[TXDuke]

1. Traffic is irrelevant cause she still violated the law
2. It is not Orwellian and you’re refusal is just immature. Just be prepared to be sitting there a long time and to exit the car then. Also remember that you made that choice.
3. He isn’t suspended. He is on desk duty for a policy violation; not a law violation. He is not in trouble for asking her questions. And besides, look at her...her actions got her arrested. I still think he won that battle.
4. People attempt to mask MJ with air fresheners, cig smoke, and cloves all the time.
5. The cops attitude is irrelevant as long as he is still operating within the law. You may not like it, but you still have to follow his lawful orders.
6. In TX, the law states that any vehicle on a public roadway is not entitled to privacy protections except in the case of searches. The cig may or may not have had relevance to his investigation. His motivation has not been made public so neither of us know otherwise.

Maybe instead of insulting the cop, maybe you should try riding out with one. People use cigs to burn cops all the time and sometimes just as a distraction to get to a gun or knife. Again, you’re talking about something that you know absolutely nothing about.

[kaila]

1. Yes, she violated the law. And I bet this police force does not investigate crime such as B&E, etc. They pick on car infractions because it makes $$ for them
2. It is Orwellian, the government has no right to know my travels. Even if I was meeting with the Sinaloa Cartel for a drug buy, I am not going to tell the cop that. I am going to lie. The question then becomes a stupid exercise, in which only the law abiding comply with. I am not a sheep, my travels is none of your business.
3.He lost the battle. He is now marked by the black people in his community. He is marked, and now at risk. So is his family. He did not win this at all.
4. The reason why cops are getting such bad press is their attitude is now being exposed for all to see.I used to respect police, but after a few encounters in which they were complete jerks, it has changed my attitude toward them. It is not just me, it is also my friends who are upper middle class who have experienced bad interactions. The cops used to pick on inner city poor, but now in their mind every one is a perp. They are treating all classes equally as bad, and now they have crossed the line with the public.
5. The cig did not prevent the cop from looking inside the car.That was adequate enough for a search. He wanted to get her angry, so he could expand the interaction.

If you cannot defend yourself against a cig when you are standing, and the woman is sitting behind a car door seat belted in, you should not be a cop. You are a pansy, not a cop.