok so say you get pulled over for speeding.....

and the cop asks you if he can search the car...

1. first of all, how often do they ask to search the car?

2. what are some reasons they would ask to search it?

well, what if you have something like in the trunk that

can get you in trouble?

3. if you say no, do they use that as 'probably cause' and

search it anyways?

i think they can look whats in plain sight,

but they cant look in whats locked without a reason right???

i want the numbers answered please :)

im asking this because,

im 19, i usually have open bottles of alcohol in my trunk...

i dont drive after drinking EVER!

but im worried cuz in my state having an open bottle

is against the law. so does it make it different that

its not actually in the car with you????

help ?!

Answer 1

1.  You are 19, and not even legal to drink alcohol.

2. TAKE THE OPEN CONTAINERS OUT OF YOUR VEHICLE.

Answer 2

1. they ask to search your car if you give them any reason to believe you are high, drinking, etc etc.

2. see number 1.

3. You should never say no to that. That just makes the suspicion a lot  higher. And will end up checking it anyway.

also it will help if you cleaned out your car once a week. And make sure you don't have anything alcoholic in your car. For this will lead into serious problems, and no deadly weapons neither. GOOD LUCK(:

Answer 3

1 YES

2 They smell alcohol or pot or they see a bloody axe in your lap.  There are a million reasons.

3 Yes they may look.

Stop driving around with open bottles in your trunk if it worries you so much.  You are gonna give yourself a heart attack.

Answer 4

1. I only ask to search the vehicle if something I feel is suspicious...smell of alcoholic beverage..pot..plain view of paraphernalia/ contraban...etc..

2. see above

3. no..denying the request to search is not PC...if plain view doctrine exists then yes I can search regardless of your answer...or if I wish I could arest you for something and then tow your vehicle..which then I am obligated by the state (TX) to inventory your vehicle to log your property...so by that then if I find the dope or whatever you would then be charged with it...if your only offense was speeding then no I could not arrest you on that and I could not search your vehicle unless the plain view doc was present..

FYI..stop driving with open containers...I have a very difficult time believing you NEVER drive DUI...in my many yrs of experience those who regularly drive with OC are alcoholics...so hope you can fix your problem before you hurt yourself or someone else...

Answer 5

In some places like Texas they ask everyone they stop.

In the nicest way you can say no. It's unfair! They have a gun, radio, tazer, baton,,mace, a funny hat, a police car with a computer. They're bigger then you, have the power of the state behind them. Just asking if they can search should be illegal. But noooo... everyone wanted right wing judges- I was yelling are you crazy you want to live in a police state, but would they listen to me?

OK here's the ACLU video. Remember boys and girls the ACLU is your friend they protect you from  everything unpleasant. .

PS let me add in 20 years I have never been asked to consent to a search except in Texas. And I literally can not drive through Texas without being stopped. I got 5 warning tickets in the space of 8 hours when my license plate bulb went out (it's because I drive a van) They use all the tricks opening your door without warning to read the Vin number is so obvious, You should quietly lock the doors when they make you stand on the side of the road (apparently because they have an agreement with the Chigger Nation)

And THEY DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO SEARCH. They have to get a warrant and they must have tangible evidence.

Answer 6

1.idk

2.if you give him any reason to want to search it.

3.if you say no then he cant without a warrant.

Answer 7

if you have a felony arrest warrant on you or tried to evade capture or arrest then they would search you to find out why you tried to escape but usually they dont search you for speeding. no they cant search without a warrant which has to be passed by a judge and needs a good cause. they will then get you out and make u take a sobrioty test say the alphabet backwards walk in a straight line along a straight line. depends on country and state or breath test.

Answer 8

1.  If you are stopped strictly for speeding (no erratic driving or other violations) they will rarely ask to search the car unless your DL or tag check brings back warrant information.

2.  If they observe something suspicious in the car or if your behavior causes concern that would alert them to further problems.

3.  There is a legal theory of exigent circumstances that could come into play and allow them to search without consent.

Since you claim you don't drive after drinking, why would you have open bottles of alcohol in your trunk?  

Answer 9

Firstly, take it from me. I'm 5-0 (thats whay you kids call it these days right?) in West Virginia.

1. We only ask once. This is because you are technically being detained the moment we flip on the lights. The lights on top of a police cruiser are called... ARREST LIGHTS. Thats why a driver shouldn't try to flee when a cop is trying to pull them over.

2. There are multiple reasons a cop may want to search your automobile but in order to do this he/she doesn't need a "probably cause" they need "reasonable suspicion."

Lets say you're smoking cigarrets in your car when you get pulled over. If you've got a unique type of cigs (say you've got cloves) then a new cop may mistake that for the scent of something illegal such as illegal drugs. He then has a suspicioun and thus the right to search your automobile.

Now alot of folks think that because its your car then you can refuse to have it searched. This is only true if its on your property. The fact of the matter is that when you're on the road you are either on county, state, or federal property and seeing as how cops are hired to patrol those areas they can legally search your vehicle. The State and Federal Laws are on their side.

3.Maybe. An example of probable cause would be if the officer saw a bag of oregano (because it looks like weed). If you're breaking the speed limit and you have the bag of weed the officer may have cause to think you're trafficing drugs (which is illegal). Just having the stuff consitutes probable cause as possession of a controlled substance is also illegal. He then has cause (not suspicion) to search your vehicle.

Defined, probable cause simply means the officer "has reason to believe you've committed a crime".

ALSO

Most states have what you call an "open container law". If a cop pulls you over and if your state has an "open container law." your facing a hefty fine even if its in the trunk.

Below are a few links that may help explain a bit more detail.

Best of luck to you. And take a piece of advice and take those empty containers out of your car. Its really just asking for trouble.