Rv profiling by police

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We've been boarded by a couple of CBP officers when we pulled into the 'Customs dock' in San Diego, after a boat trip south of the border. They made no attempt to search the boat, and were very respectful of us and our guests.

This was prior to the recent rule requiring a passport, and they accepted drivers licenses from all our guest passengers. Chris was seasick and laying on the bed in the forward stateroom; They didn't bother her.

One of the agents looked at me and said "I need either a passport or a U.S. birth certificate" (my Welsh accent gave me away). I'd put our passports in a 'safe place' when we left home 3 months earlier, and couldn't remember where I'd put them  ??? The agent then asked for my drivers license, made a call to his office, and said "You're in our computer, and you're good to go; Have a nice day". Having spent a career traveling internationally, I was in their computer countless times.

The agent didn't need to make that phone call, and could have "refused entry". He probably noticed panic setting in and sweat pouring out.
 
One time, Chris and I helped another couple bring their boat back from Ensenada following "offshore delivery" and 90 days outside the U.S. which, at that time, allowed them to not pay sales tax.

We pulled into the Customs Dock in San Diego and the Captain made a call to CBP (based at the airport). An agent turned up, boarded the boat, and proceeded to give the Captain the third degree; "How much did this boat cost? How much is sales tax on a $1.3M boat? You took this boat to Mexico to avoid paying sales tax?".

The Captain sweated a little before the agent said "I work for the Federal Government and don't care about your dealings with the state of California; Have a nice day". After the agent left, we all laughed and figured this was his daily entertainment.

The point of these 'stories' is merely to illustrate inscop's comment that "most Border Patrol Agents are just like you: nice, friendly people who have families".
 
In this day and age when all sorts of things may be illegal i would never give permission to search.
As my lawyer says "its easy to challange probable cause but impossable to challange consent"

That said I always try to be as cooperative to law enforcement as i can even though i dont understand border checkpoints 90 miles inside the USA




Steve
 
[quote author=STEVEandSUE]... i dont understand border checkpoints 90 miles inside the US[/quote]

50 miles in my example, and I believe it's an attempt to catch illegals who didn't cross at a regular border crossing, and caught a ride after sneaking across.
 
STEVEandSUE said:
In this day and age when all sorts of things may be illegal i would never give permission to search.
As my lawyer says "its easy to challange probable cause but impossable to challange consent"

That said I always try to be as cooperative to law enforcement as i can even though i dont understand border checkpoints 90 miles inside the USA




Steve

I agree. Never give permission for a search.  Law enforcement wants to use the threat of harassment(if you dont give permission, we will make up some reason) to get people to give up their Constitutional rights.

These inland checkpoints are a farce, and it has to be a thankless job to work them.  If we are going to have inland check points, set them up at the entrances to every meat packing plant in the country, they would catch illegals by the thousands.

A question for inscop;  Are you required under penalty of law to declare your citizenship when asked?

Thanks!

 
inscop said:
  "The court felt that any intrusion to motorists was a minimal one and that the government and public interest outweighed the constitutional rights of the individual."  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Martinez-Fuerte

The government and public interest outweighs our constitutional rights???? Sir, with all due respect, "busting" people with "bundles" of legitimate herbal medicine and folks looking for a better quality of life (much like your grandparents/ancestors did not too long ago by lethal force to the native people of this land) is NOT "protecting us and the American way of life." This will probably win me no fans on this forum but to answer your question; "Why would you not proudly proclaim your American citizenship," an "America" that feels they can temporarily pause my freedom and constitutional rights with arrogant posturing men in uniforms, who would deem me suspicious or a jerk for not wanting to answer personal questions or have my personal belongings torn through by strangers claiming to be "protecting" the government and the public interest...this is not an America I am proud of and hope I live to see the day that we all wake up and realize the absurdity in all this nonsense, fear mongering and the gross intrusion of the "freedoms" we proudly define this nation by.

With that said - I must add that I have never been pulled over and have passed through a few internal checkpoints on my journey, with no problems other than a raise in my blood pressure, some aggravated feelings and some wasted gasoline at idling in the stopped traffic. Tho being a white clean cut gentleman probably didn't hurt.
 
Bill N said:
Why just yesterday I saw a State Patrol pull over a nice looking DP with a toad.  He had his lights on for about 1/4 mile with no reaction from the DP so the LEO pulled in front of the coach and that got his attention and he pulled over.  With one look, it was obvious why the pullover.  The toad right rear tire was in shreds and riding on the rim in places.  I stayed a ways behind all this action because I was taking my soon-to-be toad to CW to have the base plate and wiring installed and was interested in why the RV was being pulled over.

That's why it's really nice to have a TPMS system on the toad that reads out in the MH cab.
 
Jeff said:
We have had one instance where US border agriculture inspectors went overboard but after throwing us out of the m/h they didn't find anything and sent us on our way.

When we crossed into Canada and then back into the US a month later we were fully compliant having downloaded the "what can you bring into Canada" and "what can you bring into the US" documents for both countries.  It was a little disappointing that no one asked us anything, coming or going.  But it was amusing to hear our grandson explain to his parents that we had to get rid of all the "rock fruits" before crossing into Canada.  After a moment and a few puzzled looks, we realized he was talking about "stone fruits" which are prohibited going into Canada!  ;D
 
I have a question for inscop; Why do some people still call people "aliens"? I thought it was "undocumented person". You of all people should be more sensitive to this issue.

I am a retired "cop" and retired Army person.
 
Wow, this thread is going wild in all kinds of directions.  I would say, though, anyone who isn't proud of America and what she has accomplished should go to another country.  Delta is waiting for you.
 
We've been boarded by a couple of CBP officers when we pulled into the 'Customs dock' in San Diego, after a boat trip south of the border.

Forgot to mention that we had two boats in our group and the CBP sent three agents from the airport, two for our boat and one for the other. When the agents came down the ramp to the dock, I heard one say "I want to do Tom Jones' boat". It must have been a disappointment for him to find me. OTOH I could have broken out into a rendition of 'Green green grass of home' or 'What's new pussycat'; The accent and (singing) register would have been right on, but my hips and the lack of a salami in my pants would have given me away.
 
Army & Police Retiree said:
I have a question for inscop; Why do some people still call people "aliens"? I thought it was "undocumented person". You of all people should be more sensitive to this issue.

I am a retired "cop" and retired Army person.

To be more accurate the term should be "undocumented Democrat." And with that, I will leave this thread as the post by the person with the nom de plume above raging against this country has my blood reaching the boiling point.
 
Introducing politics is a sure way to have the discussion disappear down a rat hole. I'm locking this topic. Too bad, given that we had good input from LEO and border protection.
 
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