4 ms·

How to decline a search without getting hostile or "looking suspicious" (pick one, or invent your own): - "I'd really prefer not to, if that's okay. It just ma

• kposehn 13y ago
  Great advice by the look of it.
• jlgreco 13y ago
  - "I'm sort of on a deadline, sorry." has worked for me. (Probably not a good idea if you were pulled over for a traffic infraction...)
• roc 13y ago
  > "How to decline a search" From the article: "The report describes their children as possible decoys, meant to distract police as the couple breezed down the road, smoking marijuana. (None was found in the car, although Washington claimed to have smelled it.)" Whatever you might say is moot, if the cops are willing to play that card.
  • jonknee 13y ago
    > Whatever you might say is moot, if the cops are willing to play that card. Not really, if things go poorly it makes your lawyer's job a lot easier to get the case thrown out.
    • fnordfnordfnord 13y ago
      What lawyer? They took your money. How do you afford an attorney?
• steveklabnik 13y ago
  > "Liscense and registration and step out of the car" > "Are you carryin' a weapon on you I know a lot of you are" > I ain't steppin out of shit all my papers legit > "Well, do you mind if I look round the car a little bit?" > Well my glove compartment is locked so are the trunk in the back > And I know my rights so you gon' need a warrant for that." > "We'll see how smart you are when the K9's come."
  • ubernostrum 13y ago
    http://slu.edu/Documents/law/Law%20Journal/Archives/LJ56-2_Mason_Article.pdf http://slu.edu/Documents/law/Law%20Journal/Archives/LJ56-2_M...
    • HNaTTY 13y ago
      I was surprised to read that arresting someone and impounding the car (and checking it with a drug dog during inventory) is legal for any traffic offense, including speeding by 1 MPH.
  • kunai 13y ago
    Quoting Jay-Z, I see...
    • steveklabnik 13y ago
      He removed the dash last week.
• justin66 13y ago
  I would skip the passive-aggressive approach. Reading those made me want to seize your assets and send you home on a bus.
  • lukifer 13y ago
    It depends on tone. If the cop starts aggressive, that's when you start using flat refusals. My suggestions were for the more common case: where the cop is casual, friendly and trying to lull you into a false sense of security. There can be value in playing a little dumb.
• omegant 13y ago
  Video explaining how to say no. It has 4 years so I don´t know if is still valid: http://youtu.be/qIsSyP4Xq1M http://youtu.be/qIsSyP4Xq1M
• gyepi 13y ago
  Just say no. It is important to remember that the police has an adversarial relationship to you. Their job is to look for reasons to arrest you. Asserting your rights or looking suspicious is not a crime. > Above all, stay calm, friendly, and respectful, all while standing firm. This advice cannot be repeated enough. Most of us deal with the police so infrequently that, in that adversarial context, we have very little practice on how to do it effectively. Worse yet, asserting your rights appears to violate many of the social strictures on not being rude and respecting authority. Quoting Sen no Rikyu, "that must be set aside".
  • shawabawa3 13y ago
    > Their job is to look for reasons to arrest you I thought their job was to serve and protect. Of course, quotas tend to confuse things...
    • gyepi 13y ago
      Most of the time, most people get some level of service and protection, depending on various demographic, economic or geographic factors. However, that changes if the police has probable cause to believe that you are or could be suspected of having committed, in the process of commiting, or are about to commit a crime. They are trained to look for indicators that provide that probable cause. Once that happens, serving and protecting you is no longer their primary goal. The police are expert at making that transition seamlessly while most civilians are bad at recognizing the change or knowing that they have the right to withhold consent.
• deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
  • ceol 13y ago
    Exactly. Most officers aren't out to screw you over, but there are some who don't care how much they mess up your day/month/year/life. Lying to them, in any way, does not help you.
  • lukifer 13y ago
    Ideally, you'd refer to an actual lawyer in your family or social circle, or your actual lawyer if you have one. It seems like a stretch though, that an officer would suspect or catch you on such a trivial lie. You could also just keep it vague: "I heard from a lawyer once that..." Personally, I lean on "it makes me uncomfortable", which has the virtue of being both unfalsifiable and true. (Side note: I wish I had a polite answer to "where are you headed tonight?", which is a question I don't feel I should be obligated to answer, but could turn the conversation hostile to refuse directly.)
    • gyepi 13y ago
      The less you say, the better. You don't have to explain yourself. > I wish I had a polite answer to "where are you headed tonight?" "I prefer not to answer" or "I'd rather not say" are both quite polite. If the questions persist, you can always say you'd prefer to answer questions in the presence of your attorney, which you should do anyway.