Tips on dealing with law

[j0n024]

Hey, I was looking around some youtube videos and for some reason I got sidetracked and started watching taser videos of cops. Now some of them are pretty fvcked up and the ego that some cops have for wearing a badge is getting out of hand.

I remember reading a thread about some legal advice a while back and remember someone actually knowing the law, so I was wondering ....

Does anyone have any REAL advice that we can use to our advantage if we get in trouble with the law?

Most people know that even though we say "INNOCENT until proven GUILTY," It's usually the other way around and that once the cops stop us for whatever reason we are automatically the bad guy , so I was wondering if anyone has any good advice to at least even the playing field.

 

[Alle_Gory]

If you are booked, do not talk to the cops. Even if you have nothing to hide. The smartest thing you can do is keep your mouth shut until a lawyer is present.

This way, if they decide to take the case to court they have nothing from you.

 

[Bible_Belt]

Never consent to a search. If they ask, that means that they don't have the right to search.

Other than that, be polite and co-operative. Turn on the interior light in your car if you get pulled over at night. Keep your hands visible. If your registration is in your glove box, wait for the cop to ask, reply 'yes, it is in my glove box," pause, and then slowly reach to open the glove box. Don't be digging around looking for your license or insurance card as the cop is walking up to your vehicle. He will think you are going for a gun.

 

[Duffdog]

Tint your windows so dark that they can't see inside.
Buy a can of bear mace and keep it by your seat.

When you get pulled over, roll you window down just enough to spray the cop in the face with mace and drive off.

Report your car stolen and park it somewhere with no cameras.

Laugh because you got away with everything.


Just kidding...


Dealing with cops is really quite easy. Don't treat them as if they are stupid. That is how people get into trouble, they assume that they can "outsmart" the cops and give them some bs story. Do not start making stuff up. If you are caught doing something and you are guilty, don't say anything at all--and I mean nothing. Do not consent to anything, do not agree to anything, do not agree to a search without the sargeant present. And one very important thing, don't let them take you around to the back of the police car where the camera isn't recording. Police brutality only occurs off camera most of the time. If you hear "why don't you come over here for a second and well talk about this"-- they are most likely going to beat the crap out of you off camera so they can get away with it.

 

[Bible_Belt]

be polite and co-operative. Turn on the interior light in your car if you get pulled over at night. Keep your hands visible. If your registration is in your glove box, wait for the cop to ask, reply 'yes, it is in my glove box," pause, and then slowly reach to open the glove box. Don't be digging around looking for your license or insurance card as the cop is walking up to your vehicle. He will think you are going for a gun.

To bump this old thread, I got pulled over Saturday night for a headlight being out. I didn't know it was out. I saw the cop do a u-turn and flip his lights on immediately. I knew I was who he wanted. I pulled over immediately, which ended up being in the police station parking lot. I stopped under a security light. I turned on my dome light, put my hands on the steering wheel, and waited for him to approach. I was polite, friendly, and addressed him as 'sir' even though he looked a lot younger than me. He asked for my license and insurance info. I said, before moving, "yes sir, it's in my wallet in the truck console. I'm going to get it now."

Right when he turned on his lights, I had a tiny bag of weed in my hand, transferring it from one place to another. He was behind me immediately, and I didn't want him to see me moving around, so I tossed it in the direction of underneath the seat. It landed between my heels on the floor. Turning on that dome light was a tough decision. My heart was going BAM-BAM-BAM as I talked to the cop with a bag of weed under my feet.

It turns out, he was a very nice guy and just let me go with a warning for the headlight. I can only imagine that the manner in which I conducted myself contributed to his niceness. I read a book when I was kid, long before I was old enough to drive, called The Speeder's Guide to Avoiding Tickets. It was written by a retired state trooper. In the book, he said that a cop's life is 90% boredom and 10% fear. Every time he walked up to a car that he had pulled over, part of him was always wondering if this would be his last traffic stop. Is this the one where the driver has a sawed off shotgun waiting for me?

That's what you have to understand about the cop's perspective. They don't know you. They don't know that you are going for your insurance card, and not your handgun (or hiding your weed ) You have to understand their perspective and act accordingly. The motorist who pulls over immediately into a bright well-lit area, doesn't move erratically in the vehicle, turns on the dome light, and leaves his hands in clear view on the steering wheel - that is NOT the guy looking to murder a cop. They will treat you a lot better when you do everything right and clearly convey that you are not a danger to their safety.

 

[TheVirtualMind]

That is great advice. Were you wearing your ski mask?

I saw a show about this and the host said to take a funny/goofy driver's license photo so that when the cop sees it, he'll chuckle.

I can't find the video right now, but a few years ago two guys went to the MVA/DMV and kept trying to get the most hilarious picture they could. Had some pretty funny stuff.