a joint and some cigarettes

[shaunsk8]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? ca

i went to the mall today with some friends and as we got near one of the entrances these 2 cops came towards us. 1 grabs me and says 'you've been out here smoking' and then just gets in my pockets. in 1 of my pockets i had one of those cigarette holders and in it i had 2 cigraettes and a joint too. so cop gves me these 2 tickets for that. and takes my lighter too.

cop tells me after that some lady told them kids were smoking by the entrance (ok, who does tht??). but that wasn't us that were smoking there - we only just got there. and the cop was searching me before asking anything at all to find out if it was us who'd been smoking there.
2 of my friends got tobacco charges too.

so, was that search legal?

and, what is likely to happen from those 2 charges?

 

[CdwJava]

If he had articulable probable cause to believe that you had been smoking an unlawful substance and the substance was still on your person, yes, he can generally conduct the search.

Obviously someone believed you had been smoking marijuana.

Or, if you were under 21 then merely smoking cigarettes would have been unlawful and would have justified a search.

What specific charges were you cited or arrested for? (code sections, please)

 

[shaunsk8]

h&s 11357 b and pc 308 b

isn't cigarettes 18? under 18 anyway - but wasn't us that someone saw smoking

i thought they all meant someone was just smoking tobacco, not pot - but they didn't say one or the other.

no one saw us smoking there (we just got there) but cops didn't bother to ask anything. they came at us cos they saw some kids carrying skateboards and if you carry a skateboard you're a criminal.

i had smoked some a bit earlier but the cops didn't say anything about smelling any pot. he didn' t have time to inhale anyway before he searched me

 

[CdwJava]

h&s 11357 b and pc 308 b

isn't cigarettes 18? under 18 anyway - but wasn't us that someone saw smoking

The officers only have to believe it was you based upon good faith. About the only thing that you might be able to argue is the identification. Without a witness, or with only a very generic description, the detention and search MIGHT be tossed. But, are your parents going to be willing to spend about 10 to 20 times the amount of the fines on an attorney to try and make a suppression argument?

i thought they all meant someone was just smoking tobacco, not pot - but they didn't say one or the other.

It wouldn't matter - both would have been illegal there.

i had smoked some a bit earlier but the cops didn't say anything about smelling any pot. he didn' t have time to inhale anyway before he searched me

People breathe every second. If you had been smoking it, they smelled it. Pot stinks to high heaven and everyone around you can smell it.

So, ask mom and dad real nice for a few thousand dollars for an attorney so you can avoid your $100 fine and community service ... maybe they'll be willing to pony up. I wouldn't, but maybe your parents are more accommodating or have money to burn.

More than likely, you'll end with a plea, taking some tobacco and/or drug classes, and doing community service for a few hours and paying a small fine. Take this as an opportunity to straighten up your life before you turn 18 and things can get worse for you.

 

[shaunsk8]

i'm just asking ?s man. doesn't seem right that a cop can just come and get in your pockets like he did.

i think is was probably a very generic description. we were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

even if i argue they probably just say i smelled like pot even if they didn't know until they already had a hand in my pocket. we had sprayed stuff after smoking too. and i don't need to straighten nothin.

is $100 fine and com service the max for all of it?

 

[CdwJava]

i'm just asking ?s man. doesn't seem right that a cop can just come and get in your pockets like he did.

If he had probable cause, then he can.

even if i argue they probably just say i smelled like pot even if they didn't know until they already had a hand in my pocket. we had sprayed stuff after smoking too.

If you smell like pot and/or cigarettes, and a complaining party says she saw some kids smoking either one outside - and you fit the bill - then they might very well be able to articulate the P.C. necessary to dive right on in.

And you "sprayed stuff." Really? So, you smelled like marijuana-tainted Febreze? There's nothing you can smell that will entirely get rid of the odor.

and i don't need to straighten nothin.

Sure you do. You're underage, you are smoking cigarettes and dope, your English and writing skills are atrocious, and you are likely headed on a fast track to nowhere if you don't get a grip and straighten out. Hanging out at the mall and getting high is not a career path to a successful future.

is $100 fine and com service the max for all of it?

