Re: Ozzy87 busted for speeding
I am usually just a lurker on here, but since I have a relevant story about a similar incident that happened to me in Oct 2005, I will give an account of my experience with cops/the law:
First off, FWIW since I know laws in each state are different, I figure I should mention that I live in Missouri and this happened in my hometown of St. Louis. Additionally, I was basically the same age as Ozzy87 at the time, having just turned 20 a couple months prior.
Okay, so I am driving down Hanley road toward my house with (stupidly) quite a large ammount of weed on me -- 42 grams in all-- and get pulled over going 41 in a 30 zone. It was around 2:30 AM on Thursday night, so I wonder if this is why the cops proceeded the way they did.
I get pulled over, then am given a field sobriety test. I pass (since I was sober, though a bit stoned) and then start getting asked questions by the cop. Why are you driving around recklessly at 2:30 AM? Do you have anything you're hiding in your car?
No, sir.
How come you are so nervous right now?
It's nearly 3:00 AM sir, I am tired, and am being accused of driving intoxicated though this is not the case.
(Of course, I know that being a bit stoned is still DUI, but I was certain that I was not giving off tells of being high since it had been hours since I last smoked)
Officer #1: Okay, so then you don't mind if we search your car to make sure?
Actually, I'd prefer if you didn't since it is quite late and I would like to get home. If I am not arrested, please give me my citation and let me go home.
Officer #2: Well, we saw you move stuff around the car as we were pulling you over, so we are already legally allowed to search your car. Do you agree to a search of your vehicle?
Now, this is when I realize that the situation will get quite sticky. The thing the officer said to me about seeing me move stuff around the car as i was getting pulled over was complete bulls***, as I had the weed (and my piece + grinder and a couple of small containers with different kinds of strands in the middle compartament the entire time I drove my car)
I again say to the officer that I do NOT consent to a search. They then proceed to open my car and start trashing everything in plain sight. Of course, they soon find my weed/piece/grinder. I get handcuffed immediately and next thing I know I am at the county jail, interrogate at 4:00 AM.
The entire time they tried to get me to admit that I was distributing marijuana. I admited the weed was mine, conceeded that I had a weed problem, and told them that I smoke a lot of week because I am physically addicted.
This goes on for about an hour and a half, and then they called a cab for me to take me home while my car got impounded.
The next day I call a lawyer recommended to me by a friend, and tell him the whole story. He asks me to come see him face to face and discuss. After I detailed every little part of the incident to him, he told me what it would be unwise to fight the grounds on which my car was searched. Though I may not have done anything suspicious, I had no proof of this. Additionally, my lawyer told me that the cops simply gave me a citation for possesion of illegal substance along with paraphanellia possesion (and of course the speeding ticket) even though at 42 grams I had ABOVE the MISSOURI threshold for reacrational use vs. intent to distribute.
Between the lawyer fees, the court fees, and the fines I had to pay to recieve only bench-probabtion for a year, I had to shell out $2600 (which unfortunately crippled my poker bankroll at the time)
So, in the end, there were two morals I learned from this story:
1. Cops will search your car if they want to. I know that in no way did I consent to the search of my car or act in a suspicious manner.
2. Cops will sometimes have your back, if they happen believe your story. I should have recieved an INTENT TO DISTRIBUTE felony charge because of the ammount of weed I had and the fact that it was broken up in different containers. Luckily, because I had no scale and I made a relatively convincing arguement that I was simply a huge stoner for who 42 grams was a personal stash, I only got cited for a couple of misdemeanors.
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