Kid tells Cop “No Warrant, No Search” Cop goes ballistic and it’s all caught on video (Updated)
A Police Officer gets Pissed when the young driver of an SUV refuses to let him search his vehicle without a search warrant. The Driver is perfectly within his rights, but the reaction of the Cop is what is almost important as the stand that the young man took in his refusal.
In this post 9/11 America, many of the laws that we grew up with prior to September 11, 2001 have been altered, and or disregarded altogether. This video, although humorous in one respect, displays why we all need to know and understand our basic rights. Here is some important information regarding searches and seizures in American law.
NOLO.com explains your 4th Amendment rights……..
The 4th Amendment to the U.S. constitution places limits on the power of the police to make arrests, search people and their property, and seize objects and contraband (such as illegal drugs or weapons). These limits are the bedrock of search and seizure law. This article covers the basic issues that you should know, beginning with an overview of the 4th Amendment itself. (To read the 4th Amendment and other amendments in the Bill of Rights, check out Nolo’s list of The Most Important Cases, Speeches, Laws & Documents in American History.)
The 4th Amendment: Protecting Your Privacy
The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reads as follows:
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
The search and seizure provisions of the Fourth Amendment are all about privacy. To honor this freedom, the Fourth Amendment protects against “unreasonable” searches and seizures by state or federal law enforcement authorities.
The flip side is that the Fourth Amendment does permit searches and seizures that are considered reasonable. In practice, this means that the police may override your privacy concerns and conduct a search of you, your home, barn, car, boat, office, personal or business documents, bank account records, trash barrel, or whatever, if:
- the police have probable cause to believe they can find evidence that you committed a crime, and a judge issues a search warrant, or
- the particular circumstances justify the search without a warrant first being issued.
Search warrants are discussed in detail in Search Warrants: What They Are and When They’re Necessary.
When the 4th Amendment Doesn’t Protect You
The Fourth Amendment applies to a search only if a person has a “legitimate expectation of privacy” in the place or thing searched. If not, the Fourth Amendment offers no protection because there are, by definition, no privacy issues.
Courts use a two-part test (fashioned by the U.S. Supreme Court) to determine whether, at the time of the search, a defendant had a legitimate expectation of privacy in the place or things searched:
- Did the person actually expect some degree of privacy?
- Is the person’s expectation objectively reasonable — that is, one that society is willing to recognize?
For example, a person who uses a public restroom expects not to be spied upon (the person has an expectation of privacy) and most people — including judges and juries — would consider that expectation to be reasonable (there is an objective expectation of privacy as well). Therefore, the installation of a hidden video camera by the police in a public restroom will be considered a “search” and would be subject to the Fourth Amendment’s requirement of reasonableness.
On the other hand, when the police look for and find a weapon on the front seat of a car, it is not considered a search under the Fourth Amendment because it is very unlikely that the person would think that the front seat of the car is a private place (an expectation of privacy is unlikely), and even if the person did, society is not willing to extend the protections of privacy to that particular location (no objective expectation of privacy).
A good example of how this works comes from a U.S. Supreme Court case in which the court held that a bus passenger had a legitimate expectation of privacy in an opaque carry-on bag positioned in a luggage rack above the passenger’s head, and that the physical probing by the police of the bag’s exterior for evidence of contraband constituted a search subject to 4th Amendment limitations. (Bond v. U.S., 529 U.S.334 (2000).)
A Retired 25 year Veterean Police Officer turned Lawyer gives his perspective of illegal search and seizure…..
The Validity of the Police video has not been ascertained, however, the lessons and discussions that it has sparked , have been valuable, and in the end, that should be the lesson that we gather from this article.
Find more information on Your 4th Amendment rights here!
UPDATE
West Virginia WatchDog.org’s Steven Allan Adam’s claims to have personal knowledge of this incident as well as the officers involved, and actually brings to light a much deeper problem. He writes……
CHARLESTON –This week a couple of videos surfaced showing unprofessional behavior by police officers of the St. Marys Police Department. Not sure who put the videos up, but a lesson can be learned by city, county, and state law enforcement statewide.
