As law enforcement increases the use of such tactics on motorcyclists, we need to be prepared.Obviously we do not support “Driving while under the influence”. We also do not support, restriction of freedom of movement, denial of due process, Police Intimidation (once referred to as Gestapo tactics) and confiscation of private property. This information comes from the Roadblock Registry and is provided for your consideration. Though it talks about cages, we are going to assume that should you choose you can engage in many of these tactics on a motorcycle.
We DO NOT attest to the legality of any of the info below. My own experience has been once stopped via a roadblock or “profiling” (and you WILL be profiled at a roadblock) it is very easy to get yourself in a very bad position. Being stuck in the middle of a Texas desert with two cops holding guns on you or thrown over an FHP patrol car in the middle of the night on a long stretch of nothing on I-10 with guns held on you is not the time to start hollerin about constitutional rights. Trust me. Those are the times to go yes sir, no sir and pray. Because it is those times that those who are sworn to protect and serve you can be very dangerous. DO NOT, make the mistake of thinking IT WON'T happen to TO YOU!
"The stated purposes of roadblocks are usually legalized excuses to stop and scrutinize motorists for which there would otherwise be no reason to do so. These excuses include "sobriety checks," license and registration verification, possession of insurance, proof of citizenship, and seatbelt usage. The desired effect is to establish a sense of fear and intimidation among the population. The pity is that it works, as far as the "desired effect" is concerned.
First, the police do not have the authority to search you or your vehicle, not without probable cause, or at least reasonable suspicion, that you have, or are committing a crime. Never permit a voluntary search of your person or your vehicle.
If the police are persistent about searching your vehicle, you should be equally persistent in demanding that they specify what illegal item they are looking for and why they think you have it in your vehicle. If they cannot come up with plausible answers to these questions, they do not have legal grounds to even consider searching your car.
However, unless you ask to leave, the courts have said the police are under no obligation to tell you can leave. You have to ask, "Am I free to go?" If the police do not have defensible grounds to further detain you, they have to let you leave.
There is no greater symbol of a society having lost its bearings than the "sobriety roadblock." It is universally admitted that roadblocks apprehend very few drunk drivers, far fewer than the same allocation of resources could apprehend during regular patrols. Again, the purposes are intimidation, using the stops as a pretense to look for other criminal activity, and to garner public relations points as a "get tough on drunk drivers" agency.
You do not have to answer questions about where you have been or where you are going, whether or not you have been drinking or what items are contained in your car. If you are ordered out of your car, lock the door behind you. You do not have to perform any feats of balance, answer quiz questions, or recite the alphabet. In fact we recommend that you respectfully decline to do any of these things. A so-called field sobriety test is conducted for one reason only---to develop probable cause to arrest you for drunk driving.
It's important not to answer any questions, no matter how harmless. Your willingness to answer some questions, but not others, will raise suspicion. Worse yet is to give incriminating answers to seemingly routine questions. If you set the stage in a manner that it is clear you are not going to answer questions, period, there can be no defensible reason for detaining you, based on what you said. Just answer every question with "I don't wish to discuss my affairs, may I leave now?" By law, you are not obligated to answer these kinds of questions and you cannot be detained because you refuse to chit-chat with the officers at a roadblock.
If you have the time, the courage, and the confidence to verbally express your displeasure with being stopped at a roadblock, please do so. It would be a nice change of pace!"
Ride Free till they stop ya....rcAdd to Technorati Favorites
0 comments:
Post a Comment