{
    "href": "/post/2012/05/15/policeman-takes-22k-from-innocent-driver/",
    "relId": "2012/05/15/policeman-takes-22k-from-innocent-driver",
    "title": "Policeman Takes $22K From Innocent Driver",
    "author": "pmjones",
    "markup": "html",
    "tags": [
        {
            "href": "/tag/police-state/",
            "relId": "police-state",
            "title": "Police State",
            "author": null,
            "created": null,
            "updated": [],
            "markup": "markdown"
        }
    ],
    "created": "2012-05-15 21:48:47 UTC",
    "updated": [
        "2012-05-15 21:48:47 UTC"
    ],
    "html": "<blockquote>\n<p>Reby was driving down Interstate 40, heading west through Putnam County, when he was stopped for speeding.</p>\n<p>A Monterey police officer wanted to know if he was carrying any large amounts of cash.</p>\n<p>\"I said, 'Around $20,000,'\" he recalled. \"Then, at the point, he said, 'Do you mind if I search your vehicle?' I said, 'No, I don't mind.' I certainly didn't feel I was doing anything wrong. It was my money.\"</p>\n<p>That's when Officer Larry Bates confiscated the cash based on his suspicion that it was drug money.</p>\n<p>\"Why didn't you arrest him?\" we asked Bates.</p>\n<p>\"Because he hadn't committed a criminal law,\" the officer answered.</p>\n<p>Bates said the amount of money and the way it was packed gave him reason to be suspicious.</p>\n<p>\"The safest place to put your money if it's legitimate is in a bank account,\" he explained. \"He stated he had two. I would put it in a bank account. It draws interest and it's safer.\"</p>\n<p>\"But it's not illegal to carry cash,\" we noted.</p>\n<p>\"No, it's not illegal to carry cash,\" Bates said. \"Again, it's what the cash is being used for to facilitate or what it is being utilized for.\"</p>\n<p>NewsChannel 5 Investigates noted, \"But you had no proof that money was being used for drug trafficking, correct? No proof?\"</p>\n<p>\"And he couldn't prove it was legitimate,\" Bates insisted.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>Say it with me, everyone: \"Officer, I do not consent to searches.\"  The fact that you have done nothing wrong does not mean the cops cannot take your stuff.  Via <em><a href=\"http://www.newschannel5.com/story/18241221/man-loses-22000-in-new-policing-for-profit-case\">Man Loses $22,000 In New 'Policing For Profit' Case - NewsChannel5.com | Nashville News, Weather &amp; Sports</a></em>.</p>\n"
}