Texas police shake down drivers, lawsuit claims

[RamboLiberal]

Source: CNN

TENAHA, Texas (CNN) -- Roderick Daniels was traveling through eastern Texas in October 2007 when, he says, he was the victim of a highway robbery.

The Tennessee man says he was ordered to pull his car over and surrender his jewelry and $8,500 in cash that he had with him to buy a new car.

But Daniels couldn't go to the police to report the incident.

The men who stopped him were the police.

Daniels was stopped on U.S. Highway 59 outside Tenaha, near the Louisiana state line. Police said he was driving 37 mph in a 35 mph zone. They hauled him off to jail and threatened him with money-laundering charges -- but offered to release him if he signed papers forfeiting his property.



Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/05/05/texas.police.seizures/index.html

[RaleighNCDUer]

1. And yet one more reason to never vacation in Texas. nt

[Javaman]

11. Please do not include Austin.

East Texas is a land unto itself.

[RaleighNCDUer]

15. Not disparaging Austin - but you DO have to drive thru Texas to get there.

I actually decided to never venture into Texas back in '72, upon reading about a kid who got 20 years for having a roach and three seeds in his car's ashtray.

As much as I might like to visit the Alamo and other historic sites, it just never seems worth the risk.

[Javaman]

31. LOL a roach and 3 seeds here in Austin would get you a pat on the back. LOL nt

[martymar64]

33. In Austin, I heard the streets are paved with marijuana

Also, I heard that you buy a meal with a song and that you can elect a hackeysack mayor.

Thanks, Patton Oswalt!

:headbang:

[question everything]

46. Careful. We are not supposed to say anything negative about Texas (nt)

[Towlie]

2. And to think we're worried about Somali pirates.

[sallylou666]

3. Near LA Border

This town is out in the middle of no where near the TX/LA border. Can't the the folks in LA claim them?

[stillcool]

6. Claim who?

[MrsBrady]

8. the town is 15 miles from the Louisiana border

but what are you talking about?

[bertman]

4. The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in Texas.

:evilfrown:

[stillcool]

5. Good thing they all had something...

to barter with. I wonder what happens to the people who don't have anything of value.

Jennifer Boatright and Ron Henderson said they agreed to forfeit their property after Russell threatened to have their children taken away.

Like Daniels, the couple says they were carrying a large amount of cash --- about $6,000 -- to buy a car. When they were stopped in Tenaha in 2007, Boatright said, Russell came to the Tenaha police station to berate her and threaten to separate the family.

"I said, 'If it's the money you want, you can take it, if that's what it takes to keep my children with me and not separate them from us. Take the money,' " she said.


The document Henderson signed, which bears Russell's signature, states that in exchange for forfeiting the cash, "no criminal charges shall be filed ... and our children shall not be turned over" to the state's child protective services agency.

Maryland resident Amanee Busbee said she also was threatened with losing custody of her child after being stopped in Tenaha with her fiancé and his business partner. They were headed to Houston with $50,000 to complete the purchase of a restaurant, she said.

[jmowreader]

7. Bad things

I bet the citizens of Tenaha just LOVE their tax cuts, and don't think for a minute about how they're paid for.

And this is the thing: People expect MORE government services for LESS money. "Oh, but we just HATE big government!" Surprise, kids: so do liberals. The problem is, y'all think the government's the tooth fairy--it swoops in your window in the middle of the night and leaves a dime under your pillow, no questions asked. Mature, responsible people (read: liberals) know this shit's got to be paid for somehow--specifically, through taxation.

[robinlynne]

9. Why are all these people driving through the same tiny own with thousands of dollars in cash?

Who pays cash for a house or a car? Something smells funny.

[winyanstaz]

10. a lot of people prefer to pay with cash...

We dont trust the banks...and for damned good reasons it turns out.

[Javaman]

13. I paid for my car in cash. This is nothing new. nt

[Lochloosa]

14. I insisted on cash for my used car.

The guy flew in from North Carolina. What was I supposed to do? Take a check?

