Arrest, Search, Seizure, Warrant Traffic stop, then searched

[clown]

I am from PA but i was in Indiana when the incident occured. I was traveling home from a little trip my girlfriend and i had taken when i was pulled over for faulty tail lights. The officer approached the passanger side and talked to me for a few seconds then asked me to get out of the vehicle. I did as he said and he told me he smelled alchol on my breath. I had not been drinking at all that day and it was later at night probably 6-8 i dont know exactly. Anyhow i told him i would take a breathalizer or even a blood test for alchol. I had my hands in my hooded sweatshirt pocket because it was very cold out. He then asked me to remove my hands and search me. I agreed because i felt he thought i had a weapon on me which i didnt. His search produced probably less then .5g of weed, along with a pipe. I was then handcuffed but told i wasnt under arrest. Some questioning goes on between an officer and I, and an officer and my girlfriend. They eventually put me in the back of a car and ask my girlfriend if she could exit the car. They searched her (male police) then had her stand outside. When she told them she was cold and 8 months pregnant, they told her she could sit in the cop car but she had to be handcuffed. She decliened their offer on account of being handcuffed. Eventually another officer let her sit in his car while they had a dog sniff out my car. The dog produced nothing so they personally searched my car. This search also produced nothing, the original bud was all i had on me. I was arrested for poss. of weed and paraphenilia (spelling?). I goto court Wed Dec 17, im from out of state and this is an 8 hour drive for me.

My question is, was this search illegal? Being he was searching for weapons at first, i believed from reading and some school classes about law that if anything was found while not specifically looking for that ie, drugs where guns were in question that they could be confinscated but not held against you? A fast answer would be best.

thank you,
Brian

 

[Michael Wechsler]

With the way you tell it, it certainly sounds like it could be although you did consent. I'm not sure I understand the reason for his searching you and whether there was probabe cause. Not sure I understand about the whole handcuffing incident and not being arrested. Your defense might be that any 'request' to search you was understood as he was going to search you and that you didn't have a choice in the matter and was merely being cooperative.

I don't know what a judge will think and you may want to discuss with an attorney. If you are going by yourself, you may want to discuss with the ADA first but be firm about your position. You should say there was absolutely no reason to search and the demand, albeit politely, was based upon absolutely no probable cause whatsoever.