Posted on 06/08/2016 1:29:44 PM PDT by Theoria
A Michigan teen who was ticketed — as a passenger — for balking at taking a Breathalyzer test says that she refused because the detective did not have a warrant.
Now 17-year-old Casey Guthrie has filed a federal lawsuit against the cop who slapped her with the $100 citation last month.
The honor student is also challenging the constitutionality of a Michigan law that makes it a civil infraction for anybody under age 21 to refuse a police officer's request to blow into the device — and does not require the cop to produce a warrant.
"No adequate remedy exists at law to redress this unconstitutional policy, practice, and/or custom," the lawsuit states.
The law violates Guthrie's Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches, her Detroit lawyer told NBC News.
"Her rights were violated when she was forced to submit to Breathalyzer to prove her innocence," attorney Mike Rataj said. "That is not how the criminal justice system works. This is a girl who has never been in trouble before and has no criminal history."
"Also, she was not the driver," Rataj noted. "She was a passenger in a car with a bunch of other high school seniors."
Rataj added that Guthrie's father is a retired ATF officer who had warned her earlier never to submit to a Breathalyzer without a warrant . He said Guthrie's dad arrived at the scene after Detective Kenneth Pelland of the Gross Isle Township police pulled the car over last month.
"She called her father," Rataj said. "This particular officer is notorious for intimidating kids... The officer lied and said he smelled alcohol on her."
There was no immediate response to Rataj's charge or the lawsuit from Township Supervisor Brian Loftus or from Pelland.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
Haven’t you been paying attention? That’s all the rage lately.
Same thing happens when a cop is beating the s%#t out of someone while screaming stop resisting.
Here is a better one. You are a passenger in a car when the driver gets pulled over. You are over 21, and you have been out drinking and your driver is the designated sober driver. the cop ask you to step out of the car, when you do, he arrest you for public intoxication. As long as you are in the car, no violation exist, but, the moment you step out, you are in public.
“How did you change “her” into “him”? “
Happens all the time these days, where have you been?
You go, girl!
You live on Grosse Ile?
I lived on Meridian (twice), Vogt, and East River.
Used to be a nice, easy going community. But really started to go down hill governmentally about the time they tried to Eminent Domain the private Toll Bridge.
Guess it hasn’t gotten any better!
It's done by a procedure known as a Reverse Jenner.
or, as Limbaugh would call it, an addidictomy.
Boy, did I get this thread WAY off track with a simple mistake!
It was her Dad who was giving her good advise.
Young folks have always been cop targets btw and those with heavy badges routinely have their way with many young folks simply because they don’t know the law, or what to say or not say and have little knowledge of their basic rights.
OK, Zer....
The courts have already ruled i favor or warrantless searches.
We have DUI check points regularly in Pennsylvania. If you turn off to avoid the wait because you are on your way to work or on your way home from work and tired, too bad, you get arrested for “avoiding the checkpoint” Don’t drink at all. Doesn’t matter. You still get checked.
So what your telling us is all a cop has to do is lie.
“of course your honor; I smelled alcohol or I noticed he was unsteady on his feet”.
So without a measureable test or video tape I am still guilty.
She won’t win this one
Worse she was probably drinking under aged and just doesn’t want the consequences
No, that is cause to do the test.
BINGO!!! I live in a silly state that considers 17 year olds to be adult.
I lived on Ferry Road until they started taxing my pension. I now live in Tennessee. The person responsible for the bridge fiasco was Kurt Kajobilac who was a lawyer. He also sued the contractor for the updated sewer system which cost GI big time. There is a good reason it’s called Fantasy Island.
That’s right. And the young, blonde mayor who gave up the City Building to the Post Office. For pennies on the dollar.
They were quite the crew.
(They also put my FBO and flying instructor out of business at the airport so they could move in.)
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