In the interests of full disclosure I am from St. Marys, W.Va. It was where I was raised, where I graduated high school, and a place I visit whenever I can. I know at least one of the officers in these videos.
In both videos two officers, Sal Travaglio and Nathan Boron, took turns pulling each other over and making prank videos. The first video shows Travaglio pulling Boron over talking in an exaggerated southern accent:
The second video, the more shocking of the two, shows Boron pulling Travaglio. When Travaglio refuses to let Boron search his vehicle, Boron begins cussing and yelling, telling the driver to get out of town.
Both videos are not real; they are two police officers goofing off. But when I first saw the video, particularly the Boron video, I didn’t know this. I saw an officer being extremely unprofessional to an out-of-town driver. When the prank rumor first surfaced, then I was very angry that these officers were pulling over people for nothing but their own amusement. Now we know the officers were pulling each other over.
The question in St. Marys is what should happen to the two officers. It’s true that they didn’t harass other drivers; only pranking each other. But they were using public resources to do it while in uniform and getting paid. Worse than that, thousands have viewed these videos. Over 115,896 have viewed the Boron video alone. This reflects poorly on the St. Marys Police Department and on the community as a whole.
Should the officers be fired? At least one has had problems before. Travaglio worked for the Washington County Sheriffs Department until 2009, but has worked from SMPD since 2010. I don’t think the officers need fired, but I don’t think this should be taken lightly. One officer, Boron, has made a public apology, and now supporters are circulating a survey so people can show their support for him.
Find the complete West Virginia WatchDog article here!
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The Diary of a Lost Soul 
that’s dumb, he was pissed sure but he didn’t try to force anything, he knew he couldn’t. he followed the rules too, he was just very pissed since he cut the guy a break, plus the fact he wouldn’t allow him kinda speaks volumes, he was known to carry narcotics and he said he couldn’t have his car searched without a warrant. I know what people are doing but when looking for a poster boy find a better candidate, this guy was pissed sure but he followed the rules.
The guy had a prior for minor possession of marijuana and explains the officer’s reason to suspect the possibility but very loosely. It doesn’t give the officer the right to verbally assault the guy. The officer wanted to make a bust but only on the basis of one arrest six months prior and not for the original reason he pulled the guy over or being under the influence.
you guys read down to the bottom right? where it says the videos are fake, it was two cops pulling each other over, one has since apologized publicly.
IMHO, this cop should be out of a job. Someone this unstable should not be in a position of authority and carrying a gun. I wish that the location/police department in question was known so that I could find out how the situation was resolved…I’d be quite interested in knowing if this cop is still on the force (and if so, where…so I can make sure to never go there!).
The cop is a fascist prick. He gets mad b/c someone in America knows their constitutional rights and uses them accordingly. The driver was fully in his right to refuse and the cop should respect it and not get pissed off like the totalitarian twit he is.
you read down to the bottom right? where it says the videos are fake, it was two cops pulling each other over, one has since apologized publicly.
Nothing new. Only thing different is it was caught on tape. Honestly, my first reaction was: “if the driver had been a person of color, he’d have been shot, and the cop would have come up with some sort of justification, and we’d never have seen the footage.” This is pretty mild in comparison with the murders committed by cops I have seen on video, and first hand accounts I have heard from victims of police brutality. Cops have immunity, they don’t get arrested for murdering people, and they sure don’t get fired for directing abusive language at people. Oscar Grant? Anybody? Go to Oakland and talk to folks who have lived there for the past 40 years. John T Williams in Seattle? Anybody? This shit just happened. FBI helped shut up the families who survived the police murder victims with $. That’s no conspiracy theory, that is the truth.
I’d like to add that no matter what we assume about what refusing a search means, it is a legal right. I am drug free, but would never consent to a search simply because FTP. They already have too many “rights” to fuck with me and every other human who isn’t a cop. I’m not giving them any more room to cross MY boundaries, which I have defined for myself, and which exist independent of any “law.” I make the rules concerning my body and my space, period. Fuck a cop.
how did this video get released … it looks like the camera from the police vehicle … someone thought it should be seen … and … be careful when you express your right to deny a cop … this cold have gone far different … intimidation is a tool used by authority …
Wait! Did he take off with the guy’s licence too?!? LOOOL… That guy should be cut loose from the police force ASAP! A cop who can melt down like that for no apparent reason, is the type that can discharge his weapon on harmless civilians.
