A very common thing that happens in these search and seizures for a case is frequently the drugs are not even found on the defendant. So, one of two things or both things happen. An officer might not have probable cause to search the car, but might ask for consent to search, or say something like, “You have any drugs on you?” Now a traffic stop is not a seizure in the sense of an arrest, so technically it’s a consensual encounter.
That doesn’t mean you can drive away from any traffic stop, but it does mean that the officer doesn’t have to read you, Miranda. So, what happens a lot is people feel like they’re being detained but they’re not. They’re not compelled to answer in any way. They’re not compelled to submit, to either questioning or to a search. So typically, people spill the beans.
They say, “Yeah, I have drugs in the glove compartment” or, “Sure you can search the car, sure you can search me.” They get out of the car and they say, “Sure, you can search me.” Even though they knew full well that they have drugs on them, or they have drugs in the car. For more information, call us today.
(Transcript from the video, transcribed but not reviewed)
