Passenger Rights In A Traffic Stop? A Former Prosecutor Explains Your Rights And What To Do! (2023)

Описание: Passenger Rights In A Traffic Stop? A Former Prosecutor Explains Your Rights And What To Do!

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Can you get in trouble as a passenger in a car? Is there such a thing as passenger rights? What if someone else in the car was doing something illegal but you were not driving? What if you are a passenger in a car and the driver has illegal drugs in the car and you know nothing about it? What can you do? What legal rights do you have?

Unfortunately, this situation arises frequently when someone is a passenger in a car and the driver has drugs in the car that the passenger knew nothing about. A police officer pulls over the car and performs a search of the vehicle and locates drugs. Because the drugs were found in the car, the police officer arrests everyone in the car, regardless of whether they "possessed" the items or not.

Many parents ask me if their son or daughter is arrested in a situation like this, how is it fair? Well, just because you are arrested does not mean you can be convicted!

What if the police officer did not have a legal right to make a traffic stop on the vehicle? What if there was an illegal traffic stop? How does that affect the passenger if they are arrested? Do they still have passenger rights in this scenario? In other words, if the case can be thrown out for the driver of the car, can it also be thrown out for the passengers in the car?

Not always! Under Federal and Texas law, there is a concept known as standing. In order to contest illegal activity by law enforcement, you must have legal standing to bring an action for their behavior. Many U.S. Supreme Court cases have established that a passenger in a car does not have legal standing to contest whether the driver of the car was illegal pulled over by the officer. In other words, unless you are the driver of the car, you can not claim that you have protection under the law from an illegal traffic stop. As a result, we have seen instances where a driver's gun or drug charge is dropped during a motion to suppress hearing but the passenger's case remains actively prosecuted.

Don't forget - the State of Texas must still prove the element of "possession." Under Texas law, possession is defined as intentionally or knowingly exercising care, custody or control over the illegal item. For example, what if you are pulled over in a traffic stop and you are the passenger in the car and the police perform a search, finding illegal drugs and a gun in the center console. Even though you may not have legal standing to contest the traffic stop, the State must still prove the legal element of possession. In other words, the police and prosecutor must still affirmatively link the drugs to the individual they are attempting to convict of the crime. This makes it extremely important to remember that you should not talk to the police during this investigation. Police are trained to ask you questions and use that information to affirmatively link you to the knowledge of the illegal items. Remember, the State does not have to prove ownership, only that you had knowledge of it and acted intentionally or knowingly. Mere presence at the scene of a crime is not sufficient to prove criminal intent of the crime.

Why is this important? If your criminal case is a felony, your criminal attorney can present this information to a grand jury to potentially no bill the case or lower the charge to a misdemeanor crime. If your charge is a misdemeanor, your criminal lawyer can contact the prosecutor and begin negotiating on your behalf!

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00:00 Can You Get in Trouble As A Passenger In Someone Else's Car?
01:08 Can You Get Arrested While In A Car As A Passenger And Someone Else Possesses illegal Drugs?
01:22 What If There are Illegal Items In The Car Linked To The Passenger And The Police Stop The Car Illegally?
02:00 What’s "Standing"?
04:10 Can Mere Presence At The Scene Of Crime Get You In Any Trouble?