No one with that kind of temper should have a gun attached to their hip. PERIOD.
Whoa. Ok this cop is borderline out of control. That kind of temper and anger has no place in the police force of any town or state. I’m kind of appalled that anyone is defending this cop, as I see in a few comments. The guy was arrested/cited 6 mos prior for possession for pot, for crying out loud, not hard narcotics.
Wow this is funny, that is exactly what I would tell a cop if they tired to search without having a reasonable cause and if the cop acted this way in front of me then I would laugh my ass off in his face. 😛
There are far too many cops on forces accross this country that should not be on them because they are arrogaant hot heads with a penchant toward violence but there isn’t enough public oversite to get them removed
Reblogged this on quickgamer88.
Reblogged this on quickgamer88.
I saw this video about a month ago, and the police staged this. The person in the car is a cop as well. I do remember that when this video was seen by the citizens of whatever county/city this was taken in, they wanted to know why the officers were doing this on tax payer time and money. It was under investigation.
well, that was professional…not. normally I am skeptical of videos since they can be altered very easily or edited out of context. But the body language, and guestures match the general tone of the lnaguage. which is a pretty daming comment on the officers professionalism.
this should be a training video on how NOT to conduct yourself.
I love how people generalize police officers as crazy, power hungry, arrogant assholes. There are hundreds of police officers in this country that do their job without being any of these things. There are crazy, power hungry, arrogant assholes in every profession. Ever called customer support for your cellphone? And what most people forget is the caliber of people most police officers deal with on a daily basis. They deal with the dredges of society. People that most normal people would cross the street so they didn’t have to walk by them. People that complain about the police forget that while they sleep safely in their beds police officers up patroling their neighborhoods in order to keep them safe. Police officers are yelled and cursed at constantly, so ask yourself how calmly you would react if you were under a constant berating from the people you encounter. Imagine interviewing a child molestor and a wife beater and then going out on patrol and encountering some smartass. They’re only human. It’s easy to judge when you have no idea what they go through. And I know some people will say suck it up or quit being a police officer, but most police officers do it because for every 25 people that treat them like shit, there’s that one case where you actually get to help someone in need and it’s all worth it.
yes the cop was in the wrong but what we have to remember is if he really thought there were drugs/narcotics in the car he could’ve done more than give the kid a tongue lashing. Police try to get away with things that they would normally do if people don’t know their rights. Everyone needs to know their rights. Only when we have awareness of our rights will we be able to combat the crooked cops and get things straight.
That’s really old footage there and there has been a lot of speculation that it is fake(done for a school project). As for the attorney I wish he had made it clear that one should not resist a police officer if he or she searches your car/vehicle/person without your consent and without a warrant. If you feel that your 4th amendment rights are being violated suffer through it and argue your case in court, not on the sidewalk.
@confessions:
you seem to operating under the false assumption that you are right. you aren’t. the cops in the USA have become nothing more than thugs and hired guns for corporations. the first serious problem with your analogies are that “customer support for your cellphone” isn’t given free reign to kill you at their leisure.
your second argument, “the caliber of people”… have you thought about the fact that people are repeatedly threatened, bullied and assaulted by the very people that have sworn to “protect and serve”? have you thought about the fact that the average citizen just doesn’t try a cop? have you considered the fact that the police are becoming the scumbags now? it’s the “normal people” that cross the street to avoid the cops.
the cops are NOT “patrolling neighborhoods keeping them safe”. what they are doing is lurking and waiting for the next opportunity/assignment to shoot a veteran in the face, beat, abuse, torture and/or pepper spray innocent people.
“Police officers are yelled and cursed at constantly” gee… i wonder why? if you would just look around you with eyes open, you could see why the police farces are becoming universally hated. “It’s easy to judge when you have no idea what they go through.” just as it’s easy to judge when you are unwilling to look, listen and learn about what is going on around you.
i’ll grant you that there are still some good cops out there. but i’ll guarantee you that in my book, every cop is guilty until proven innocent (same way they treat us).
