One EXPENSIVE cup of coffee!

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thejokester43

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A few weeks ago, I made a really stupid decision to hold on to property belonging to a former coworker for him. This property was in the form of 4 empty bank bags. I never questioned why. I simply put them in my lunch pail at the time then later threw them in my vehicle.

Last week, I was in Ontario, Oregon at just before 5:00 am waiting for a coffee shop to open. I was in the area to inspect another job site, drop off materials, then return to my current job site by 7:00 am, which was about 45 minutes driving time away. The vehicle was turned off, keys were in my pocket, and I was leaned back in the car resting until the coffee shop opened, when 2 police cars approached my vehicle - one from the front, and one from the back.

Both officers approached the driver side window and asked what I was doing. I replied "waiting to get a cup of coffee". Next, they asked if I had any drugs or weapons on me, to which I replied, "no". They then asked if I would mind getting out of the vehicle to search me, and I agreed to that. They found nothing, but did see that I did not have a licence to drive (I'm suspended, though that's another story due to a court's booboo). They asked if I had any drugs or weapons in the car, and I said no. They asked if they could search, and I told them "go ahead". At this point, they had me sit near the rear of the vehicle on the sidewalk.

While sitting on the sidewalk, while one cop searched my vehicle (keep in mind that I am not the owner of the car - my girlfriend is), the other officer told me that it was a coincidence that I was sitting in front of a coffee shop that had recently been broken into. He said that he felt that I had done this, and told me that "it's only a matter of a few hundred dollars, it would be best if you come clean and work something out with us to pay it back, or you can keep lying and telling us stories and I can arrest you on suspicion". My simple reply to this was "so what you're telling me is that I can admit to a crime that I didn't do, or continue to tell the truth and cooperate, and get arrested." He then told me, "that's not what I said".

To make a long story short, they found the bank bags during the search, I volunteered my fingerprints, and they ticketed me with "Driving while suspended INT", along with expired plates, and towed my car because I would not overturn possession of the bank bags.

Since then, the car has been searched twice while in impound, although no search warrent has been given to my girlfriend (the owner). They are now accusing me of several other burglaries in the Boise, ID area, along with Ontario, Oregon. I voluntarily allowed them to search my house so they could look for items from the burglaries. They found nothing, but took my shoes. They also searched my girlfriend's grandmother's house without permission, along with my girlfriend's mother's truck. They have required my girlfriend to be interrogated multiple times (to which she told them where the bank bags came from), and I was brought in for questioning once (for about 3 hours). I was never read my miranda rights, and though the officers at first said I was free to leave, the door was constantly closed, and I honestly feel that if I had tried to get up to leave, I would have been arrested, and when they were going to follow me to my house to conduct the search, my girlfriend asked if I could accompany her to her mother's house (5 min away) to get her cell phone charger before the officers followed us home, and they would not allow me to go with her.

Now that you know the facts, my questions are: can I get a driving while suspended ticket for sitting in a parked car? Can I get a ticket for expired tags if the car is not mine? Do they have to provide a copy of the search warrant before, during, or after the searches (on the car)? With the voluntary search of the house, are they allowed to take my shoes if they are looking for items FROM a burglary? Can they search the property if they only have permission to search the house? I honestly feel that had I not given them permission to search my home, I would have been arrested. Doesn't this constitute police coersion to obtain my cooperation? Do the police have the right to lie to my girlfriend in order to get her cooperation? She has caught several officers in multiple lies thus far.

No arrests have been made as of now, but my girlfriend was questioned again today when she went to get the car. What on earth should we do? Where do we even begin? I have a 4 1/2 month old son, and am the sole provider for our household. We cannot afford an attorney.

I sincerely apologize for such a lengthy post. Keep in mind I've abridged the story to condense it as much as possible. Thanks for any help.
 
Wow, your story is quite interesting..........You can get a ticket for sitting in the parked car. You never know how long they had been watching you…………They might know more than you think. If the used reasonable judgment or had probable cause to view you as the driver, they can. Yes you can get a ticket for expired tags even if it is not your car. The owner was not the one driving with expired tags nor a valid license. They don't need a search warrant to search your car due to your citations which necessitate and inventory before impound. Volunteering to a search gives them the right to retain any possible evidence. That is the whole point of a search…………collection and analyzing potential evidence not just looking. I guess you might have admitted to a wide scope without knowing. Permission to search your house is wide and vague……… You admitted to the search why do you think they would make a distinction? The want to get everything done once. Cops play hard ball sometimes to get you to cooperate…..sometime even trick you within guidelines of the law to cooperate or get information from you………It is legal.
The cops might have acted a bit out of line from your post but …………hard to tell if they violated your rights in a way you make noise about and get something done. We have quite a few experts here familiar with police practices….They would best break it done. You were the only one there……….. Can't tell much. Many suspects are never really treated well especially when operating without a lawyer.
I strongly suggest you get a lawyer one way or the other…….I know you say you can't afford it but the number of charges you say they are trying to put on you could put you away for a long time if they succeed. Not having a lawyer in such a difficult situation is a decision you could regret if many charges are brought against you………. You might end up paying a million dollars and jail time for something which require a thousand dollars today. Your case seems too complex to handle without a lawyer immediately. I advise you not to talk to anyone without a lawyer. For some reason they think you are their guy. I am sure you want to be with your kid. If you can't afford a lawyer now, the price would only go up as the charges and stakes increase or if you are to go to trial. A lawyer can avoid all these if the cops are just on a fishing expedition. So stop talking to them before you end up contradiction yourself in some way………….they would hold that against you even if you are innocent.
 
Thank you very much for the information. I do however know that they did NOT see me driving as they told me they drove by, saw me sitting in the car and decided to investigate. And if anyone has any advice on how to obtain a lawyer without money (LOL yeah right) it would be ever so helpful.

And like I said, There is so much more to the story, but it was so long already. Another thing is that in march (when they say all this got started) my girlfriend was 9 months pregnant and to big to drive or go anywhere, so she was ALWAYS home with me at night. I worked all day, so there was no possible way for me to do any of the things they say I did. Again thank you all so much for your help and advice.
 
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