Cops abused me for an hour for no reason at all!

[norajane]

Edit as I had provided open container law, but I see RP did not have an open container in the car...

[TYASAFAHICSI]

RP did have an open conatiner in the car. Read the first few sentences of the post:

Last night I had an argument with my husband. So I left the house and went to the store, bought booze, took a few sips, and drove back. Right after I had to turn right into my street, there was a police car.

 

By this, she OPENED a bottle, drank a "few sips" and then drove back. Depending on the hooch, those few sips could have indeed put her in the drunk scale.

 

RP--are you sure the cop was asking you to blow into the breathalyzer?

[pricillia]

Guys, I understand your point, but apparently I wasn't drunk and all they had to do was to check my driver's license and make me blow. Not to interrogate me repeatedly assumming that my husband beat me. If I said NO and I look OK, it's NO. Oh, my husband said the cop told him to go sleep in a hotel. My husband told him NO. They passed the limit of decent cop's behavior big time.

 

Weapons? Don't be ridiculous. I have very dangerous deadly weapons in my house: cutting knives. Does that make me a suspect? Just because I had an argument with my husband and left the house to take a ride doesn't mean I hit his head with a hammer and sliced him with a saw (the saw is not electrical, by the way, it's the most primitive one).

 

And to answer your question, TYASA... no, I wouldn't be happy if I were a victim and the cops were wasting their time torturing an innocent person in another place.

 

 

 

I know that if something happened to me like this I would feel the same way that you do RP, You were upset because you just had a fight with your husband and you just wanted to be alone and cool off and think it through.

 

I know that if there is alcohol in a car even if you are not driving it you may be subject to arrest, even if the bottle or can is not open, it is the potential that causes alarm.

 

He obviously smelled the alcohol on your breath or he would not have had concern about that.

 

You told your secret that you had a argument with your husband, domestic violence is a serious thing so if someone were in that situation then they have no way of knowing until they dig a little deeper.

 

I know that you mentioned that the Police Officer told your husband to go sleep in a hotel and he said no...

 

but maybe this is divine intervention just making you both realize that maybe fighting is not the best way to work out whatever you are fighting about, something has got to give, or you are going to snap.

 

I hope things get better for you, I would just let this one go and don't add to an already difficult situation.

[RecordProducer]

RP did have an open conatiner in the car. Read the first few sentences of the post:

RP--are you sure the cop was asking you to blow into the breathalyzer?

Hahah! It rang like hell!

 

I DID NOT have an open container. I had a little bottle of wine and hid it under the seat. They never asked me if I had any IN the car.

 

They had no reason to bother me for an hour. A few quetsions, ID check, and the booze test would have been enough and kept me for 15 minutes. Besides, they should do all these things lightly and stick to the evidence, not to ask me 50 times if there was something physical and still not believe me then ask my husband the same question and suggest that he goes to a hotel. He pays for their salaries.

 

The fact is they were digging and nothing will convince me that they were only doing their job. Imagine that I said something like: "No, my husband has never hit me except by accident" they would have built a whole case around that "accident." In reality my kids have hit me by accident when jumping, running, etc. and I am sure hubby has and I have hit him accidently. But if I would say that, they would insist that I explain how.

 

In a world full of criminals, a healthy sober woman sitting in her car at 11 PM is not someone they should be interrogating and suspecting of murder and suspect my husband of domestic violence after I said so many times NO. I am not a child. I wouldn't be surprised if they send a social worker to examine our "domestic violence." In that case, I will sue them.

 

As Alpha said, this is something typical for this country, because I've seen it in movies many times. A daughter slaps her mother on the face and ends up in jail for a long time, her mom can't get her out. Now I understand why people were upset about the law in California that you can't slap your child - because you guys know your police system and know what it means - that they would chase mothers and accuse them fasely of hitting their kids, just like they accused my husbnad falsely of betaing me.

 

And excuse me, "just doing their job" is not good enough. They certainly didn't do their job well. They used their position to the maximum to torture me, all that was in their power they exercises. They took their frustrations on me. Given their very low IQ, they are not capable of doing anything more than a routine checkup.

[ilmw]

Hahah! It rang like hell!

 

I DID NOT have an open container. I had a little bottle of wine and hid it under the seat. They never asked me if I had any IN the car.

 

They had no reason to bother me for an hour. A few quetsions, ID check, and the booze test would have been enough and kept me for 15 minutes. Besides, they should do all these things lightly and stick to the evidence, not to ask me 50 times if there was something physical and still not believe me then ask my husband the same question and suggest that he goes to a hotel. He pays for their salaries.

