Source: https://steeringlaw.com/false-arrest-case-specialist/
Timestamp: 2019-02-17 02:19:59
Document Index: 198263799

Matched Legal Cases: ['§472', '§284', '§502', '§374', '§16', '§321']

False Arrest Case Specialist
Steering LawFalse Arrest Case Specialist
Excessive / Unreasonable Use Of Force
False Arrest & Unlawful / Unreasonable Seizure of Persons
Unlawful Searches & Seizures of homes, offices and other property
Police Brutality Generally
Unlawful search & seizure of persons
Beating & Failing to Protect Inmates
WHY THE COPS TRY TO DESTROY YOU TO PROTECT THEMSELVES.
Moreover, welcome to the 21st Century. In fact, in one of the most outrageous and unnecessary decisions by the Supreme Court in modern history, the Supreme Court held that no matter how “unreasonable” a particular arrest may be, if your conduct violates any law, any law, it does not violate the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution to take you to jail and to book you for it; even if such an arrest would be in violation of state law. See, Atwater v. City of Lago Vista, 532 U.S. 318 (2001). The Atwater Majority Opinion by Justice David Souter seemed to violate the Fourth Amendment’s proscription against an “unreasonable seizure of one’s person”; the very fundamental liberty interest protected by the Fourth Amendment. Conservative Republican Justice Sandra Day O’Connor wrote a Dissenting Opinion showing who badly the Majority Opinion will effect everyday life for millions of honest citizens:
Associate Justice Sandra day O’Connor (served 1981 – 2006)
O’Connor, J., Dissenting, Joined by Ginsburg, Stevens and Breyer
The record in this case makes it abundantly clear that Ms. Atwater’s arrest was constitutionally unreasonable. Atwater readily admits–as she did when Officer Turek pulled her over–that she violated Texas’ seat belt law. Brief for Petitioners 2—3; Record 381, 384. While Turek was justified in stopping Atwater, see Whren v. United States, 517 U. S, at 819, neither law nor reason supports his decision to arrest her instead of simply giving her a citation. The officer’s actions cannot sensibly be viewed as a permissible means of balancing Atwater’s Fourth Amendment interests with the State’s own legitimate interests.
There is no question that Officer Turek’s actions severely infringed Atwater’s liberty and privacy. Turek was loud and accusatory from the moment he approached Atwater’s car. Atwater’s young children were terrified and hysterical. Yet when Atwater asked Turek to lower his voice because he was scaring the children, he responded by jabbing his finger in Atwater’s face and saying, “You’re going to jail.” Record 382, 384. Having made the decision to arrest, Turek did not inform Atwater of her right to remain silent. Id., at 390, 704. He instead asked for her license and insurance information. Id., at 382. But cf. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966).
Atwater asked if she could at least take her children to a friend’s house down the street before going to the police station. Record 384. But Turek–who had just castigated Atwater for not caring for her children–refused and said he would take the children into custody as well. Id., at 384, 427, 704—705. Only the intervention of neighborhood children who had witnessed the scene and summoned one of Atwater’s friends saved the children from being hauled to jail with their mother. Id., at 382, 385—386.
With the children gone, Officer Turek handcuffed Ms. Atwater with her hands behind her back, placed her in the police car, and drove her to the police station. Id., at 386—387. Ironically, Turek did not secure Atwater in a seat belt for the drive. Id., at 386. At the station, Atwater was forced to remove her shoes, relinquish her possessions, and wait in a holding cell for about an hour. Id., at 387, 706. A judge finally informed Atwater of her rights and the charges against her, and released her when she posted bond. Id., at 387—388, 706. Atwater returned to the scene of the arrest, only to find that her car had been towed. Id., at 389.
The Court’s error, however, does not merely affect the disposition of this case. The per se rule that the Court creates has potentially serious consequences for the everyday lives of Americans. A broad range of conduct falls into the category of fine-only misdemeanors. In Texas alone, for example, disobeying any sort of traffic warning sign is a misdemeanor punishable only by fine, see Tex. Tran. Code Ann. §472.022 (1999 and Supp. 2000—2001), as is failing to pay a highway toll, see §284.070, and driving with expired license plates, see §502.407. Nor are fine-only crimes limited to the traffic context. In several States, for example, littering is a criminal offense punishable only by fine. See, e.g., Cal. Penal Code Ann. §374.7 (West 1999); Ga. Code Ann. §16—7—43 (1996); Iowa Code §§321.369, 805.8(2)(af) (Supp. 2001).
To be sure, such laws are valid and wise exercises of the States’ power to protect the public health and welfare. My concern lies not with the decision to enact or enforce these laws, but rather with the manner in which they may be enforced. Under today’s holding, when a police officer has probable cause to believe that a fine-only misdemeanor offense has occurred, that officer may stop the suspect, issue a citation, and let the person continue on her way. Cf. Whren v. United States, 517 U.S., at 806. Or, if a traffic violation, the officer may stop the car, arrest the driver, see ante, at 33, search the driver, see United States v. Robinson, 414 U.S., at 235, search the entire passenger compartment of the car including any purse or package inside, see New York v. Belton, 453 U.S., at 460, and impound the car and inventory all of its contents, see Colorado v. Bertine, 479 U.S. 367, 374 (1987); Florida v. Wells, 495 U.S. 1, 4—5 (1990). Although the Fourth Amendment expressly requires that the latter course be a reasonable and proportional response to the circumstances of the offense, the majority gives officers unfettered discretion to choose that course without articulating a single reason why such action is appropriate.
Such unbounded discretion carries with it grave potential for abuse. The majority takes comfort in the lack of evidence of “an epidemic of unnecessary minor-offense arrests.” Ante, at 33, and n. 25. But the relatively small number of published cases dealing with such arrests proves little and should provide little solace. Indeed, as the recent debate over racial profiling demonstrates all too clearly, a relatively minor traffic infraction may often serve as an excuse for stopping and harassing an individual. After today, the arsenal available to any officer extends to a full arrest and the searches permissible concomitant to that arrest. An officer’s subjective motivations for making a traffic stop are not relevant considerations in determining the reasonableness of the stop. See Whren v. United States, supra, at 813. But it is precisely because these motivations are beyond our purview that we must vigilantly ensure that officers’ poststop actions–which are properly within our reach–comport with the Fourth Amendment’s guarantee of reasonableness.
DON’T STAY A VICTIM OF POLICE ABUSE.