But hunting gear or an ATV is not probable cause to pull you over. I am not saying it doesn't happen, just saying I would stir up all kinds of mess if they pulled me over for these reasons. If I get pulled over for doing something wrong, and they query me and I let slip I have a fresh killed deer in my truck that I have to get out of the July sun.....well that is fair game and I would deserve anything I received. If I was pulled over for a "speed check" and then they found a bass that was a 1/4" too short, now that is illegal on their part. The end does not justify the means. Just because they might catch criminals by doing this, does not make it ok for them to do this. I would vote to let Ted Bundy off if they had found him this way. Right is right, and wrong is wrong. We all have to follow the law, including LEO's.

I wish I could find the thread were a bunch of people were saying there was nothing to be done about every person on the highway with an ATV getting pulled and checked/having to prove it was theirs. It was ridiculous and everyone acted like it was no big deal and that it couldn't be avoided.

I got pulled over coming back from a hunt once by a young local cop. I had a rack sticking out of the top of a cooler that I had the head in. It wouldn't fit, so it was easily seen.



The cop came up to me and said, "You weren't doing anything wrong, I just wanted to have a look at that deer you had in the back!" He was a deer hunter too. He checked it out and we B.S.ed for a few minutes. He the said, "Well, I gotta go. Congratulations!" He never even asked to see my drivers license.

While that seems harmless I wonder what he would have done had he found something illegal in your car? That banter sounds good on the surface but just seems like he didn't have a legit reason to stop you, but did anyway.

I don't think it was like that, at least I didn't think so. He never snooped around looking at anything. I just took it as he was a good ole small town boy that wanted to check out that deer. They're not all out to get you.

I feel the same about most LEO's and fully support they job they do. I also understand that the majority of their job they have to deal with degenerates and that sucks. However, that doesn't give anyone a free pass to illegally stop or harass someone. While it very well may have been a harmless encounter, as noted above he could have had a GW with him and gone a completely different direction.

^^^^this! No they are not all out to get you, heck, most of them aren't out to get you. I follow a general guideline for life, it covers most all people no matter what profession. 5% are over achievers who are seriously gung ho types, 90% are just trying to do their job and go home at the end of their shift, and 5% are worthless sacs of crap who are one screw up away from being fired daily. Most cops you ever meet will fall into the 90% who just want to do their job and go home, same as me.

OK, I admit it. I've stopped a guy for having a nice set of muledeer horns in the back of his truck. When I approached he asked what he had done and I told him nothing, I just wanted a closer look at his deer.

Are you the fella that pulled me over? If so, hello again!

OK, I'll weigh in on this from a different perspective.

No, the police shouldn't pull over anyone just to check their ATV or trailer or for training a rookie. With that said, have any of you studied the Texas Traffic Code? I promise you, using the code in it's entirety, I would have little trouble pulling just about any person over at any time for a legitimate violation listed within the Traffic Code. I mean, it's chock full of stuff that most people are completely ignorant of. Then add a Game Warden to the mix and he can pull you over just to check you, even if you look like you've been hunting or fishing.

As for the ATV and trailer issue; Gobs of them are stolen annually in this state. It's become an epidemic. Pressure for LE to do more to combat is at an all time high. Trailers are often stolen and re-sold with no paperwork and no title, even when they were titled to begin with. Then the new owner registers an obviously shop built trailer as "Homemade". Now there's more issues to deal with.

Everybody bitches and moans that their stuff gets stolen but then they turn around whine and cry when LE tries to do something about it. I'm not defending all LE. There's plenty of mistakes made by them. There's a right way and wrong way to do things and hopefully they are doing while being mindful of the 4th Amendment. Truth is too many small town cops aren't receiving the training they should have on that topic. Plenty of big city cops too.

That said, if you start out a contact with an adversarial "Us vs. Them" attitude you are likely to get it right back. That's just the way it is in the real world.

He was more than happy to get out and give me his story. I thanked him and apologized for any trouble I might have caused. That was 20 years ago and we're still talking. He's a good friend. Believe it or not, we're human just like everybody else. I love to hunt, fish, drink a beer and spend time with my friends. Out of 23 years as a LEO, I've had one complaint lodged against me which was thrown out because of recordings. Every case I ever had tried has been a conviction. I don't need to cheat, stupid people do stupid things and I try to be there to catch them.

Fair enough but again, if you pull me over and want me to prove I own my ATV just for the mere fact it is in my truck I'm not going to be very pleased about it. What is to say that the next question is, can you prove you own the firearms in your car? It is a slippery slope and while no one likes getting their things stolen, I'm going to take exception to having to prove I own something that I lawfully do. Especially when there is no other reason to be questioning me about it.

Rex,
There's nothing saying that a cop cannot ask you. You don't have to answer some of those questions. You don't have to prove anything unless they have probable cause to prove otherwise. If an officer asks, it's probably just a query and nothing more. It's probably a question that he'll ask often. It doesn't mean that you're being set up and it's not personal. Ask that same question to a someone that's in possession of a stolen ATV and you'll often start getting BS answers that most can see through pretty quickly.
The officer can even ask permission to run the serial number on the ATV. You can also decline.

As a LEO and hunter, I've been pulled over too. I don't get wrapped around the axle about it though. Just LEO's trying to be proactive and catch a turd. Unfortunately, you'll get a few good guys before you finally find a turd. Might surprise you but they don't carry a sign. They look like you and me.

Your license plate reads "No Feds." Your attitude is, "Don't do anything wrong and you won't have an issue?" What am I missing?

