---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Mon, 14 Oct 1996 09:22:49 -0700 From: Joe Horn <6mysmesa@1eagle1.com> To: Texas Gun Owners Subject: Roadblocks Posted to texas-gun-owners by Joe Horn <6mysmesa@1eagle1.com> ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Speaking of roadblocks, Saturday, the New Mexico State Police had one set up on NM#404, (14 officers and one Sgt.) stopping all traffic both ways on a desert mountain pass between El Paso and White Sands. When I was stopped, a courteous automaton approached, hand on pistol and asked for my DL and insurance card, and did a visual search of my car. Immediately angered and resentful of this State intrusion and violation of my rights, I handed him the requested documents, and having checked my paperwork, he looks through the window at the back seat area and asks me "what's under the blanket?" I told him his search was going to have to be limited to what he could see as I was not granting a consent search beyond what he could see through the windows of my vehicle after illegally stopping me at this roadblock. Illegal? Pull over there and talk to the nice officers, says he. Yes I said, stopping people for searches in the pretext of seeing their paperwork. Says he: the court said it's ok (in limited Roadbloacks )as long as we stop everyone. Says I, the court is wrong and it's still unconstitutional, you do not have a warrant and I have broken no law. To me, the fact they did NOT ask for vehicle registration indicated they were fishing. The robot calls his Sgt over, who takes over and warns me that this can become very unpleasant, and at this point, I show him my retired badge and ID, asking how unpleasant is that? He then says, why didn't you say something, you coulda been gone by now? I told him that I am a plain citizen and suggest he knows what he's doing is wrong and that it's a pure fishing expedition. He angrily said:(and he really surprised me) "Hey, I'm just doing what I'm told, now get outta here before I decide to ruin your day". They cut me loose and drove off, keeping my Ithaca 37 which was under the blanket and 1911A1 under the center console. My point is that this is out of control, and folks are going to start getting hurt in these little European-like (vere are your papers?) roadblocks, fishing for whatever they can find. If I didn't have masterbadge and I.D., I would have been illegally and unconstitutionally searched against my will. Very few people have a badge to get them out of something like this, and deferring to intimidation by armed authority, most will have their rights violated. My sense of the roadblock personnel was that excepting the Sgt., they didn't know they were wrong or didn't care. The average age of the officers was late 20's early 30's. Now that they're going to start these around schools, and I assure you that it will be in as high handed a manner as they can manage. Many people don't see or don't want to see what's happening to the Constitution or our human rights recognized by that Constitution, or the Police State being assembled right around the Constitution, in the name of the "drug war" or the "chirrun". It's here and it's here now and if you don't strenuously object to these searches and roadblocks whether for DUI, Drivers License/Insurance/ guns/drugs, and drive your political reps nuts about it, sooner or later you will get the anal probe of an illegal search in the name of the "drug war" or for guns near schools. Of course those that like and feel safer with more unenforceable, useless law and more intrusion (with no effect on criminals, just the violation of honest citizens rights) may you be hoisted on your own petard, and soon. As I waited in line to be searched in this desolate and remote desert location, I reflected on my extensive police and military training and experience and thought that these roadblocks are really quite vulnerable out there in the desert so far from backup. Quite vulnerable......It's going to get ugly one day when folks decide they've had enough. And if statists don't think it can happen here, just visualize a larger scale resentment of the "man" beyond Watts. Like the black minority, the white minority within the white majority has it's limits in absorbing the abuses and effects of the ever intrusive Police State. What really bothered me, (inspite of my training and familiarity with police operations) was my own barely repressible reaction of fear, being trapped, resentment, mistrust, disrespect and intense dislike and the powerful urge to immediately, actively and physically resist this infringement of my right of unrestricted and peaceful travel. Fortunately, I didn't have to act because unlike most of my fellow citizens, I had a retired peace officer's badge. What about those that feel like that and do not have a getoutta jail/roadblock exit badge? I guess we'll soon find out when some get stopped and fight rather than have their rights violated. It's no longer a matter of if this is going to happen, just when. regards Joe Horn List retired cop and no longer proud of it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- For help with Majordomo commands, send a message to majordomo@zilker.net with the word help in the message body.