Police report said it was a traffic stop for failure to signal; yet they only approached me after I parked, exited vehicle and walked away..legal?
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Police report said it was a traffic stop for failure to signal; yet they only approached me after I parked, exited vehicle and walked away..legal?
I left my house never took a right on red, parked at the restaurant got out of my car and walked toward the entry. I almost made it to the doors when 3 cop cars approached me with lights and sirens. Cops jumped out and arrested me. No nothing; just cuffs the hood of a car and a extensive search of me and my car, then my home. They found drugs on one of the persons in my car and found drugs in my roommate’s room. I am now charged with poss with intent to deliver and they took my guns and pc’s. Why? How? Is that “stop” even legal? Why did they lie in the police report? How can this be dismissed?
Asked on May 6, 2009 under Criminal Law, Texas
Answers:
J.M.A., Member in Good Standing of the Connecticut Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 15 years ago | Contributor
I am alawyer in CT, not TX, but i practice criminal law. The rules relating to police offers and their ability to stop and search people are similar in most states as they are based on the US Constitution and Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. Generally, police can stop you if they have reasonable suspicion that you violated a state statute (i.e. law). Also, police officers lie to make arrests - it is a sad truth. In your situation, you may not have the whole story as to why you were stopped. You could have been stopped based on the car you were driving or an ongoing search investigation that you are not aware of, or based on a simple traffic violation. I agree that it doesnt make sense that the police would do such an extensive search if you truly failed to signal properly. My advise to you is to immediately hire a lawyer. The lawyer will review the police report and decide whether the stop was valid and whether all the evidence (i.e. drungs and so forth) can be suppressed (i.e. thrown out of court and not used against you) becasue the police did not follow the rules. You may also have a defense that the drugs in your the house were not yours. Again, there are several questions that i have and therefore, i suggest you hire a lawyer, otherwise you could be facing some serious charges.
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