https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-a-hvlhsi8
Transcript:
The internet told you never roll your windows down for police or you just have to prick your window a little bit
I am a criminal defense lawyer and I am telling you that advice is exactly how people get their windows broken, their cars searched, and their charges upgraded
Here's the truth many don't want to talk about.
The fight is not how far you roll your window down
You could win that little window argument and still lose your car, your weekend, and your case
If you actually want to keep cops out of your car, you need to stop obsessing over the glass and start mastering what happens after the officer gives you the one phrase, "Step out of the vehicle for me.
" That's the real trigger
That's when the law changes, and that's where you either hand them your car on a silver platter, or you quietly slam the door on their search
Hi, I'm Mark Lopez, a criminal defense lawyer
And in this [clears throat] video, I'm going to show you when to roll your windows down, when to shut up, and the exit and lock protocol that turns your car back into a Fourth Amendment fortress
Let's go to school.
Part one, the window trap
Okay, picture it
It's 11:00 p.m. You get pulled over for a dim tag light
The officer walks up
He can't see inside very well
He taps the glass, roll down all the way for me
Your gut reaction because you watch YouTube is I don't have to
I know my rights.
Look, these internet warriors are about half right
You don't technically have to roll your window down all the way in many jurisdictions
Just enough to communicate and pass documents
But here is the realworld problem with that
If you leave your window up, you are handing the officer the greatest gift you can give them
Officer safety concerns.
They can't see their hands
They can't see the passengers
They feel threatened
And generally officers want the windows down
They want that window down all the way
And if you refuse, you escalate the situation exactly where they want it to go
You are forcing them to play their ace card
Now, I need you to listen very carefully right now.
If a police officer tells you to step out of your vehicle, you do not argue
You do not ask why
You do not say, "I know my rights." You step out
On this point, the law is settled
In 1977, the Supreme Court ruled in Pennsylvania v
Mims that the slight inconvenience of you getting out of your car is outweighed by the officer safety.
They don't need suspicion of a crime being pulled over for a traffic violation is enough
And by the way, the passengers, well, that applies to you, too
You got to get out if asked
Marilyn v
Wilson
Everybody out of the car
If you refuse this order, you are no longer fighting a traffic ticket
you are now possibly committing a new crime.
Obstruction of justice, resisting law enforcement, it can get pretty deep pretty fast
And a ticket can turn into a crime just like that
And even worse than refusing to roll your window down all the way or getting out, well, that's locking your car door and refusing to get out because police will break your window.
They will drag you out through the broken glass and the judge will say they were allowed to do it
And the officer is going to look at the judge, the prosecutor and say, "I didn't try to do damage against him
I didn't do damage against the car to make sure I was safe." And the judge is going to be like this, "Officer safety.
" So, please just understand, don't lock yourself in that car
It's not going to work out the way you think
So, the police orders you out, you lost the window game
You feel defeated
Don't feel defeated
That's exactly where we want that
The moment you step out of the car, the entire legal landscape changes.
This is where you execute the exit and lock strategy
You are going to get out of the vehicle
You're going to close the door and you're going to lock it
You can even lock it before you get out
Open the car
Press the little button to lock it
Get out
Shut the door behind you
This is what I consider legal jiu-jitsu.
Why do you think they wanted you out of the car
They want to stick their head in
They want to smell marijuana
They want to look under the seat
They want to manufacture probable cause to search that vehicle
By locking that door behind you, you have severed your connection to that vehicle
You have reestablished a fourth amendment barrier.
Now, if that officer wants back inside your car, he's going to need one of three things
A warrant, brand new probable cause, such as seeing a gun or drugs to the window, plain view doctrine, or your consent
And guess which one they're going to try to get
Now, you are standing on the roadside
Your car is locked
The officer is frustrated.
He's going to try the pocket check trick
He'll say, "Hey, before I put you in my car, you don't have any weapons or drugs on you, right
You mind if I check your pockets real quick
You mind if I just check the trunk?" Kind of threw that little car part in there
Now, you're going to look them in the eye and say, "I do not consent to searches.
" You're going to say it clearly
You're not going to be rude
Just be a broken record
I don't consent to searches
Now, an officer is going to be able to pat you down for safety, but unless you give him permission to go into your car, he's going to have to figure out a different route to go there, a warrant or probable cause.
And while you're outside that vehicle, keep your mouth quiet
Don't say, "I only had two beers
Hey, that bag in there, that's my cousins." Just just be quiet
Just be quiet
Don't don't talk anymore
Look, it feels unfair
It feels like you're being treated like a criminal when you just had a tail light out or some other minor traffic violation.
But the side of the road is not a law school classroom
It's not a debate stage
The goal isn't to win the argument with the cop
I'm of the opinion you probably can't win a verbal or physical fight with a police officer at the side of the road
The goal is to give your lawyer something to work with in court.
So remember, don't bite the window
Comply with the exit
lock the door and then deny them consent to get back into the vehicle
Now, if you've watched this video this long, you must like me a little bit
I really want you to like this video, subscribe to my channel, and leave a comment
People love putting comments on there.
Remind me of Joe Peshy, remind me of Turtle from Entourage
I hope you guys are talking about the skinnier turtle in the later seasons as opposed to bigger one
Although they're great actor
Um, John Liguam was on there
Some other random people
If you can't think of a comment, leave me a comment who I remind you of
I love reading nice comments.
I try to read the comments multiple times per day
I set my watch like five minutes
Try to respond as many as I can
I love reading nice ones, but you know, I can handle some negative ones
Let me know what you think
If you are facing charges in Indiana, give me and my team a call at 317-6323642
And most importantly, remember to always plead the fifth.