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Running license plates without just cause and illegal stop

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dubyacheney04

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Massachusetts

I was recently pulled over by a local police officer in what I feel was an unjustified stop. The officer saw my vehicle sitting outside of a bar, no problems with the vehicle, completely off and no occupants in it, legally parked etc. He proceeded to run the plates while it sat in the parking lot. Upon running my plates he found that I was under 21 years of age, and proceeded to wait shortly down the road until I left the bar. I had but 3 drinks in 4 hours, and knew full well I was under the legal limit of .02 and could easily pass a sobriety field test. Upon leaving the bar the officer pulled out and followed me for roughly a mile before turning his lights on and pulling me over. When pulled over the officer mentioned nothing of any traffic violations or car problems, simply asked me why I was in a bar after receiving my license and registration. He proceeded to give me a field sobriety test which I passed, and coaxed me until I admitted to having consumed alcohol at the bar. The officer demanded the names of the friends I was with who were of age, along with the name of the bartender, and went as far as claiming there were survailance cameras in the bar that he could check, which was a lie as I later found out. He threatened possible further action against the bar and my friends of age. At the very end, he claimed that he pulled me over because my tailpipe was hanging down and thought it might at some point fall off, what a load of BS. AT any rate, I would like to know if he had the legal right to run my plates while my car sat unattended and following all laws, and secondly if he had the legal right to simply pull me over because he suspected I was drinking that night, even though I as a driver did nothing wrong and my car was fully legal. Is there any action I can seek against this officer if he did indeed break the law in his actions? Thank you for your time and help.
 


Curt581

Senior Member
dubyacheney04 said:
I would like to know if he had the legal right to run my plates while my car sat unattended and following all laws
Yes, he did. The police can do a computer check of any license plate anytime they like.
and secondly if he had the legal right to simply pull me over because he suspected I was drinking that night, even though I as a driver did nothing wrong and my car was fully legal.
He did have a reason for pulling you over. Your agreement with his reason is not required.
Is there any action I can seek against this officer if he did indeed break the law in his actions?
Sure. You could try to sue him... but your chances of winning are about the same as winning the lottery jackpot. Twice. In the same week.

When you lose, he can then counter-sue you for filing a frivilous lawsuit and defamation.

You could file a complaint with his agency... but they'll politely take your complaint, and have him write a report. In the end, they'll probably compliment him for doing proactive police work.

Don't forget... you WERE in a bar drinking while underage... in other words, you were breaking the Law.

Personally, I'd like to know why he didn't cite you for underage consumption.
 

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