 

The fact is they were digging and nothing will convince me that they were only doing their job. Imagine that I said something like: "No, my husband has never hit me except by accident" they would have built a whole case around that "accident." In reality my kids have hit me by accident when jumping, running, etc. and I am sure hubby has and I have hit him accidently. But if I would say that, they would insist that I explain how.

 

In a world full of criminals, a healthy sober woman sitting in her car at 11 PM is not someone they should be interrogating and suspecting of murder and suspect my husband of domestic violence after I said so many times NO. I am not a child. I wouldn't be surprised if they send a social worker to examine our "domestic violence." In that case, I will sue them.

 

As Alpha said, this is something typical for this country, because I've seen it in movies many times. A daughter slaps her mother on the face and ends up in jail for a long time, her mom can't get her out. Now I understand why people were upset about the law in California that you can't slap your child - because you guys know your police system and know what it means - that they would chase mothers and accuse them fasely of hitting their kids, just like they accused my husbnad falsely of betaing me.

 

And excuse me, "just doing their job" is not good enough. They certainly didn't do their job well. They used their position to the maximum to torture me, all that was in their power they exercises. They took their frustrations on me. Given their very low IQ, they are not capable of doing anything more than a routine checkup.

 

RP...

 

I have read many of your posts before... and always thought you had some really good insight...

 

but... you are really taking this way to far...

 

Go a head and complain... sue them.. if it make you feel better.. but it will get you know where.

 

Also "because I've seen it in movies many times"...(your words) is not really a good way to have insight... I have yet to see a film or TV series that accurately portrays reality when it comes to policing...

 

Then again... I work up in Canada...

[norajane]

Hahah! It rang like hell!

 

I DID NOT have an open container. I had a little bottle of wine and hid it under the seat. They never asked me if I had any IN the car.

 

RP, sweets, I know you're upset, but what you did WAS illegal. You did have an open container (open means 'not factory sealed shut' - you had already opened it and drank from it). Had they seen it, they could have arrested and fined you (in Illinois the fine is up to $1000), and maybe suspended your license for a period of months.

 

Granted, they didn't see it because you hid it under the seat, and you lied, and were lucky they did not search your car, and you were lucky the bottle didn't roll out when you stepped out for the breathalyer.

 

I'm just telling you this for future reference, because you might not get away with it next time and it will cause MAJOR trouble for you with license suspensions and drug & alcohol treatment requirements as well as fines to get your license back.

[ilmw]

RP, sweets, I know you're upset, but what you did WAS illegal. You did have an open container (open means 'not factory sealed shut' - you had already opened it and drank from it). Had they seen it, they could have arrested and fined you (in Illinois the fine is up to $1000), and maybe suspended your license for a period of months.

 

Granted, they didn't see it because you hid it under the seat, and you lied, and were lucky they did not search your car, and you were lucky the bottle didn't roll out when you stepped out for the breathalyer.

 

I'm just telling you this for future reference, because you might not get away with it next time and it will cause MAJOR trouble for you with license suspensions and drug & alcohol treatment requirements as well as fines to get your license back.

 

Oh yeah... meant to bring that up..

 

RP...are you one of those people who like to pick and choose what laws you want to follow... ? I don't like this one.... cause it effects what I WANT TO DO... Hmmmmm?

 

and where not so innocent after all are we....eh?

[TYASAFAHICSI]

RP the movies are not real life. If that is what you think--someone needs to set you straight.

 

You DID break the law as they said--you had an open container and you hid it. That woudl be an offense in and of itself, but that you hid it there might be a concealment charge on top of that.

 

They very well may start a social services file on the incident, but again, you are helpless. You cannot sue because the police (and any other citizen) are protected under the good samaritan laws. THey are set up to protect people that are trying to help. So if you do CPR on a man witih a heart attack and end up doing it wrong and killing him--you cannot be sued.

 

Likewise anyone that reports suspected child abuse is afforded all the protections of the law. The CPS will determine if there is a case. But these laws are set up to encourage people to report this stuff. Teachers see it all the time and if they were afraid of being sued they would all shut up.

 

Although your route was routine--to them it was suspicious and then when you were flusterd and had a fight (do they know if it was physical, verbal, mental?) with your hubby, admittedly upset, of course they are going to dig a bit more.

 

I also have a sneaking feeling that you may have a less than perfect traffic stop for them. There may be more to this story than a polite RP saying"oh officer, I was on my way home to make up with my hubby after a fight." I suspect that you may have launched into them demanding to know why you were stopped and so forth. They NEVER take to that stuff too kindly!

 

America is one of the freeest countries in the world, and we have a lot of rights that are not available anywhere else, but we do not have complete autonomy to act in whatever way WE feel is correct.

