arrested for failure to signal

[vaniv]

What is the name of your state? Texas

My husband was just arrested at around 1:30 p.m. for failure to signal. He didn't use his turn signal 100 ft. before the turn. He wasn't drinking or under the influence of drugs and he doesn't have a bad driving record (last ticket was over 18 months ago for speeding), and he didn't injure anyone. Has anyone ever heard of this before? I tried to talk to the arresting officer but he wouldn't come to the phone or return my call. I feel this is utterly ridiculous and possibly mailicious. I don't know all the details but I do know that this is the only charge against him. Oh yeah, the officer also had our vehicle towed even though we live only 3 mins away. Any insight? Please!!!

 

[lwpat]

Sounds like you need to find out the details. There is more to the story.

 

[vaniv]

got the details

My husband was pulling up to a stop light in the turn lane with 2 cars between him and the cop and he saw the police officer pull around the other vehicles to get to him. He didn't have on his signal light and put it on AT THE LIGHT. As soon as he made the turn the cop put on his lights and pulled him over. Hubby asked why he was being pulled over and the cop said NO SIGNAL LIGHT, hubby says WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? Cop then calls for back up and they take him out of the car put hands up on the car and then behind his back and then handcuff and put him in the back of the car. No one at the police station could believe it and the other officers were even laughing!! Had to pay $200 to get him out and $126.65 to get the car! What the HELL!!!! I am so angry right now!! Any input?

 

[garrula lingua]

There has to be more to the story.

you said: ... they take him out of the car ...

If he was resisting/obstructing the cop, he may have been arrested on an added misdemeanor charge. ... If he had any contraband in the vehicle (or a gun), then that would be a separate charge....???? did he drop a zip-lock baggie of an off-white crystalline substance resembling methamphetamine when he exited the car ???!?

Did he have ID on him ? Was his license/driving privilege suspended ?

Does the cop's family own the towing company ?


Wow, those cops have a lot of time on their hands...

 

[vaniv]

reply

No, he did not resist, the only comment he made before he was arrested was "What are you talking about". We don't own guns and there were no knives or anything that could be considered a weapon. We don't use drugs, and there was nothing that could be thought to be a drug. He did have Drivers License on him and it is valid and he doesn't have any outstanding warrants or tickets. The cop or family does not own the towing co. (I thought of that too).

Right now I am writitng a letter to the chief of Police. Any ideas on what should be my next step?

 

[garrula lingua]

That's really too bizarrre !
In some circumstances, they can arrest for an infraction (per the SC), but no one does, unless someone is harassing. (Did he refuse to sign the citation ?)

Tell him that when he appears in court, he has to ask for one day's credit for jail time as the cop arrested him for no turn signal. He should get a reduction of the fine (if he's found guilty) for the arrest time.

Judges love to hear weird stories such as this, and it does affect their perception of that cop when the he appears in court. The cop will definitely earn a (lousy) reputation.

I would follow up with the Chief of Police; if I was really ticked & didn't worry about future harassment, I'd go to my City Council-person about this (they hire the Chief), and I'd call the local newspaper & see if they were interested in an article/short piece about this.

& If I was really ticked, I'd file a small claims action agin the officer (damages being the towing expenses & any other $ (?lost wages caused; gas to tow yard, whatever)), just to get the public eye on the officer's actions.

Did they actually book your H for this ????

Too bizarre. Hopefully, Carl will respond to this post & offer a sensible explanation.
I'm stumped.

 

[garrula lingua]

That's really too bizarrre !
In some circumstances, they can arrest for an infraction (per the SC), but no one does, unless someone is harassing. (Did he refuse to sign the citation ?)

Tell him that when he appears in court, he has to ask for one day's credit for jail time as the cop arrested him for no turn signal. He should get a reduction of the fine (if he's found guilty) for the arrest time.

Judges love to hear weird stories such as this, and it does affect their perception of that cop when the he appears in court. The cop will definitely earn a (lousy) reputation.

I would follow up with the Chief of Police; if I was really ticked & didn't worry about future harassment, I'd go to my City Council-person about this (they hire the Chief), and I'd call the local newspaper & see if they were interested in an article/short piece about this.

& If I was really ticked, I'd file a small claims action agin the officer (damages being the towing expenses & any other $ (?lost wages caused; gas to tow yard, whatever)), just to get the public eye on the officer's actions.

Did they actually book your H for this ????

Too bizarre. Hopefully, Carl will respond to this post & offer a sensible explanation.
I'm stumped.

 

[vaniv]

My husband did not refuse any citation. Like I said, he made one comment and then was arrested. He wasn't told what he was under arrest for until he was handcuffed. He was actually booked and IN JAIL for 7 hours. We are absolutely dumbfounded. I've been searching the internet for something anything similar to this and can't find anything.