Your ignorance amuses me. Especially if you think police officers are waiting for their next opportunity to shoot people in the face. And I am acting under the assumption that I’m right because I personally know over 30 police officers and I’m not just speaking from watching sensationalized new stories about rogue cops that have skewed my opinions but from actual first hand knowledge of the police force.
The kid knew his rights and used, them the cop on the other hand that’s why I don’t go too america. To many people that should not have guns, period.
And another cop bites the dust.
As a side issue; This is why I fight everyday to have Cannabis legalized. Its ridiculous that its illegal in the first place. If you didn’t know already the Gov has a patent #6,630,507 on Cannabinoids (proven to have health benefits) which only comes from Marijuana. So how is it they put it under Controlled Substance Act & Schedule I (no medicinal value)? Because the Fed is full of lying greedy people that don’t care about you. You have to fight for your rights. If you’re in CA sign the petition to legalize at http://regulatemarijuanalikewine.com Peace! If you’re in CO then look up http://Legalize2012.com John Perkins
Just read that this was a prank. Check out this news link that discusses it. First clue was that the video doesn’t say which state/city this happened and also did not state the name of the individuals involved. http://newsandsentinel.com/page/content.detail/id/551839/Officials-look-into-St–Marys-police–prank-.html?nav=5061
Still, Legalize It!
this is entertaining, but complete BULL. The cop freaks out for no reason. The cop didn’t need a warrant to search the car. “Cars may be searched without a warrant whenever the car has been validly stopped and the police have probable cause to believe the car contains contraband or evidence. If the police have probable cause to search the car, all compartments and packages that may contain the evidence or contraband being searched for are fair game.” -nolo.com
It’s a fake. http://www.newsandsentinel.com/page/content.detail/id/551839/Officials-look-into-St–Marys-police–prank-.html?nav=5061
“In this post 9/11 America…”
http://michaelfury.wordpress.com/2011/04/13/land-of-the-free-home-of-the-brave/
“The Driver is perfectly within his rights, but the reaction of the Cop is what is almost important as the stand that the young man took in his refusal.”
Contempt of Cop…..? wink 😉
Steamed Pork! someone needs to kick that Pigs ass!, get his name!
when i moved from Florida to Virginia this happened to me nearly every day. I was pulled over seriously nearly every day and told I was pulled over for 1 of 2 things; no front license plate or no inspections sticker both not required in Florida; that was the reason I was pulled over I would be held for 30-45 minutes each time and then the officer would assk to search the vehicle. Because I had a vehcile from FLorida Florida to New York was a Drug Route and they wanted to search my car every time they pulled me over. I said yes each time and once they even called a Dog to the side of the road. My Virginia family insisted it was my fault I provoked it. I was pulled over the first 30 days 19 times; asked each time you know why I pulled you over: I would say NO FRONT LICNESE PLATE? and they would say AND and I would say oh YEAH NO INSTECTION STICKER; and they would say AND I would say FLORIDA LICENSE PLATE; they would ask for all my info and detain me for 30-1 hour each time. I am a 49 year old non smoking never done drugs man. I do not drink. It was obvious how they make money in Virginia. when I got pulled over each time they kept my info in their system and it would show I was pulled so when they walked up to the car they come sometimes with gun drawn becasue in the system i had been pulled over 10-19 time in same month. obviously i was crimminal RIGHT? no tickets in 19 pull overs.
This officer was wrong. He needs to be relieved of his badge and has no business patrolling our streets. He is likely to abuse other people with that attitude. His verbal attacks were inexcusable and he was treated very respectfully by the driver. He had no reason to blow up on the driver. I would be ashamed to serve alongside such a unprofessional officer of the law and I PERSONALLY would arrest and charge him with assault and add to it some charge related to abuse under color of law.
I love that it seems like no one read to the bottom. where it says the videos are fake, it was two cops pulling each other over, one has since apologized publicly. They’ll probably both be reprimanded, since they were on duty and using public equipment.
Why not send the post to BrasscheckTV to make it viral?