XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, alt.society.liberalism, alt.atheism
XPost: alt.fun, alt.politics.democrats.d
Police officers cannot detain someone on the street just because that person tries to avoid contact with them, the California Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
The decision has immediate implications for police officers working all across the state, restricting the grounds under which they can stop and hold people for
questioning. It could also affect other litigation in which arrests are being challenged, particularly when people of color allege they were detained simply for trying to avoid police.
Someone acting nervous or attempting to conceal themselves can still be “relevant context” for officers, but those actions alone do not constitute “reasonable suspicion of criminal activity,” Justice Carol Corrigan wrote for
the unanimous high court.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-05-03/people-cant-be-detained-just-for-trying-to-avoid-police-california-supreme-court-says
Good. There needs to be a U.S. Supreme Court case saying the same thing and making this the law of the land.
A lot of police detentions are unconstitutional, because the cops do not have a reasonable suspicion that the detainees have a connection to a crime that has occurred, is occurring or is about to occur. Typically the cops say the detainees "acted suspicious" (they mean *suspiciously*, but cops are illiterate), but that is not a valid ground for detention. Someone trying to avoid interaction with the cops is not acting suspiciously merely by trying to avoid the interaction. Blacks and other minorities have very good reason to try to avoid interaction with the cops.
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