Hubby also says that he saw the cop pulling around the other cars before he took off and the road he was on TURNS INTO a turning lane. So it's not like he was just in a lane and decided to turn. He turned on his signal light AT THE LIGHT WHILE IT WAS RED and he pulled over less than 100 feet past the light. I don't get it. It feels as if the officer has a personal beef w/hubby, except that hubby has never seen the officer before. WE ARE PISSED!

 

[garrula lingua]

You can ask on the forum:
officer.com
what other cops think about this.
Maybe they can offer advice about why it happened & how to follow up.


Was he photographed and fingerprinted for this ?!?

 

[vaniv]

photographed fingerprinted?

YEs sir he sure was!

 

[ceara19]

My husband was pulling up to a stop light in the turn lane with 2 cars between him and the cop and he saw the police officer pull around the other vehicles to get to him. He didn't have on his signal light and put it on AT THE LIGHT. As soon as he made the turn the cop put on his lights and pulled him over. Hubby asked why he was being pulled over and the cop said NO SIGNAL LIGHT, hubby says WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? Cop then calls for back up and they take him out of the car put hands up on the car and then behind his back and then handcuff and put him in the back of the car. No one at the police station could believe it and the other officers were even laughing!! Had to pay $200 to get him out and $126.65 to get the car! What the HELL!!!! I am so angry right now!! Any input?

Have you read the actual police report? Being arrested ONLY for failure to signal, just doesn't sound right. I'm not saying that your husband is lying to you, the arresting officer could have exaggerated the events and claim that he was arrested for resisting, suspected dui or some other crime.

Is there a court date? If so, what are the charges? If he was only arrested for the ticket, paying the fine should be the end of it.

 

[comet3]

YEs sir he sure was!

Not saying that your husband is lying, but I still think there's more to the story. Also your husband, along with you, can request to see the video. And if they say they erased it, they're lying to you. My husband's a deputy and he does have that right. But he would be unable to arrest him without some form of probable cause such as resisting or not following the direct order of an officer, but that should be on his report as well. Ask for a copy of the report which you are also entitled to. If he's telling the truth, that there's ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY NO REASON for him to get arrested, then it will all pan out when he goes to court.

 

[tranquility]

As the supreme court said in another Texas case regarding the sole charge of a seatbelt violation, no problem here people--just move along. The fourth amendment allows arrests when there is probable cause for *anything*. There is no federal civil rights violation even if TX does not allow a person to be taken into custody for the violation.

From a state point of view, things may be different if the law provides that a person cannot be arrested for the actions your husband took. The problem is that many of the laws which provide that a person (who has proper ID) cannot be taken into custody for minor crimes don't have a penalty for their violation. This means that people have a right without a remedy. If you were to sue, what is your cause of action?

If everything you've said is true, you could go with a false arrest kind of thing, but that doesn't seem quite right. In any event, unless you really want to go there, I'd take some of the others' advice and go through the complaint process through the department.

 

[vaniv]

sounds crazy

I KNOW that it sounds crazy and believe me we don't even believe it's happened. The ONLY charge is Failure to signal. I have not seen the actual report or the video (there IS one) but I did see the release papers. Hubby had to BOND out because he is going to fight this ridiculous charge. He DID use his signal, just not 100 ft. before the light. He was in a turn lane. Hubby says he wasn't belligerant just wanted to know what the cop was talking about because he DID have his signal light on. Hubby thinks it was either "car profiling" or envy. (He drives a 2001 Tahoe w/24" inch chrome rims). Hubby and officer are both hispanic, so don't know about racial profiling.

We are all still trying to get our heads around what has happened. I am calling the paper today and have already emailed the chief of police.

 

[ceara19]

I KNOW that it sounds crazy and believe me we don't even believe it's happened. The ONLY charge is Failure to signal. I have not seen the actual report or the video (there IS one) but I did see the release papers. Hubby had to BOND out because he is going to fight this ridiculous charge. He DID use his signal, just not 100 ft. before the light. He was in a turn lane. Hubby says he wasn't belligerant just wanted to know what the cop was talking about because he DID have his signal light on. Hubby thinks it was either "car profiling" or envy. (He drives a 2001 Tahoe w/24" inch chrome rims). Hubby and officer are both hispanic, so don't know about racial profiling.

We are all still trying to get our heads around what has happened. I am calling the paper today and have already emailed the chief of police.

If I were you, I would hold off on taking any further action, either through the department or the media, until you actually read the reports. If there is something that you are not yet aware of, making too much noise over the incident could actually work against your husband.