When is it harassment?

[lrohner]

I live in a medium-sized town in Connecticut with a low crime rate. I have three children (18 and over), and none of us have been in trouble with the law nor do we have criminal records. I've lived in this town for five years, and I've always had the sneaking suspicion that our police were a bit overzealous.

Last week, my son's best friend was in his driveway putting a new stereo in his car. It was around 4:00pm. A police officer pulled up and started questioning him out of the blue. On Sunday afternoon around 2:00pm, my son went out to his car to get something out of it, and a cop pulled up with the lights going and started questioning him. (Mind you, we live on Main Street in town and my son's car was parked in front of the house on the street...lots of traffic going by.)

Yesterday morning at around 6:00am, my dogs started barking. I got out of bed and went to the front of the house and there was a police car with the lights flashing blocking my driveway and a police officer was way down in my driveway with a flashlight looking into my car. By the time I got dressed and started out there, the police officer was gone.

At around 6:15am (it was still dark), my son was leaving for school. A friend of ours (who is a grandmother for Pete's sake) was taking her morning walk and stopped to talk to Jonathan. Within minutes, the police drove came up, drove by very slowly and shone a bright light on the two.

Now all day yesterday, I had neighbors stopping by and calling. Turns out that the police were also at my house at 4:00am with flashlights looking in my son's car, a Bronco which was parked out in the street. So in a nutshell, the police were at my house four times in four days with lights going, and my neighbors saw every bit of it. And we didn't do anything except obey the law and live our lives.

I'm pretty paranoid right now and completely embarassed and humiliated. This kind of stuff just does not happen in my neighborhood.

I called the precinct and spoke with the Desk Sergeant. Turns out that there have been a rash of car break-ins, hence the police questioning the boys. But even he was stunned to learn that this was happening in broad daylight. I told him that although my 18 year old son hasn't always made the best decisions, IF he was stupid enough to break into a car, he certainly wouldn't be idiot enough to do it on a Sunday afternoon in broad daylight on Main Street with a car parked in front of a house where people were obviously home.

When I asked why they were at my house yesterday, he told me that a Bronco had been involved in a hit-and-run during the night. So I completely understand why there would be police looking at and through his car at 4:00am. But even he couldn't explain why the police were on my property at 6:00am looking through my car, a Silver Ford Focus station wagon that can hardly be confused for a dark Bronco.

I guess I just want to know what my rights are going forward, because when I tell you I'm humiliated -- I am totally humiliated. I've even gotten phone calls from people who were driving by and saw the police questioning my son and looking through my car. Did the police follow the proper procedure for these things? What is the proper procedure? Were they allowed on my property to look through my car? What are my rights?

Thank you.

[lwpat]

I live in a medium-sized town in Connecticut with a low crime rate.

Move to a town with a high crime rate and you probably won't have a problem. They will be busy with real crimes.

[quincy]

As strange as it may seem, the police did nothing wrong. The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches, but the police seem to have had reason to search the cars. They believed that a criminal offense had been committed - a rash of car break-ins and a hit-and-run involving a Bronco.

Police can approach any individual on the street or in any public place, as well, and ask questions. The individual approached can choose to answer the questions, or the individual can choose to walk away. The police may have indications that your son and his friend are the same age as the suspects in these break-ins, and wanted to question them to see if they had heard anything from mutual friends about the crimes - as a way to lead the police to the culprits.

The police are allowed to search "plain view" objects (such as cars and what is viewable in them) and they are allowed to stop and search vehicles randomly for "plain view" items without a warrant. The police are allowed to search "open field" areas (areas immediately surrounding a home are protected from search, but the distance from the home can make a difference).

I have a feeling your son and his friend, and their cars, fit descriptions given the police by possible witnesses. I would contact the police again, and see if they can give you more information about the car break-ins. You can also contact your local newspaper to do a story on these break-ins - oftentimes a newspaper will print information about a crime that the police may be reluctant to give out freely. A reporter will have access to the police reports filed.

[lrohner]

Quincy,

Thank you very much for your response. Yes...I completely understand why they would search my son's Bronco about the hit and run. I would expect them to. As for the police questioning the boys about the car break-ins, I understand they had a right to do that as well. (I just think it's ridiculous what they're doing, and I'm sure my son and his friend are among many, many others that have been stopped and will continue to be stopped.)

What I still do not understand is what gave them the right to come onto my property, in my driveway, in a car registered in my name (and the car is only about 3 ft from the house -- I just measured), with their lights flashing, when my car, my home and I were not under suspicion of anything and search through it with a flashlight? I just don't get it.

[CdwJava]

The driveway and the walk to your home are generally publicly accessible areas. You can prevent the police from walking into the driveway by placing a fence around the front yard or pulling the car into the garage.

If the next door neighbor can freely walk up and glance in the car, then the police can, too.

-Carl

[Ozark_Sophist]

Is it possible the officer involved is the one engaging in the theft from vehicles?

Known to happen.

[CdwJava]

Then it would have to be a conspiracy as I doubt the officer works at 4 AM and in the afternoon.

I suspect that the boy's name or description came up while they were looking into the thefts and they are looking into it ... I live and work in a small town, and we, too, have our cache of "usual suspects" where we might nose around a little. Sometimes it's designed to push a potential suspect, conspirator or witness to come forward with what they know. There could be a number of reasons why the police are nosing around ... and it could be that junior is not an innocent victim in all this or that his pals are involved or could be involved.

Ya just never know.

- Carl

[lrohner]

The police were nosing around at 4:00am because of a hit and run involving a Bronco -- not the car thefts. The night the hit-and-run happened, "Junior" had dinner at home with me and his girlfriend after attending her soccer game in the afternoon. He was then in for the night as his girlfriend drove herself home -- in her car. "Junior" didn't leave the house until 6:00am, which is when he discovered the policewoman in my driveway nosing around my car. And trust me -- I'm not out breaking into automobiles, so I still have no explanation for why they were nosing about in my property. I fully understand why they were looking at his.

"Junior" just turned 18 last week and is my youngest, so I am well aware that teenagers don't always make the right choices. "Junior" is a conscientious student, is captain of the varsity soccer team, also participates in varsity basketball and track (which means he has very little free time), makes his own spending money by working a part-time job, does volunteer work and has never been in trouble with the law. That said, I'm not completely trusting. I do monitor his bank account and purchases, I admit to snooping his room and his car (and his sisters when they were his age), and monitor where he is and who he is with. Quite frankly, when he's not working, volunteering or playing ball, he's usually at my house or his girlfriend's house -- and I've known her parents for almost 30 years. Very nice family. He has a very, very small circle of friends that he associates with (and I very literally mean 2 or 3 boys) and doesn't attend all of the teen parties and things as he refuses to be around alcohol -- and most of the kids his age are out drinking in their spare time.

As I stated, knowing this PD, they are most likely out harassing ANY teenage boy, no matter the description. I don't believe for one minute it was limited to "Junior" or his friend. When my middle daughter was his age, she was pulled over by the police three times in one week (really freaked her out) for no reason. She was given no citations, warnings, nor any explanations. And it never happened after that. Actually, when it happened to her, I thought it was just because some male police officer wanted to talk to her -- she's a stunning blonde haired, blue eyed girl.

[CdwJava]

Then it sounds like the police are not leaving anyone out as a potential suspect because of their status at school or elsewhere. It would appear that the police are doing what the police are supposed to do - investigate crime.

Hopefully they catch the thieves or at least prevent some of the future crimes.

- Carl