[Butch350]

50. Deleted multiple thread.

[Butch350]

51. Would you demand cash if you sold your home?

[Rebubula]

16. Sounds like...

...you would be perfect for the job of District Attorney down there...

Seriously...when did it become a crime to carry cash?

[robinlynne]

26. It's just weird. If all these epople were driving through this tiny town with cash, maybe someone

called the sheriff and told him such and such a person would be driving by with huge sums of cash. it just isn't normal for so many people to carry so much cash all in one little town.
Granted I would feel safer with cash in a small town than in a big city....It's just all really weird. If I heard he was shaking people down for 40.00 I would find that more normal than thousands in cash!!! not defending the criminals involved, just finding it all strange.

[Doremus]

37. Funny how different people have different assumptions about the same situation.

My immediate thought was "Geez, how many people did they have to stop to find the ones with a lot of cash????"

I think my scenario is a tad more plausible, don't you? I'm sure the people in the examples were not all stopped at once, but rather over a period of time after having stopped probably dozens if not hundreds of people who had very little money on them.


Edited to add: Either way, it's definitely a town to avoid.

[robinlynne]

40. Hopefully the sheriff is in jail by now!

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

19. I drove to a small town with $1200 in cash a few weeks ago

I was picking up a vintage arcade console i'm giving my girlfriend for her birthday, the guy selling it was cleaning out his dead uncles garage and wanted cash.

[jayfish]

20. I Once Drove Across State Lines With $5200...

cash to buy a used car. Nothing stinky about it.


ON EDIT: Oh and the car was a POS so I backed out and went back home with the cash. Is that double-smelly?

Jay

[RamboLiberal]

23. So what if something smells funny

Police should not be allowed to just seize it without having a criminal charge.

[robinlynne]

28. of course. that's not my point. When I ought a used car I met the seller inside the bank.

I would be too afraid to have thousands on a lonely highway, or even more so in a big city. I just find it odd that so many people had so much money going through such a little town, as if maybe the car dealer called the sheriff to tell him someone would be driving through with tons of cash.

[quakerboy]

41. I have paid cash for every car I have owned

Ive always bought either cheap cars, or had an insurance settlement. Private deals often require cash. The price is a bit bigger than what most people are comfortable taking a check for. And there is a strong perception that you can get a better deal if you show up to the lot with a fist full of cash.

as to why there, are there any dealerships in Tenaha? Or in towns along the road it is on? Do you get a better deal buying in LA, or in TX? If crossing the border gets you a deal, of course people are going to follow that chance, cash in hand.

[Butch350]

49. Dam good point robinlynne.

[RaleighNCDUer]

25. Those with nothing of value get a stern warning, I bet.

Unless, of course, they happen to have a joint in the ashtray.

It is nothing less than highway robbery.

[psychopomp]

45. They targeted Blacks and Latinos who were found to have large amounts of cash on them

Whites and people without money were not shaken down nearly as often...

[HillWilliam]

12. This shit happens all over the deep south all the time

the I-10 corridor is famous for it from about Vidor, TX (klan country) to Tallahassee. G'd help you if you ever have to travel through Louisiana or Mississippi. I've got stories.

[depakid]

21. Been that way as long as I can remember

We used to joke that it was like (or depending on your color or your tags, much worse than) Mexico, where it was common practice to plan ahead for payment of mordidas.

[santamargarita]

34. Absolutely right - "You n' a heap of trouble boy"

:puke:

[Q3JR4]

17. Since Texas seems to be a one-party consent state,

if any of you happens to be driving through Teneha, get pulled over, but have a recording device on you, might as well turn it on. Later when you get brought up on charges, or when you come back with a lawyer, that recording can be used as evidence in a court proceeding.

Just FYI.

Q3JR4.
Has swallowed a nuclear-powered recording device because some officials can be bastards.

