Property Invasion, Damages, Trespass Auto entry and search without consent

[jeffreydw]

I was at a party with some friends in a field on an unknown owners land. I had temporarily left the party in someone elses vehicle and while I was gone police had came and broke up the party. They told everyone to leave. I wasn't there so they towed my car. Supposedly, they had to enter my car in order to release the e-brake, to tow it. They jimmied the door open and searched the vehicle while I wasn't around. They denied jimming the door open at first and said that the towing company had done it. When I told them that the towing company had already told me that the police did it they confessed. They also confessed to searching my vehicle. They had removed my registration information from the glove box and gave it to the towing company for paperwork. In the process of jimmying the door open they scratched the window and damaged the weather stripping. 378 dollars in damage. I got a quote.They denied this, however the towing company said that they saw the cops do it. I was given a citation for criminal trespass with a vehicle (which requires I go to court) but no fine. However I had to pay a 90 dollar towing fee.

I have court the 15th. Are they responsible for the damage to the window? And could I get the towing fee back because of an illegal search? They abused their right to enter my vehicle in order to tow it....if they even have that right. Do I have anything to stand on here? Please help

 

[Michael Wechsler]

With regard to damages, it's very questionable. If you trespassed on someone else's property and they had to remove your vehicle from the premises forcibly, I'm not sure that you have any real recourse. This isn't an "illegal search" case since the damage is not an arrest but property damage. The only way I can see that you might get back compensation is if there was negligence involved in opening up your car door. I could be wrong but it's the way I see it going in small claims court. It's difficult to claim damages when you come into court with unclean hands yourself -- you were trespassing. Live and learn from a mistake that should be small in the grand scheme of things...

I was at a party with some friends in a field on an unknown owners land. I had temporarily left the party in someone elses vehicle and while I was gone police had came and broke up the party. They told everyone to leave. I wasn't there so they towed my car. Supposedly, they had to enter my car in order to release the e-brake, to tow it. They jimmied the door open and searched the vehicle while I wasn't around. They denied jimming the door open at first and said that the towing company had done it. When I told them that the towing company had already told me that the police did it they confessed. They also confessed to searching my vehicle. They had removed my registration information from the glove box and gave it to the towing company for paperwork. In the process of jimmying the door open they scratched the window and damaged the weather stripping. 378 dollars in damage. I got a quote.They denied this, however the towing company said that they saw the cops do it. I was given a citation for criminal trespass with a vehicle (which requires I go to court) but no fine. However I had to pay a 90 dollar towing fee.

I have court the 15th. Are they responsible for the damage to the window? And could I get the towing fee back because of an illegal search? They abused their right to enter my vehicle in order to tow it....if they even have that right. Do I have anything to stand on here? Please help