The marijuana holds a $100 fine, but with other assessments and all added in, it might run you close to $300.

The cigarette violation will result in $75 or 30 hours of community service.

Either violation can result in counseling and, possibly, informal probation.

 

[shaunsk8]

luckily i got $375 in my pocket from my drug dealing business.

but seriously, thanks for the answers. though, what they gonna counsel me bout?

and when would i sort out a plea?

i still doubt we 'fit the bill', not unless the whole group of us just happened to have lookalikes who happened to be at the mall at the same time, smoking. we were just the 1st group of kids they saw.

nah man, we didn't smell like marijuana-tainted Febreze. we had axe all over, that takes out all 5 of your senses. cops probably couldn't smell nothin.

thanks for your asessment of my life even tho you never met me, yeah, i just hang out at the mall and get high aaaalllllllllllll the time. nah, i never have liked english class, i'm more into visuals and numbers, don't hate on me for it.

 

[LeeHarveyBlotto]

we were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

This is the second most popular way one gets into problems with the police, second only to talking themselves into trouble.

Easiest way to avoid both is to obey the laws.

 

[davew128]

they saw some kids carrying skateboards and if you carry a skateboard you're a criminal.

About the only thing we agree on.

 

[shaunsk8]

This is the second most popular way one gets into problems with the police, second only to talking themselves into trouble.

Easiest way to avoid both is to obey the laws.

how were we not obeying the law when these cops stormed us?

About the only thing we agree on.

yeah. why? how's a skateboard make someone a criminal?

 

[CdwJava]

how were we not obeying the law when these cops stormed us?

Besides being in possession of cigarettes and marijuana??

 

[LdiJ]

Besides being in possession of cigarettes and marijuana??

You know, I do 100% understand where you are coming from but I do have a bit of a problem with this thread in general.

Our constitution does protect us from unreasonable searches and seizures and many people fit the general description of suspected criminals. I don't think its unreasonable to expect the police to ask a few questions before they start digging into people's pockets to see what they have in them. This wasn't a situation where anyone had any reason to be afraid of imminent danger.

I have about 1/2 dozen good friends who are either state cops or local cops (mostly state) and I do understand the jobs that they have to do, but I am 54 years old and my first observance of bad cops was when I was 17, (I watched about 6 cops beat the living daylights out of someone who was ALREADY down on the ground, outside of a concert...the kid was crying and curled up into a ball and begging them to stop) and I have personally observed at least one instance a decade since then of what I would define as "bad cops".

Its a sincere paradox Cdw...Those of us who are law abiding citizens want to truly believe in our law enforcement personnel, but when we personally observe what seems to us to be clear injustice, its really hard to keep believing.

 

[shaunsk8]

Besides being in possession of cigarettes and marijuana??

cops didn't KNOW this until they got in my pocket.

we were NOT the ones smoking, we had just walked up. cops didn't bother to ask a single question.

my crimes were my age and carrying a skateboard. you don't think skateboarders get tired of being targeted - why be targeted? there's that story in ca this week about the high school football player who died from heroin od - maybe some cop shoulda gotten in his pocket some time...

now I gotta go to court and pay fines b/c i can't afford to pay an attorney to ask questions about an illegal search?

this is bs.

thanks ldij. yeah - no imminet danger - WHY were they even in my pockets?

 

[shaunsk8]

and i don't get any public defender over something little like this do i?

 

[CdwJava]

cops didn't KNOW this until they got in my pocket.

You asked what crimes you were committing ,,, you were committing those crimes. You just had not been caught until they contacted you.

now I gotta go to court and pay fines b/c i can't afford to pay an attorney to ask questions about an illegal search?

this is bs.

So is breaking the law by holding dope and cigarettes.

thanks ldij. yeah - no imminet danger - WHY were they even in my pockets?

Apparently because they believed you had been smoking at least cigarettes, and as such, they had probable cause to search for the contraband and even arrest you for the offense.