[prole_for_peace]

18. I don't even care if the money ws going to be used for drugs etc...

These asshole cops shouldn't be able to just take it because it's there. If I did something like that I would go to jail.

[Mopar151]

24. Welcome to the War on Drugs

Where possession of your own money is a crime.

[Name removed]

22. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Liberal_in_LA]

27. K & R

[bikebloke]

29. Third World behavior

from Third World cops. That where corporate feudalism is taking us.

[WolverineDG]

30. It's a pretty popular thing to do in Louisiana too

and I'll just bet it also happens in more states, even the High Holy Blue ones.

dg

[VaYallaDawg]

32. Stafford County VA is a notorious one - right on I-95 just south of DC.

[slutticus]

35. I was stopped by police in Dibol Texas once on my way to TN from Houston.

On highway 59. They racially profiled me (I was not breaking any laws) and harassed me for an hour before they let me go. They were convinced I was smuggling some guns or drugs. When they finally let me go, one of the officers made a "joke" about who's handgun that was in my glovebox. I was at this point terrified since I thought they had just planted some shit on me. They just laughed and drove away.

East Texas is not a good place to drive through if you don't have TX plates or a rebel flag in your truck window.

[DebbieCDC]

36. Never set foot in TX and never will

Went to FL once, will never go back

Two states run by the BFEE

[Paladin]

39. Heartfelt Thanks From Texas DUers. (n/t)

[Doremus]

38. No different than a third world country.

I read that after a particular country is S. America (can't remember which one) went bankrupt, police started shaking down drivers. People would have to carry a few extra bucks to pay off the local constables or end up in jail.

For all our high and mighty rhetoric, we're becoming more like developing countries everyday. One of these days we'll wake up, but sadly it will be too late.

[ConcernedCanuk]

42. LOL - this is LBN???? - holey chit - I knew this in the 70's - yeah, I did the tourist thing

.
.
.

Georgia was bad too - I carried little cash, had credit cards and traveler's checks.

"Fines" for speeding were just a tad over 20 dollar increments.

Officers did NOT carry change.

so when the fine was 102 bucks - well, 120 bucks in traveler's checks were ok . . .

USA does not just rip off it's visitors, it rips off it's own citizens/taxpayers

so I don't really feel targeted.

sorta don't bother me now, I decided never to cross the border the day I saw "Shock and Awe" -

What asshole nation could condone that ??

OH YEAH

My southern neighbor

(sigh)

[Wednesdays]

43. K&R

:kick:

[blueworld]

44. Same thing happened to us in '74 in South Carolina, but we were poor

We were limping home (back from FLA, up I-95) in our '71 Pinto which had broken down & wouldn't do over 52MPH. Ironically, we got pulled over in a "speed trap" with 6 or 7 other out-of-state vehicles, supposedly clocked at 68MPH. The cop searched the entire car, including the trunk where he found my husband's nightstick (he was a security guard nights while going to college days) and threatened to arrest us for carrying a concealed weapon (good grief).

I guess he was angry because he couldn't find dope or money - we were piss poor. So he said unless we posted $20 bucks "bond" against the speeding ticket he was writing (speed limit was 60), he'd arrest us & we'd have to stay in jail for 3 days until the Circuit Court judge made the circuit & heard our "case". My husband asked sarcastically if he'd take Visa & the bass turd said yes:)

We knew it was a shakedown, but we didn't lose much & we just wanted to get home. I guess this crap is a time-honored (crooked) way to raise revenue in some southern AND northern backwaters. :puke:

[KittyWampus]

47. How did the police know these people had thousands in cash? Does this mean many more were stopped

and only those who had money stolen are coming forward?

Still, why would you tell the police you've got a thousand in cash?

Did the police make them exit the car and search for cash?

[B3Nut]

48. Discovery is going to be *really* interesting in this case.

I'd put money on the idea that there will be plenty of material for not only a HUGE suit but significant criminal prosecutions as well (RICO anyone?) Their lives are going to become really ugly.

Todd in Cheesecurdistan