Niece pulled over in MD

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Aus

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My 17 year old neice was pulled over in Maryland for smoking a cigarette. She and her friends were told to exit the vehicle and they and it were searched. All the Cops found was a pack of smokes. She avoided a ticket by enrolling in the State run anti-smoking course (she was not 18). Question is, since when do the Police in the Peoples Republic of Maryland have the authority to search a car and its occupants over a cigarette?
 
Wisconsin is like this to, I had a similar experience when I was 17. Remember all a cop needs is probable cause to search a vehicle. Someone under the age of 18 was smoking, the cop had probable cause to think there may be more than one pack of cigarettes in the car. At least that is how they think around my parts. I'd be more interested in hearing why she got pulled over in the first place. In my hometown unless the driver is commiting a traffic violation the police can not pull you over for smoking. As a little "screw-you" I use to light up whenever I was next to a police car at a red light, because I knew he couldn't pull me over if I didn't break any traffic laws. My guess is she was probably breaking a traffic law and got caught for the cigarettes because of it.
 
I think the whole war on drugs and our rights thing is rediculous.

I remember when I was in high school IIRC you only had to be 16 or so to buy and smoke.

The changed the laws my junior year if I remember right. I never smoked so I was affected, but I think if someone's kid is smoking that is a matter for the family to deal with. It should not be an excuse for the government to shake a kid or his parents for money.
 
This happened in Baltimore County and the ticket would have been for tobacco posession. It is a civil citation and a copy of it is forwarded to the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services. I am under the impression at this point that the stop was simply for smoking.
 
Consent?

All too often people explicitly or implicitly consent to a search of the vehicle. Unless you loudly, repeatedly, and strenuously object to a search, they may search regardless of explicit or implicit consent.
 
Reasonable Suspicion

Under Terry v. Ohio, a law enforcment officer may stop and detain a motorist if the officer has a reasonable suspicion that the driver is commiting a violation of the law. This was the first case to begin what has now become a landslide of erosion of our Constitutional Rights.
 
Remember all a cop needs is probable cause to search a vehicle.
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That's a big 10-negative, good buddy. :)

A search can be made incident to arrest, and can include ONLY the "lunge" area (where the driver can reach), and can not include locked containers, a locked glove compartment, or the trunk without a warrant or without the owner's permission.

I agree with one of the other posters when they said that the officer had no way of knowing if the smoker was 18 or not. If that is all the officer can articulate, there is something VERY wrong here.

I would get from your daughter the following information:

1. The name of the officer conducting the stop; if not available,
2. The time the stop was conducted,
3. The location of the stop, and
4. The police department conducting the stop.

I would then call the department's commander of patrol or the chief, and ask to have made very clear EXACTLY what articulable offense the officer witnessed to make the traffic stop. Do not accept any run-arounds, hemming and hawing, or vague answers.

It sounds to me like the officer was engaging in some questionable activity, and has no business in a patrol car. Period.
 
Is there an actual law stating that you cannot smoke at age 17?

In PA there is a law stating that you cannot BUY smokes below 18 but no law about consuming them. I used to smoke when I was young at diners with cops around us all the time, they never said a thing. This was just 10 years ago.

Sounds like your neice was not aware of her rights, you should do your best to educate her.

Did the officer ASK to search? You know, "do you mind if I look in your car" thing they always pull. I have been asked this by cops before and just say, "No. If you want to search me you can go before a judge and get a warrant." I say it firmly and politely and they have so far always backed down. Once they threatened to call in their "K9 team" and I just said, "Sir, is it your intention to violate my rights as protected in the Constitution, specifically the 4th amendment?" and they didn't take it any further.

Often cops view younger people as pushovers and easy targets so they feel they can do whatever they want. I would get the full story, a copy of the police report and consult a lawyer.
 
This happened in Baltimore County and the ticket would have been for tobacco posession. It is a civil citation and a copy of it is forwarded to the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services. I am under the impression at this point that the stop was simply for smoking.
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If that was the reason for the stop (suspicion of underage tobacco possession) that's very interesting. I wouldn't have guessed that would be a primary offense worthy of initiating a stop.

Of course, the officer might well have stopped her for some other minor infraction and simply threatened to cite her for something else.

I'd be interested in more info as you get it.
 
I'm not sure if that's Maryland Law, or Baltimore County. Many of the counties surrounding the City of Baltimore are becoming infected by the "Nanny-State of Baltimore".

I lived in Maryland until last June, when I retired, and can tell you that this type of incident is unusual. Most cops have enough to do without crap like that. You need to find out who the officer represented, it should be on the ticket, and what his name was. Then, follow the advice given above. As it wasn't a traffic-related stop, and the offense was a civil misdemeanor, he was obviously looking for something.

If the police say that they'd like to look in your car, politely tell him that he's already done as much as the law allows. Anything else requires a warrant.At the same time, ask for his sergeant to respond to the scene. After that, tell him, politely, that you are going to wait for the sergeant before discussing anything with him, and ask if you can leave now.
 
This could not have happened, we are not in a police state yet. Thats what people keep telling me.
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Of course wer'e not living in a police state. We're only 80 to 90% of the way there.:barf: :barf: :barf:

As G. Gordon Liddy said, "When I was a kid, this was a free country."
 
During prohibition, people couldn't afford cigarettes so they smoked cornsilk. What happens when the kids rediscover cornsilk? Will we be forced to buy only shucked corn? Will we have to be over 18 to buy unshucked corn; or grow corn in our yard?

The war on drugs is not a war. It is a pursuit; and what they are in pursuit of is power and control.
 
Did she Litter

Did she get pulled over for throwing the Cig out the window or was she leaving a High School parking lot?

There has to be more to this story...
 
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