Sheriff Department in Garvin County, (Guthrie, Pauls Valley: environment, credit, lawyer)

[Ponderosa]

I'm not condoning what happened here, but I learned on jury duty that one has few constitutional rights when it comes to vehicle searches. It depends on state laws but basically if the cop has reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed they can go through your car with a fine-toothed comb without a warrant. Whether having red-eye and Red Bull is reasonable suspicion is subject to debate, I suppose. In the case I was on, we were instructed that having a drug running "profile" is not, but the arresting officer said the person spoke and acted and looked like a person under the influence and so that was argued as reasonable suspicion.

Anyway, bottom line is they can search your car pretty much on a "hunch". A warrant is not required.

[peggydavis]

I was driving on I-40 in Arkansas. A highway patrolman was sitting by the side of the road, and when he pulled onto the highway I knew he was coming after me. I was not speeding. He drove up behind me so fast I thought he was going to ram me, and by I reflex pulled to the right a little. He pulled up beside me, dropped back behind me, pulled up beside me, then finally turned on his lights. By that time I was shaking.

He had me get out of the car and asked me a whole lot of questions. Then he said he stopped me because my left tire had gone over the white line on the right side of the road. He gave me a warning ticket for improper lane usage. I just signed it with a very shaky hand and went on. Something about me just made him suspicious, and they can stop you anytime they want to.

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by peggydavis

I was driving on I-40 in Arkansas. A highway patrolman was sitting by the side of the road, and when he pulled onto the highway I knew he was coming after me. I was not speeding. He drove up behind me so fast I thought he was going to ram me, and by I reflex pulled to the right a little. He pulled up beside me, dropped back behind me, pulled up beside me, then finally turned on his lights. By that time I was shaking.

He had me get out of the car and asked me a whole lot of questions. Then he said he stopped me because my left tire had gone over the white line on the right side of the road. He gave me a warning ticket for improper lane usage. I just signed it with a very shaky hand and went on. Something about me just made him suspicious, and they can stop you anytime they want to.

wow, thats just scary, you would have been fine if he had not gone after you. Like I said, I think these are the same thugs that want your lunch money in Grade school. Some of these loosers are doing life, and some of the slightly smarter thugs are now cops.

[peggydavis]

That is true of some, but keep in mind these are the same people who will risk their lives to save you in times of disaster. They hire aggressive people to be cops because they are the kind to run toward a fight or something dangerous. Not people like me, who run the other way.

[jessaka]

Yes, they need to be aggressive but they also need to know when not to be. I am stupid, I once ran towards a fight when I saw a man beating another man's head on the sidewalk. I said, "Stop, this is the police," and he stopped and started walking away, and I followed along side of him until the cops came. Youth as it was I was not too smart, but I probably saved the guy's life. I don't know what I would do now.

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by peggydavis

That is true of some, but keep in mind these are the same people who will risk their lives to save you in times of disaster. They hire aggressive people to be cops because they are the kind to run toward a fight or something dangerous. Not people like me, who run the other way.

well I agree with you almost completely, however those occassions are rare. I am more afriad of a cop pulling behind me in traffic than I would be of a bank robber behind me. I have never lost money to a bank robber. In fact Im almost in horror when they follow me for more than a mile. They are well aware of this Im sure. Hey there are good police out there...Im sure of that. I just have a little problem believing that they work for Garvin County Sheriff Department

[peggydavis]

I don't know where you are from but I think they are pretty much the same all over the US. Some are nice. I am not afraid of cops but they make me very very nervous. That makes them think I have something to hide. I have always found the OK Highway Patrol to be professional, but various city police have been really rude to me on occasion.

Jessaka, I am glad you saved someone's life, and I used to be braver when I was younger.

[Patricia1949]

You don't know how lucky you were. My son has been arrested, jailed, had false evidence against him and after 3 months is still trying to prove his innocence. Three months after his original arrest, they have come back with yet more lies and "evidence" against him. They will keep adding to it until they think they have enough to convict him. If you haven't read Dreams of Ada or An Innocent Man you should. Both books are true stories about the corruption in small town Oklahoma. You will then realize how bad it could have been for you. Any brush with the yahoos in that area of Oklahoma is dangerous. I was sitting in the corner or the sheriff's office in September (trying to get my innocent son out of jail) when I overheard one deputy admit to another he had falsified evidence on another case. They both had a good laugh over it, before they realized I was sitting in the corner. The DA in Pauls Valley (Greg Mashburn) is as bad as the DA in Ada. They only care about their reputations, their records of convictions and getting re-elected. Justice is dependent on whether or not it is good for their image.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by peggydavis

They sure do, Jessaka. I have been yelled at by so many police & sheriff deputies. Then they give me a warning lately but I have had plenty of tickets. They do have a lot of stress so I forgive them. I sometimes meet very nice cops though. The sheriff and deputies in Hughes Co. are very nice, but we don't have the roads to qualify as a drug corridor.

After living for several decades in a fairly isolated part of a very large state, I only ever knew one city cop who I would classify as either good or honest. All he'd ever wanted to do was be a state trooper, and when he finally made it, he died on his first assignment - he was escorting a prisoner back on a seaplane that went down, and everyone on board died in the crash. As for the rest, a couple were sadists who were known for wearing gloves weighted with lead fingertips and knuckle guards, and at least one of their victims is now blind and finally won a suit against the city. The man who was chief then was also paid off by the local madam, and her houses were never raided. One of the cops was accused of child molesting and his wife divorced him, but he wasn't prosecuted - he was given a fine recommendation to a force in another state! This particular small town had a lot of money floating around, therefor a lot of drug trade. The few - very few, relatively speaking - times an arrest was made, and drugs and cash seized, the amounts that showed up on the books in the police station definitely weren't the same as the amounts taken. On the other hand, I've known some who, despite their flawed moral compass, did a good job overall.

As far as I'm concerned, cops are human beings first. What they do for a living is not necessarily who they are. I do my best to leave them alone and hope they'll return the favor. I've only been stopped 3 times in my life - once by a cop in St Louis who tried to pick me up, once for a speeding ticket, and once because a cop didn't like my bumper sticker! No ticket on that one, but my husband had to cover it up with another one.

[peggydavis]

I wish I only had one traffic ticket in my life. You must be a good driver, Karibear.