Umm sorry but, no. Terry v Ohio. The Supreme Court decided that peace officers can detain a person for a limited time without probable cause. It also states that if a cop wants to search you, they can if they feel they're in some sort of danger.
Check out http://www.oag.state.ny.us/press/rep...2_part1.html#D for a little more info.

 

see, you didnt make yourself clear.

Terry Vs OHIO sounds just like probable cause to me...

 

Quite frankly, if you feel your personal safety is more important than Constitutional law, you need to get a desk job. I am not saying that about you personally, but about every law enforcement officer. So I stand by what I said. Searches conducted without probably cause result in inadmissable evidence. The greenest PD in the world can handle that one.


...That being said, if an officer is truly threatened by someone, there's probable cause somewhere in the mix. Police officers aren't scared of John Q. Public during a routine traffic stop. They also aren't scared (much) by stopping stupid kids that look like potheads. But if I'm pulled over for rolling thrugh a stop sign (I do it all the time, it's bound to happen) and the officer decides to search my car because he feels "threatened" he's going to make my lawyer famous.

 

Not really, but ok.

 

BANS, we're talking apples and oranges here. I was talking about simple searches of a person. You're talking about a search incident to apprehension, which can lead into a complete search. BTW, I've never heard of a weapon getting throw out of court on an officer saftey pat down. Ever.

 

No officer is going to conduct a search of a person simply because he has nothing better to do. So as I said, if he feels his safety is threatened, then he also has probably cause, most likely. Besides, from the citizen's point of view, and the Constitution's, a search is a sesrch is a search. No probably cause means inadmission. But it's really a fine line probably only tested in law schools and CJ classrooms. The point I was trying to make was that an officer isn't going to conduct a search without some form of probable cause. If he didn't feel some reason to conduct the search he wouldn't bother.

 

i was in law enforcement for 5 years, i wasn't necesarilly grumpy.
one thing i did notice though. i got lied to every single day.
that whole probable cause issue can be a whole forum in itself

in regards to BANSUVS comment,
"Police officers aren't scared of John Q. Public during a routine traffic stop...."
honestly its the "normal" and routine which are the most dangerous. unless you are my mother. if i pull you over i don't know you.perod. anything can happen.
i'm not sure where this "reply" is going (and no i don't smoke pakalolo(pot) )

in defense of your local police department - support the cause even if you don't support the man. whether they are good cops or not they risk their lives day in and day out. thats my thoughts. . . all the other stuff to me is just a bunch of negativity and i think that energy can be consolidated elsewhere.



aloha from the summit of Mauna Kea