Question...

[Patriot123]

Got a question that's been on my mind...

So a lot of cops in my area stop kids on the night before Halloween and the day of Halloween to search their bags. They do not ask, they do not have a warrant. They simply just go ahead and forcefully search their bags. My question is as follows: If you were to be carrying a book bag on the night before Halloween and a cop were to stop you and search your book bag, would he have probable cause just because it's the night before Halloween when most teenagers are out for vandalism and such, and he suspects you're out for that reason? Or would he still need a warrant? In short, does being out on the night before Halloween justify probable cause for an officer to search your bag without your permission?

[Roxi]

a few years ago i would say no, minors have rights too... however because of the patriot act and similar legislation signed since then, yes they can search anyone they want without a warrant

[Truth Warrior]

"Liberty is lost through complacency and a subservient mindset. When we accept or even welcome automobile checkpoints, random searches, mandatory identification cards, and paramilitary police in our streets, we have lost a vital part of our American heritage. America was born of protest, revolution, and mistrust of government. Subservient societies neither maintain nor deserve freedom for long." -- Ron Paul 2004

[noxagol]

No, they cannot just come up and search your bag or your person or anything without probable cause. The (Un)Patriot(ic) Act does not matter because it does not trump the Constitution. If you feel daring, try to get every kid you know to resist such searches and shot something akin of being kidnapped.

[noxagol]

a few years ago i would say no, minors have rights too... however because of the patriot act and similar legislation signed since then, yes they can search anyone they want without a warrant

Such legistlation does not trump the Constitution.

[Patriot123]

Yes, exactly. I even thought about that and I figured that there's no way it can overstep our constitution.

Does anyone know the answer to this question, though? Just by going by the Constitution?

[noxagol]

Yes, exactly. I even thought about that and I figured that there's no way it can overstep our constitution.

Does anyone know the answer to this question, though? Just by going by the Constitution?

No, they can't. They need probable cause. Just checking doesn't cut it.

[Patriot123]

So if a cop forcefully searches you without permission, what can you even do aside from sewing or filing a complaint?

[noxagol]

So if a cop forcefully searches you without permission, what can you even do aside from sewing or filing a complaint?

Fight back and when you go to court claim you were resisting an unlawful search violating your fourth amendment right. Others have done it and won. I remember a story of a guy that beat the crap out of two cops with their own tazer and won the case with the judge ruling he had a right to resist.

You resist at your own risk though. Don't expect the cop to take resisting his "authority" lightly. This kind of action though is what will eventually be needed if we want to stop the blatant violations of our rights by the government.

[UnReconstructed]

Get a porcupine and stuff it in your bag. Then walk around looking suspect where the cops are.

[Roxi]

wellllll........ im just saying, they have a knack for getting away with pretty much whatever they want in the name of safety

whether or not you can fight it wasn't the question, it was whether or not they can do it,

and am i wrong or does the patriot act not allow law enforcement to search and or confiscate personal property without a court order? and yes it is unconstitutional, but how many lawsuits have been won against it?

i mean i don't really know, but i would assume, that they can pretty much do what they want at this point, can we fight it yes, is it a pain in the ass to do so? yes... but they can still do it.