Traffic Stop Story

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Ran into a good friend today, and we spent some time catching up on hunting, trap, shooting, and guns.
He told me that he was stopped by a state trooper on Route 16 near Boston. The trooper accused him of texting (he was looking at his GPS).
The trooper wrote him a ticket for texting, and when he was being handed the ticket, the trooper says "I see you have a LTC. Do you have any guns in the car?"
My buddy tells him that he does not have any guns in the car. The trooper says "Do you mind if I look in the trunk?" My buddy lets the trooper look in the trunk.....[rolleyes]
Then, the trooper asks him "Do have have a gun on your person?" My buddy tells him that he does not have a gun on him.
The trooper says 'I don't believe you. Please step out of the car". My buddy then is led to the rear of the police cruiser, and has to put his hands on the trunk and get patted down.....[angry]
This whole episode took almost a half hour....totaly B.S.
 
How did the trooper know he had an LTC? And why would that matter?

This sounds like a civil rights violation. Having an LTC is not just cause for a search of his vehicle and person.
 
Must be nice to have so little to do as a LEO, maybe he should transfer to New Orleans or Houston where there are plenty to do without messing with regular people.
 
I posted a month ago... happened to a 60+ year old guy I worked with. He's lived in NH for the past 30 years! Somehow, the trooper saw that he had an expired license from the 80's and started asking if he was carrying or had a gun in the car. He refused the search. This was a female trooper on 93 in Methuen I believe.
What's the point? There is some directive. Maybe to catch people with "illegal" "assault weapons".

Edit: They can see everything now when they run your plate/license. My friend is a cop that drives the traffic detail in a town that has a plate scanner mounted on an SUV. Doesn't even need to get out of the cruisier. Writes tickets all day for expired inspection tags, doesn't even need to see the windshield. Has found quite a few with outstanding warrants too.
 
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He needs to file a complaint asap

ETA: is that even legal? Is the mere fact that you have an LTC considered PC for a search?
 
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Was the trooper carrying a fishing pole? Talk about captain obvious.

ETA: makes me wonder how much more of a dick the guy would have been if he hadn't consented to search.

-Mike
 
Yeah that's not how it works for traffic stops.

Yes, but he still needs a reasonable excuse to search the car and driver. Smelling pot is a reasonable excuse. Suspicious behavior is a reasonable excuse. Being a lawfully licensed gun owner is not a reasonable excuse.
 
the trooper says "I see you have a LTC. Do you have any guns in the car?"

I do not consent. Am I being Detained? Am I free to go? (that's none of your business)

The trooper says "Do you mind if I look in the trunk?"

I do not consent. Am I being Detained? Am I free to go? (mind if i see a warrant?)

the trooper asks him "Do have have a gun on your person?"

I do not consent. Am I being Detained? Am I free to go? (also none of your business)

The trooper says 'I don't believe you. Please step out of the car"

I do not consent. Am I being Detained? Am I free to go? (for your safety and my safety i am going to remain in my car and you are going to f*** off)
 
I think the main points here are do not consent to any search without a warrant and never lie to the cop. If he did lie and the cop patted him down such as what had happened and the cop found a gun on him it would have cost him a lot more than a half an hour.
 
The trooper says 'I don't believe you. Please step out of the car". My buddy then is led to the rear of the police cruiser, and has to put his hands on the trunk and get patted down.....[angry]


I do not consent. Am I being Detained? Am I free to go? (for your safety and my safety i am going to remain in my car and you are going to f*** off)


No on number 4.....he asks you to step out of the car I believe you have to do it...
 
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Yes, but he still needs a reasonable excuse to search the car and driver. Smelling pot is a reasonable excuse. Suspicious behavior is a reasonable excuse. Being a lawfully licensed gun owner is not a reasonable excuse.

LOL, that's cute that you think that, but cops can pretty much do whatever they want and get away with it. Whether or not the search is legally admissible or not after the fact is another story. In theory, up front, breaking the ROE for illegal searches etc is supposed to be "bad" but when's the last time a LEO actually got punished for an illegal search?

-Mike
 
Important question. Was he foolish enough to have it displayed openly in his wallet? The alternative has some serious implications....

It doesn't matter anymore (at least for MA residents) any trooper with an MDT (and they probably all have them) can just press a button in CJISweb and it crossreferences the DL info with LTC lookup.... done. So any LEO in MA with one of these terminals can figure out whether you have an LTC or not in about 10 seconds or less once they have your DL. It might even allow it to springboard off the registration of the vehicle easily but I'm not sure about that vector.

-Mike
 
based on this the rally on Sunday should be hilarious after everyone leaves to go home separately...lol
 
But did they ask him about his voting history, if he's read any good books lately or been to church? Those are also relevant to a traffic stop.
 
How did the trooper know he had an LTC? And why would that matter?

This sounds like a civil rights violation. Having an LTC is not just cause for a search of his vehicle and person.
\
Comes up on the in car laptop

- - - Updated - - -

It doesn't matter anymore (at least for MA residents) any trooper with an MDT (and they probably all have them) can just press a button in CJISweb and it crossreferences the DL info with LTC lookup.... done. So any LEO in MA with one of these terminals can figure out whether you have an LTC or not in about 10 seconds or less once they have your DL. It might even allow it to springboard off the registration of the vehicle easily but I'm not sure about that vector.

-Mike
they can also pull up a list of guns you have registered to you
 
Isn't there a provisio though that the recording has to either be blatant or the LEO has to be aware that its occurring?

-Mike

If the dash cam is in plain view on the dash/windshield and not deliberately shielded in some manner, such as behind the mirror, you don't have to announce the recording.
 
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