You're absolutely right, any LEO is free to ask any question they want. Asking if you own an ATV in the back of your truck is fine, to which the answer should most likely be "yes". At this point the conversation should be over unless there is probable cause to think otherwise. Asking someone to prove they own something implies they don't. If you ask and I tell you I do own it, it is on you to prove I don't, otherwise you are wasting my time and have no right to continue the encounter. I mentioned it earlier but there was a thread going where people were being pulled over for no reason other than they were hauling or pulling a trailer with an ATV on it. Everyone seemed to accept the fact that it was ok to be pulled over simply because they had an ATV with them.

Y'all are some drama queens. He just answered some questions and was sent on his way.

Y'all have no knowledge of why he was pulled over. It seems unusual for GW and trooper to be together.
Maybe they have had complaints in that area.

Just cooperate, and be on your way. everything is not a conspiracy.

Honest question: if they decline, during the type of stop you've described, what's the next step, from your point of view?

Keep it up LP some of us appreciate what you guys do.

Exactly. It's these puffed-up keyboard lawyers who are also the first to bitch and moan when their stuff gets stolen(probably cuz they left their trucked unlocked because they "shouldn't have to lock it") and the "cops don't do anything about it".

It's not just talk with me when I say I support LEO's and Blue Lives Matter. If a cop pulls me over, I certainly don't want to get a ticket - but they are the cop, with a gun, and do a thankless job. I will do whatever they ask me to do with a "Yes Sir". If they want me to take off my skin and dance in my bones - I'll do it! I am not a wimp, and value my rights - but trying exercise them in the field like some cocksure know-it-all is just discourteous and plain stupid. Stopped doing that stuff when I was in my teens/twenties.

If there was something wrong about the encounter, I'll be sure to notify the supervisor and/or my lawyer the next day. That's not being sheeple, it's just being grown up and smart.

Well this is going no where fast, it seems that some people can't comprehend how you can be courteous and supportive of the tough job law enforcement does while still holding them to a high standard. I'm no puffed up anything (except for some love handles) and I don't play a lawyer on TV, nor did I stay at a Holiday Inn express last night. I hold up my end of the bargain when I follow the law, and I dang sure expect whomever is enforcing it to do the same. I do not think that all or even most LEO's act in a manner described in some earlier scenario's. These are isolated incidents and everyone is free to act however they feel obliged too. You can comply with every thing no matter what, you can be a jack@$$ and probably get way more tickets than you would otherwise. Then there is the in the middle option of pulling over as expected, being courteous and respectful and answering any questions you feel comfortable with and exercising your rights to remain silent on any you don't wish to answer. I will never consent to a search no matter if I am hiding anything or not. If I find that a LEO has pulled me over expressly to check my ATV or because he see's hunting gear then he and I will have a problem. No I will not cuss him or her on the side of the road, or start a fist fight. Those are silly, stupid, and dangerous. But if this does happen, I will make sure I express my concern with the stop, I will call his/her supervisor immediately, and probably my attorney if it gets that far. I understand LEO's asking about items like this, and if they have a legit reason to stop me, then they can ask away. I may or may not answer depending on my mood, the officers attitude, and the location of the sun and moon (or a million other variables at the time) Police are people too and I understand them doing a tough job. Hell I might have even met and shook hands with Land Pirate as I spend a lot of time in the Buda / Kyle area and see many LEO's while there. I make a point of stopping and talking to everyone I have an opportunity to and shake their hand (situation allowing). I have had several 4 wheelers stolen, and I do b!tch and moan, but not about the police. I am pissed at the lowlifes who cut the logging chain I had securing my trailer to a steel post.

So you go on and dance around in your bones John Humbert if that makes you feel like you have been protected and served. I also value my rights, but I am willing to speak up if someone is trying to violate them.

I was doing 80 MPH in a 60 late at night and was pulled over by a Sheriff if I remember right. He told me there have been a lot of stolen trailers and ATV's in the area and he would like to check my serial #'s. I had a brand new trailer that was delivered in an awful baby blue instead of the dark navy blue I ordered! I didn't want to wait a week or so and make a 2 hour round trip to get another one. So he started looking for the serial # and I didn't have any idea where it was located on the trailer. He finally found it and cleared me. I told him I appreciated what he was doing as I have had another trailer stolen with 2 dirt bikes and all our gear on the way to Colorado for a ride. (a good story for another time). He then said have a good night and didn't mention the 20 MPH over the limit I was going in the dark of night on a tiny country road. I think it worked out ok. I might have been unhappy about being held up if I wasn't speeding. All in all I'm happy they are looking for stolen property that could be mine. I know if he does find stolen property it will not have been stolen by me!

What you just described is called "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree". Any contraband found from an illegal stop is non-admissible in court. I don't know what a speed check is, I stop lots of speeders. I use speeding as Probable Cause for my stop, it's just the starting point. I then check your Drivers License, registration and insurance. I like to talk to people about what ever is st hand. It will usually put people at ease. I take this opportunity to check out the contents of your vehicle and any others inside. I also take a deep sniff of the inside of the vehicle. I find plenty of dope stopping speeders and talking to drivers.

For clarity all this is done while standing at the driver's window.

Pretty sad it took this far into the thread to find common sense. Thank you for nailing it!

Or better yet say, "I speak no English", they would of said be on your way

State Troopers aren't the Federal Government, I hadn't broken any laws other than speeding so why would I worry. Did they offer Civics in class or were you absent that day.

Now if the Federal Government was involved