I was handcuffed on my porch due to officer mistake.

CaptUSA said:
Seriously. If this type of action is allowed to stand unopposed, then what's to stop them from saying that anytime they want to search any premise!!! And if you oppose, it gives them the right to use force?? I can't believe someone actually tried to defend this in here.
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but if i've got nothing to hide, then what am I afraid of? /sarcasm
 
Andyc3020 said:
The problem I have is that he put me in handcuffs, searched me and was about to go into my home without a warrant, or consent. I was not being aggressive or violent. I may not have been friendly, but there is really no nice way to say "you are not allowed in my house". There was no evidence that any crime had been committed. The only thing that gave him any suspicion was that someone had apparently called 911 from inside my house. He never even asked me if I called 911 myself.

I understand there are situations where police have the authority (whether I like it or not) to enter a house to keep people safe or to prevent the destruction of evidence. In these cases, they should be 100% certain they are at the correct location.


It turned out that my neighbor had someone back into her fence and she called and hung up.
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Happens routinely. File the complaint. A "bow-tied-pig" will talk to you face to face. He'll say in carefully crafted language that his officer acted out of line as per what he expects, that he understands your concerns, but that one must look at it from their perspective. He'll cite vague references of officers being killed in the line of duty and that every call may be their last. He will hope you accept this guilt tripping, Orwellian double speaking implications that ultimately the blame lies on both parties and let it go. He'll be friendly though assertive, especially if you question the officer's professionalism. Mark my words, he will never overtly admit the officer was at fault. PBA lawyers have trained them well. He'll (or she'll, I know I keep saying "he'll" but the gender is irrelevant) say it won't happen again, that he understands why you acted the way you did, and that you must also understand why they acted the way they did. Again, the ball is in your court. Be aware of devices that will record what you say and carefully choose your words. I'd recommend hiring a lawyer but have had negative results with regards to blatant human rights violations. Harassment is a possibility. I would file a complaint and contact local reporters. Explain your situation and the officer's reaction. Perhaps show them an angle on substantive reporting. (the militarization of the police forces, for example) I find the competency of many to be overvalued.

In short, I'm not trying to influence you one way or another, I'm just adding a perspective from someone who knows. Looking through the pages here daily and you can understand my basic lack of optimism for justice. That is not to mention worse has happened to me numerous (IOW, countless) times and the pigs, in some cases, have been promoted. One chief of police, another to sergeant... those are just the two I've heard. By and large these complaints, which are common, go no where, it's sad to say. I hope your settlement makes them scrap their police cars.
 
Did the cop actually search your house without a warrant? Or did he just detain you on your porch and then release you? If it's the former you have a case, if not you probably don't. If they searched your house, gather evidence. Take pictures, write everything down, etc. Contact the ACLU, local media, hyperlocal media, city media, etc. Make it a big deal.
 
Hindsight is 20/20 but you shouldn't answer the door for cops. If you don't have a peephole + another method of seeing who is at the door, get that taken care of. Do not open the door for the police. Worse things could have happen from that visit.

*edit nevermind. You were on your front porch. Should have went inside when you saw them approaching.
 
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brandon said:
Did the cop actually search your house without a warrant? Or did he just detain you on your porch and then release you? If it's the former you have a case, if not you probably don't. If they searched your house, gather evidence. Take pictures, write everything down, etc. Contact the ACLU, local media, hyperlocal media, city media, etc. Make it a big deal.
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They realized their mistake after they put me in handcuffs, but they didn't go inside my home yet. If I didn't tell them the address, they would have gone inside. They already asked me if my dog (that was inside) was gong to bite them.
 
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fr33 said:
Hindsight is 20/20 but you shouldn't answer the door for cops. If you don't have a peephole + another method of seeing who is at the door, get that taken care of. Do not open the door for the police. Worse things could have happen from that visit.

*edit nevermind. You were on your front porch. Should have went inside when you saw them approaching.
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Probable cause.
 
fr33 said:
Hindsight is 20/20 but you shouldn't answer the door for cops. If you don't have a peephole + another method of seeing who is at the door, get that taken care of. Do not open the door for the police. Worse things could have happen from that visit.

*edit nevermind. You were on your front porch. Should have went inside when you saw them approaching.
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no, i was on my couch inside. When i saw that it was police, I figured it was in response to a complaint against my crazy neighbor, or possibly about the camper that is parked in my front yard being a violation of city ordinance. I wasn't really concerned, but they can knock all they want next time. I'm not answering the door.
 
Andyc3020 said:
They realized their mistake after they put me in handcuffs, but they didn't go inside my home yet. If I didn't tell them the address, they would have gone inside. They already asked me if my dog (that was inside) was gong to bite them.
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Ahh in that case their probably isn't anything you can do as far as lawsuits go. The police will just say you were unruly and they detained you for officer safety, which is probably standard protocol. Sucks, I know.

However, you can still contact local media and try to get the story out. Contact local newspapers, affiliates, etc. If you have a Patch in your area, contact the editor.
 
