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Cooper is right. Terry has be

Cooper is right. Terry has been interpreted by the present Supreme Court to cover vehicle "pat downs" if the officer has a "reasonable belief" there might be something dangerous in the car, especially if there's someone in the car besides you. If they want to, police can pretty much guarantee their asses are covered in court by saying they saw you "make a movement" as you pulled over (ie, you were hiding a gun under the seat); or that there were children nearby (kids within a three-block radius are always in danger); or that your passenger was acting nervous.

Refusing a search will, indeed, invalidate the search; but the cop's going to search anyway regardless. If he finds anything he doesn't like, your ass is going to jail, and you'll be arguing your 4th Amendment rights were violated from there. And if he finds anything much beyond a little personal-use pot, there is almost no judge worth her salt anywhere in America who will bother listening to your complaints. You'll go to the can still protesting your violated rights, and your only hope at that point is that you've been incarcerated in California, where our liberal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals often overturns such cases. Several years later, of course.

Theoretically, you have the right to simply leave once you've signed the citation, and there's where cops catch lots of people. They can dick around for a "reasonable period" of time writing your citation--anywhere up to two hours if they can justify it in court--and if you leave BEFORE you sign the ticket, that's called evading arrest, and leads to some of the enthralling car pursuits we get around here during rush hour.

In re Texas, it's actually true in any state. If you go to jail, they WILL search your car; it's called an "inventory search" and is allegedly used to protect the cops from you claiming they stole your $5000 stereo system while you were bonding out. But, of course, they will gladly "inventory" any contraband you may have while protecting their butts.

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