Let me just set up some background info here:
My wife is a world history teacher at the local high school. She used to teach government. One day some of the kids were talking to her about how they had no rights while on school property and how they can have their lockers etc searched. She informed them that while that may be the case on school property, if they are just out and about, and an officer stops them and asks to search their vehicle, they have the right to say NO.
So, one of my wife’s students (hispanic) gets pulled over by a police officer (in a 98% white community). During the course of the stop the officer asks him if he can search the car. The kid tells him, "no. you don't have probable cause". The officer responded, "I do now" and proceeded to search his vehicle.
This can't be legal. Denying a voluntary search does not automatically become the basis for probable cause, does it?
Does this kid have any recourse? BTW: The cop did not find anything illegal and wrote him a ticket for whatever moving violation he was pulled over for originally.
My wife is a world history teacher at the local high school. She used to teach government. One day some of the kids were talking to her about how they had no rights while on school property and how they can have their lockers etc searched. She informed them that while that may be the case on school property, if they are just out and about, and an officer stops them and asks to search their vehicle, they have the right to say NO.
So, one of my wife’s students (hispanic) gets pulled over by a police officer (in a 98% white community). During the course of the stop the officer asks him if he can search the car. The kid tells him, "no. you don't have probable cause". The officer responded, "I do now" and proceeded to search his vehicle.
This can't be legal. Denying a voluntary search does not automatically become the basis for probable cause, does it?
Does this kid have any recourse? BTW: The cop did not find anything illegal and wrote him a ticket for whatever moving violation he was pulled over for originally.