[Trialbyfire]

RP, while I think they overdid it after the breathalyzer, I agree with the others that it's not worth pursuing. You did have an open container. That you didn't get caught with it was sheer luck. Thank whomever was looking out for you and continue on.

[RecordProducer]

You DID break the law as they said.

The sops said: I did NOT break the law. They told me I had a right to be properly parked and have below-the-limit alcohol level. Therefore, their work was nothing. They even explained at the end kinda apologetically that they had to check because many women are abused and don't report.

 

So there's no need for you to prescribe me breaking the law when the cops thought I didn't. I told them I had cooking wine - that's why they didn't search the car, I guess!

 

OK, I see how even talking about this pisses me off so I just want to put it behind. Next time I will lie more. I shouldn't have admitted that I had an argument with my husband. And no more wine during driving... only vodka!

 

Thanks for your replies, everyone. It's always great to see things from other perspectives. I had no clue about the open container law.

 

Is it illegal to argue with your spouse, too?

[TYASAFAHICSI]

RP your logic says that because you were not caught bludgeoning your husband to death---you are therefore innocent.

 

Because you were not seen stealing something from a store means that you did not shoplift?

 

Because you took someone's lyrics and passed them as your own and no one complained--does that mean that they are indeed your own lyrics?

[RecordProducer]

RP your logic says that because you were not caught bludgeoning your husband to death---you are therefore innocent.

I don't understand your logic at all. But, yes, since no one saw me bludgoning my husband to death and by mere coicidence I didn't do it either - they had no job investigating if my husband was alive. And even when they were convinced that he was not missing body parts, they still interfered in our marriage and suggested that he goes to a hotel. They watch too many movie - in real life, people don't go to a hotel after an agrument and married couples DO argue! And people do get out to walk the dog or smoke a cigarette or take a ride. I was parked 100 yards from my house. So nothing except my breath should give them any suspicion and that was checked and cleared as I DID NOT BREAK THE LAW, according to their statement. What you don't understand is that if they RAE suspicious about something, yes, they do have a right to investigate, but if they feel like accusing me of being a victim, after I claimed many times that my husband has never and would never touch me in an improper way, they had no business putting their noses in my marriage. That's all.

 

By your logic, you have no proof that your kids are yours and not kidnapped when you drive them around and if I cop saw you arguing with your child (cuz he keeps hitting your seat), you're a suspect of kidnapping three children and intending to murder them? C'mon...

 

OK, the memory of that night really annoys me and upsets me so I'm not going to post here anymore. I think everything was said and I am greatful to all of your for your insight. I know you all understand how I felt and don't judge me, but I am glad you opened my eyes about how THEY see it and how the police here operates so from now on... I know I have to fear them even when I've done nothing wrong, cuz they will be suspicious. I can't beat them (with that hammer and split their heads in two with the saw... oh, I got carried on.. ), but I can "join" them by watching my behavior and lying more.

[pricillia]

RP,

 

I know that you are upset, but this was one instance, I was just wondering if you are over reacting, after all they did not man handle you, they followed procedure, how can almost breaking the law be thier fault.

 

I think that maybe you should look within for this one and stop blaming everyone else.

 

hang in there:)

[ruby_gloom]

That sucks, RP. If I were you, I would be upset, too.

 

I think that what made the whole situation worse was the fact that you were already feeling bad about the argument with your husband. Since you were already feeling upset, their lengthy and somewhat unnecessary interrogation would no doubt make you feel even more upset and frustruated.

 

I think that some of their "suspicions," such as why there were tools in the back of the seat, were too much. While there is nothing wrong with having these tools in your car, I don't think, the only probable reason as to why they even brought that up was because you had mentioned a fight with your husband.

 

While I can understand that you are upset, I don't think your usage of the words "abuse" and "torture" are hyperbolic. From what you wrote, all they did was question you and give you "advice" that you did not need nor ask for, but regardless of that, that is all they did.

 

Also, it seems that you don't understand that they did, in fact, let you off the hook with that wine bottle you hid.

 

You posted:

 

Anyway, I continued and turned onto another street, made a U-turn and parked my car here to finish my drink.

 

You were drinking in your car, and as johan pointed out, in some districts, you, alcohol, and car keys combined while in a car, stationary or not, is enough to warrant an arrest.

 

Open container laws prohibit you from having open alcoholic beverages, which you did, in the passenger area of any vehicle that contain one-half of 1% or more of alcohol by volume. This even includes 3.2% beer, and you had wine, which I'm sure had more alcohol than those water-downed beers.

