Cops TV Show- First Amendment Rights Violation
The following case is an actual, real life example of abuse of power. The actions of the police officer violated this U.S. citizens rights as guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States.
A police officer sees a person sitting in a vehicle at 2 o'clock am. The last time I checked, this wasn't against the law. The officer walks up to the "suspicious person", a white male who appears to be between 30 and 40 years old. The officer tells the man to keep his hands on steering wheel and asks why he is there sitting in his vehicle. In America, we have to explain to the police what we are doing, just because they want to know? The man answers the officer, saying he was waiting to talk to someone about a contract job. The officer doesn't like his answer, so he tells the guy to get out of the car and put his hands on the hood of the officer's car. The man complies, and the officer continues to question him about his reasons for being out so late. The officer asks the man to consent to a search, and the man gives permission. The officer believes that the man has an illegal substance in his mouth and requires (not requests) him to show the officer the inside of his mouth. Last time I checked, permission to search didn't include body cavities! The officer claims he sees "something white" in the man's mouth (Perhaps teeth?) and starts handcuffing him while reaching inside his mouth. Other police officers assist, reaching into the man's mouth and restricting his breathing. During this entire time, the man is never told he is in custody, under arrest, or has the right to an attorney or to remain silent.
The Bill of Rights guarantees Americans certain rights and freedoms. The man in this case was denied several of these rights, on public television, by an officer of the law. The first amendment guarantees the right of the people "peaceably to assemble". The man was detained even after informing the officer that he was meeting someone at the location- peacefully assembling. The fourth amendment guarantees the right to be "secure in their persons...against unreasonable searches and seizures". Although the man gave the officer permission to search him, I don't believe any reasonable person would construe this permission as an okay to search body cavities. The man was forced to submit to the body cavity search of his mouth, thus violating the fifth amendment- "...nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself"
The fact that this incident was shown on T.V. angered me. The actions that the officers in this case took have become so commonplace and accepted that there is no public outcry. Perhaps people believe that "the end justifies the means" but I strongly disagree. If the police can deprive a man of several rights just because they see him sitting in a vehicle in the wee hours of the morning, what is to stop them from depriving you or me of our rights in a similar situation or while doing anything else just as innocuous?
Published by Rebecca Rosenburg
Rebecca Rosenburg is a freelance writer and information specialist. Rebecca has worked in the health care industry for 16 years as a CNA/Caregiver. Rebecca is also an educator with 13 years experience specia... View profile
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19 Comments
Post a CommentThe show COPS is filled with violations of our constitution, in fact I know two law firms that have interns and clerks watching the show so they can file 42 USC 1983 and 85 lawsuits on a routine basis. Of course many of the "citizens" on the show are one step removed from idiots when it comes to thier rights, which the police take advantage of at every opportunity.
Its sad that our police force has become the one to beware for any average citizen and this show demonstrates that every episode.
Jason Somer- I appreciated your comments, but had to delete the second one for liability reasons. Your longer comment was deleted mistakenly, and I invite you to comment again.
Just watched COPS tonight. Incredible abuse of rights.
Rosenburg..you just dont get it..that type of logic is what is killing our county..bet you are the first to call the police when you believe "your rights" have been violated by others....
Youre tryin to make is sound like if cops pulled u over, asked to search, you say yes, and then they grab you hold u down and start putting fingers in ur mouth for the hell of it? That didnt happen here. They could tell he had drugs and didnt spit them out when ordered too. At that point they follow procedure: The officers held him down and stuck there hands in his mouth to get the drugs out. Theyre supposed to get the guy to spit out the drags ASAP ie choke him if they have too. If he swallows the drugs he might die! At that point they would rush him to the hospital to have his stomach pumped. Police would rather not do that. They hold him down and put fingers in his mouth because theyre tryin to save his stupid life and get the drugs out. Again, just following procedure. He didnt swallow them, the cops did a great job and saved his life too. No amendment violated.
It doesn't matter if he was/is guilty of a crime, or had drugs. My point is that the ends do not justify the means. If I were to give a police officer permission to search me, I sure wouldn't mean that permission meant he and other officers could hold me down and stick their hands in my mouth!
The cop went on his instincts. This guy was parked in an area where there is alot of drug deals. He said he was waiting for someone....thats all the cop needed to hear. A cop knows when someone is lying. They deal with it allll day, and everyday. Every dispute they go to, half the people are lying. They know when someone is nervous, that they are hiding something. The guy gave consent to search. Why? Because they think if they say no its means theyre hiding something, so they always stupidly say yes. The cop could tell he had something in his mouth by how he was talking. The guy had drugs in his mouth and was arrested for it.! hello?This is a good thing. The only laws broken were by the crack head. Stupid article because yes, she forgot to mention HE HAD DRUGS! The police officer did a great job
If simply sitting in one's car in the middle of the night is "reasonable suspicion" then I am guilty almost every night! I sit in my car at all hours of the night to smoke. When I travel I often pull over at night to rest a minute, smoke, or talk on my cell. If I ever gave a police officer permission to search me, I certainly wouldn't mean he could put his hands in my mouth!
"What exactly is probable cause for a police officer to detain you and search you, including your body cavities?"
Probable cause is not required. In the Supreme Court's decision in Terry v. Ohio, the court ruled that an officer needs only "reasonable suspicion" that a person has committed, is committing, or is about to commit a crime to detain a person for a period of time. Reasonable suspicion and probable cause do not come in to play when a person has given consent to be searched, as occurred in this situation.
I don't know the full situation, and I'm not a lawyer, but from what you described, it doesn't appear that anyone's rights were violated.
First off, a guy sitting in his car at 2 a.m. is generally suspicious enough for the officer to investigate. It may not be illegal, but it can certainly be suspicious. This could give the officer reasonable suspicion to question and detain the individual for a short period of time. But we must also consider other factors that weren
I think I remember the one you're talking about, although this has happened many times on Cops. I really can't stand the show because of this but my husband is hooked on it. Great article. :)