NilviaRR 53 Posted November 14, 2012 SO, my sister and I have been working on a project for our town... Don't really know where it is going to be going at the moment pero I was looking for some advice... Thing is... There has been a lot of harrassment going on by the police in our town.. We live in a small town in Northeast Iowa and all of the illegal mexicanos there (my family included) discovered that in Minnesota you don't need a D.L. to register your vehicle/get plates. That given, we all have Minnesota plates and lately (for the past few months) the police in town have been following, stopping, ticketing, and in some cases harrassing the mexicanos. My sister and I have both been stopped, the police know where we work/live/what our schedules are. Other people have given us their statements and say that the cops search their vehicles without consent, barge into their houses without consent, and refuse to talk to a translator for the person that was stopped on the phone.... also in one case one officer made a pregnant lady who said she had to use the restroom (pregnant ladies pee a lot) walk a quarter of a mile AFTER making her wait a while and it was 1 a.m. and freezing!! Bottom line, we want to put an end to it!! My sister talked to the NAACP, I have contacted ACLU, we are filing reports of harrassment to the state of Iowa, but we just want to do more!! We want to raise awareness to this injustice and make it STOP!!! My sister and I have D.L.s now and no longer have to worry about it pero we aren't going to stop fighting for the rest of the people because its just unfair!! If anyone has any connections with any civil liberties groups, or has any suggestions, please please please please message me or email me!! My email number is at the bottom and I am willing to give my phone number once we've exchanged emails... We just really want this nightmare to end, because if anyone knows anything about Iowa, you know that the winters here are miserable!! I don't want these people to be freezing their butts off to walk miles to work or to live locked up in their houses with fear of going out! Gracias! Nilvia [email protected] 1 SweetS08 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NilviaRR 53 Posted November 14, 2012 *And before anyone mentions it, I know I spelled harassment wrong!! That one always gets me! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pswa83 302 Posted November 15, 2012 honestly, besides filing complaints there is not much you can do. the police has the right to stop cars with out of state license plates all they want. having worked for a retired sheriff, all the police has to do when they stop a car is say they have cause to search the car--if that "cause" is valid or not is something to be determined. also, i know in california you have 10 days to change your residency if you plan to make california your home. When my brother lived in Iowa, he also had to do the same--think the number of days may be different--but he had to change his license plates along with his drivers license. having a license plate from one state and a DL from a another state, looks fishy to law enforcement. with all the being said, i would, if i were you, look up what the laws are about video taping someone in Iowa and see if you can get some of what if going on on tape as proof. the reason being is because if you only file a complaint then it's basically a they said they said type of thing and with it being against a police officer, most likely not much is going to be done unless there is other evidence to back up the complaint. i have a double major, in criminal justice and criminal psychology so criminal aspect and criminal law is something i know a little about. 1 Sinae reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NilviaRR 53 Posted November 17, 2012 Yes, I understand it's illegal to have plates from a different state, but the fact is that the police is not even stopping them for this, they have never ticketed anyone for not changing their plates. Furthermore, my biggest concern is the bad treatment the hispanic community is receiving, and I talked to a legal director from ACLU and she said no, they are not supposed to search the vehicle without consent, with the exception of the plain sight clause. When a drug, open bottle, weapon, etc, are in plain sight, then the police officer has the right to search the vehicle, also if they have probable cause (person appears high or drunk) but in this case, it was a middle aged woman going to work and definitely did not appear drunk, high, or have anything suspicious in plain sight. Also with the going into the house, they can't do that without a warrant or consent. The fourth amendment protects that right. Finally, thanks for your advice, I am really looking for civil rights groups that I may not be aware of to bring these cases too... The more awareness we raise for this, the bigger the results may be! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