 

Just by that you could have been arrested, but you say that the cop said that your test results said you had not done anything illegal, right? All that means was that you were not drunk of inhebriated enough to be arrested for that, but that does not mean you could not have been arrested for having an open alcoholic beverage. He didn't mention this because he did not see it--because you hid it.

 

If you yourself thought you were not doing anything illegal, then you would have no reason to hide it--just like you didn't feel a need to hide those "weapons" (that was really stupid of them, btw). Sure, you may not have been aware that they were there, but if you had been, I doubt you would have tried to conceal them since you would know you weren't doing anything wrong.

 

While I do think that these cops outdid themselves, I think that you are overreacting, also, and what's more--you are failing to see what you did wrong.

 

TYASA... is right in saying that it seems like you're thinking that just because someone doesn't see you do something wrong, it means that you didn't do anything wrong.

 

If you do, then that, along with the Albanian statement you made, isn't speaking much good about your integrity.

[Craig]

The sops said: I did NOT break the law. ... I told them I had cooking wine - that's why they didn't search the car, I guess!

They only said that because they were being nice to you. If they thought you were a repeat bad-ass type they'd find a reason to search your car and then you'd have some splainin to do about the open container that you lied to them about.

[RecordProducer]

hang in there:)

Thanks.

 

If you do, then that, along with the Albanian statement you made, isn't speaking much good about your integrity.

My children and my family were bombed by Clinton and NATO in 1999 because of the Albanians, who wanted to get a piece of Serbia (kosovo) that has never been theirs. I've lived with them and I know who they are. Their women are not allowed to go to school and the whole family has aright to sleep with them, they choose your spouse, their law allows you to kill out of revenge (eye to eye law) and altogether they are not very advanced or good people. YOU live with them and you'll want them out of your are ot you'll run away from there. They are very poor so they go aborad, sell drugs and engae in crminal and come back welathy ot end up in the world's jails.

 

then you'd have some splainin to do about the open container that you lied to them about.

I didn't lie about it. They never asked if I had anything in the car and it WAS cooking wine that I took a few sips from.

[Craig]

Originally Posted by Craig View Post

then you'd have some splainin to do about the open container that you lied to them about.

 

I didn't lie about it. They never asked if I had anything in the car and it WAS cooking wine that I took a few sips from.

 

Ah so you admit that you were drinking in your vehicle, had an open container and had erm reasonable grounds to act a little shall we say different than someone who had not done the same?

 

It's ok RP those laws weren't written with your behavior in mind but you really should forget about these cops that were doing their job. Would you rather have them do not investigate other than normal behavior and just respond to crime or do you want them to be proactive in deterring or reducing crime?

[ruby_gloom]

My children and my family were bombed by Clinton and NATO in 1999 because of the Albanians, who wanted to get a piece of Serbia (kosovo) that has never been theirs. I've lived with them and I know who they are. Their women are not allowed to go to school and the whole family has aright to sleep with them, they choose your spouse, their law allows you to kill out of revenge (eye to eye law) and altogether they are not very advanced or good people. YOU live with them and you'll want them out of your are ot you'll run away from there. They are very poor so they go aborad, sell drugs and engae in crminal and come back welathy ot end up in the world's jails.

 

This is unfortunate (to say the very least), RP. From reading this, then it seems like no wonder you would harbor some type of 'resentment' towards these people. And I suppose that's fine, really. The thing is that the statement you made seemed really nasty, and, imo, uncommon coming from someone like you.

 

Anyway, as I said, if I were you, I would be upset, too, because while I suspect that these cops were trying to do their jobs, I also believe that they said and did unnecessary things, like actually going to your home. WTF.

 

The real problem I have with most cops is that you can't really tell them to 'stop,' without getting into trouble with them. You can't tell them that, alright--you took their test, answered their questions, and did what they asked, and that you were found clean by all tests, and that now you just want to go home and not be further interrogated about matters that are private to you, and that you want to keep that way. Oh, no. No way. God forbid you question authority even a little bit.

 

In your case, yes, you did 'break the law' with that open container, and that alone would have warranted an arrest of you. However, the fact that they seemed more concerned with a hypothetical situation rather than actually looking to see if you actually had these bottles/beverages in your car doesn't speak so well of their focus, either, imo.

[RecordProducer]

The real problem I have with most cops is that you can't really tell them to 'stop,' without getting into trouble with them. You can't tell them that, alright--you took their test, answered their questions, and did what they asked, and that you were found clean by all tests, and that now you just want to go home and not be further interrogated about matters that are private to you, and that you want to keep that way. Oh, no. No way. God forbid you question authority even a little bit.

That's my point too,

 

In your case, yes, you did 'break the law' with that open container

I really don't see the point of a law that doesn't allow you to have na open container, but you're allowed to have alcohol in your blood. WTF?