They'll probably just make a new law requiring you to have your house number posted in 9 different places... you know,because we need more laws... I'll contact a lawyer and see what they have to say. I'm sure nothing will come of it. I just wanted some opinions from liberty minded folks like you all.

Thanks!
 
Andyc3020 said:
I was just handcuffed on my front porch by my local PD because they came to the wrong house.

I was sitting on my couch reading.(George Orwell's 1984 . of all things)The officer came to the door and told me he was going to come inside and look around because they got a 911 hang up call from inside my house. I told them they were not going to come into my house. I said "I do not have a house phone, so that is impossible; I am here alone." The office told me he was in fact going to come inside my house to which I told him he wasn't entering my home without a search warrant. He then put me in handcuffs and said he did not need a search warrant. I said I was going to relax and there was no reason to put me in handcuffs. He said that he believed he did need to put me in handcuffs. He said I was not under arrest, but was being detained while he searched my pockets. He said he was going inside and if anyone was in the house, I was going to jail for obstruction. I asked him if he knew the 4th amendment to the United States constitution and he did not answer. Again, I repeated that I do not have a house phone and I was the only one home. He asked me if this address was 1410 _____ Trl. I said "yes it is". That is when the female officer that was with him asked "This is 1410, because the call was from 1430?". I said that 1430 is next door and they had the wrong house. I said "how do you feel now officer?" to which he replied "well if you weren't so hostile, I wouldn't have put you in handcuffs." I told him he just needed to apologize and leave.

I went inside and called the city to make a complaint. I talked to his supervisor, and a few minutes later he came back to apologize. He tried to justify his actions... after a few minutes of talking he apologized and left.

his excuses were "we have to be careful, we never know why we get a 911 hang up call" I asked him if he was being so careful, why he went to the wrong house. He said it was because I didn't have numbers on both sides of my mailbox...

Can you imagine the audacity he must have to accuse me of being hostile? I was sitting on my couch reading, he knocked on my door and put me in handcuffs, and I'm the hostile one??

What should I do?
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Sue him for false imprisonment.
 
Could I?? Maybe I could if I can show that the did not have probable cause to detain me. Do they need to know what crime they are accusing me of to have probable cause? Is a 911 hang up call considered probable cause? Does the fact that they came to the wrong house affect any of those answers? i guess I really need a lawyer..
 
Andyc3020 said:
Could I?? Maybe I could if I can show that the did not have probable cause to detain me. Do they need to know what crime they are accusing me of to have probable cause? Is a 911 hang up call considered probable cause? Does the fact that they came to the wrong house affect any of those answers? i guess I really need a lawyer..
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I would go this route as well. Definitely don't talk to cops without one present.
 
yeah, but is it going to be worth the money? I hate to just let this go, but I don't have extra cash laying around to spend on lawyers.
 
CaptUSA said:
Ok, when you craft your complaint, be careful about making it personal. You want to get across that you are displeased with your tax money being spent on people who don't know the law and abuse their position of authority. While your incident ended without further complication, the actions of this officer demonstrate a lack of training that could cause serious harm to the public.

You see? the problem is not between YOU and THIS guy. Your problem is that the department would allow such a circumstance to exist.
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I agree with this. Take the position that you are providing constructive criticism. You want them to improve their training and process so nobody accidentally get shot in the future. Keep it professional.
 
Cleaner44 said:
I agree with this. Take the position that you are providing constructive criticism. You want them to improve their training and process so nobody accidentally get shot in the future. Keep it professional.
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Well, yeah, maybe... but in strong enough terms so that they understand this behavior is entirely unacceptable.
 
Andyc3020 said:
Could I?? Maybe I could if I can show that the did not have probable cause to detain me. Do they need to know what crime they are accusing me of to have probable cause? Is a 911 hang up call considered probable cause? Does the fact that they came to the wrong house affect any of those answers? i guess I really need a lawyer..
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Andyc3020 said:
yeah, but is it going to be worth the money? I hate to just let this go, but I don't have extra cash laying around to spend on lawyers.
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I'm telling you from experience, what you will receive is a carefully crafted apology and an assurance that the chief's expectations were let down that day though no specific admittance of guilt will be admitted.

Dreams of money payments may cloud judgement but understand, people are being raped and billed, beat half to death and billed, their dog shot and fined... to expect that you will get anything from your experience is naive. I have spoken many times of the specifics about a couple of my encounters, which many probably wrote off, but I do not lie and my "tales" never change. File a complaint. Make sure it is on record so the next, next, time the officer is accused against, he may be suspended with pay.

Contact an attorney (free consultation) and see what they say. At the end of the day, what I previously described is what you will witness.
 
fr33 said:
Hindsight is 20/20 but you shouldn't answer the door for cops. If you don't have a peephole + another method of seeing who is at the door, get that taken care of. Do not open the door for the police. Worse things could have happen from that visit.

*edit nevermind. You were on your front porch. Should have went inside when you saw them approaching.
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if you go inside, can they say something like 'oh that's probable cause because he looked like he was hiding'?

sorry i don't know the law.
 
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