[norajane]

That's my point too,

 

I really don't see the point of a law that doesn't allow you to have na open container, but you're allowed to have alcohol in your blood. WTF?

 

There are legal limits for how much alcohol you can have in your system before you are considered drunk. However, the open container laws are designed to stop people from drinking WHILE driving.

 

People can say, "oh no, officer, I wasn't actually drinking that bottle of wine while driving" and they wouldn't be able to arrest them even if they actually were drinking it while driving because the cops have no way of proving it. So they put the open container laws in place so they don't have to prove you were actually drinking it while driving. Its presence in the car is enough to get you arrested.

 

If you think about teenagers who might not be able to drink anywhere else without risking getting caught, you'll realize that many, many, MANY of them drink in the car. I remember this from high school and college before we turned 21. So do a lot of criminals and gang bangers. (And so do well-off white suburban women who just got into fights with their husbands). They might not be legally drunk when they're stopped, but having the open containers is enough to get them arrested before they kill themselves and someone else in an accident.

 

You might not have been a threat to anyone that night, but a lot of other people who drink in their cars are. The law is designed to catch the dangerous ones, and yes, sometimes that means they catch you, too.

[ilmw]

 

I really don't see the point of a law that doesn't allow you to have na open container, but you're allowed to have alcohol in your blood. WTF?

 

Nj made a good point in her prior post...

 

These laws are basically there to stop the potential of someone drinking while driving..

 

You have to look at the big picture and not your own isolated incident. How many have gone before you.. and well drank in there cars... not bothering anybody... then they say screw it... maybe one more... Oooops now your over the limit... (most places it is 80mg of alcohol in 100 ml of blood) some it is even less.

 

There was a potential for you to become impaired... I'll give you an example... The other night ... I was, as you would say "doing nothing" driving along... just trying to find some innocent tax payer to harass. I see a car coming towards me... it turns down a side street.. it does not have licence plates... but it has a temp permit... so I followed it... and eventually stop the fella... to investigate.. the car.. It turned out... the temp permit was valid... but I would not be doing my job if it did not investigate the driver.. make sure it is his car .. that there is valid insurance.. etc..

 

Well.. he had booze on his breath... I gave him a roadside test.. and he blew a warn... which means his licence under Ontario law, gets him a 12 hour licence suspension.. If he blew a fail... he would have been arrested for Impaired Operation of a Motor Vehicle..etc..

 

Now he told me he had only one beer that night... I know he was lying..

 

One more of those beers would have gotten him arrested.

 

Now was I harassing him...?? or was I doing my duty... to the rest of the people out there.. who... for the most part... don't drink and drive.. or have open liquor in there vehicles..

 

Best bet is don't touch booze and get behind the wheel of a car... cause.. it does not take much to put you over the limit... (case in point above)

 

Now I'm going to bed... had a busy night harassing the public:p

[TYASAFAHICSI]

UGH---I am giving up.

 

RP, sue the township and be sure to sue the officers and their families as individuals for harassment.

[pricillia]

UGH---I am giving up.

 

RP, sue the township and be sure to sue the officers and their families as individuals for harassment.

 

 

Well all this has been building up over a period of time... and what happened was a wake up call for her as she is continuosly fighting with her husband and her husbands family not taking sides at all I do not know the whole story.

 

But as I suggested for RP to look within and heal herself and work on what they are fighting about, I think this may be the snow ball effect.

 

I think that RP is going through a hard time right now, but she will come through it.

[luvtoto]

Craig, I did absolutely nothign wrong. I was parked, I was respectful of them, my alcohol test turned out way below the legal limit. What could they arest me for that could be legal?

I haven't read all the responses to this thread, but I did read your original post, RP.

 

I went out to lunch yesterday with my ex-marine girlfriend who's husband is a cop. She told me that yes, what they did was not normal. Stopping you for no reason other than to interrogate you. Then, finding nothing wrong after all their searching.

 

The only reason they would feel the need to ask you about the tools in your car, is if there have been a lot of robberies in the town that they were currently investigating. The tools in the back seat question would then be more understandable.

 

But, it doesn't make any sense to me whatsoever. I am sure if you had your husband or a witness with you, it would have never happened.

 

However, I don't know what actions you could take against them. Remember the song, I fought the law, but the law won.

[whichwayisup]

All I know is, in Canada if you're caught with an open beer, open liquor bottle while in the car, they'll pull you over. And, most cops don't like humour - So cracking jokes isn't a good thing. If a cop pulls you over ever again in the future, do what they want, say as little as possible.

 

Still I'm sure that was a freaky experience.