00:00How is it a probable cause if it's not an infraction?
00:02Drunk in rear window is an offense.
00:04But she just read me the statute.
00:05When this officer stopped a driver over an obstructed rear window and found suspected drugs,
00:10the judge questioned whether the stop was even legal and dismissed the case.
00:13Officer Rain, how many years have you worked for the Ronald's Police Department?
00:16It'd be 10 years in July.
00:17Taking you back to December 19 of last year, 2025, about 4 in the afternoon, were you working?
00:23I was.
00:24What were you doing in the time?
00:25I was on patrol.
00:26Did you have contact with a woman named Cassandra Eric?
00:29Yes.
00:29Officer, what caused you to notice this person to stand up there right?
00:33The rear window of her vehicle was completely blocked.
00:36She wouldn't have been able to see out of it.
00:38Is it a checkable offense?
00:39As far as I understand.
00:40Did the driver decide to lie?
00:43She did.
00:43I made contact with the driver's side of the vehicle, and we discovered that her license was suspended.
00:49What did you do when you learned the other lady's license had been suspended?
00:53So with our policy and procedure, it's an arrestable offense.
00:55She then, I got her out of the vehicle, placed her in handcuffs.
00:58Did you find any kind?
00:59I didn't.
01:00What did you locate contract with?
01:01It was inside of a purse, which had plastic baggies in it.
01:05It was on the passenger side of the vehicle.
01:06The family member said to you that she had a valid restriction for the control substance?
01:10Not that I did.
01:11Oh.
01:11So what do you have in school to relate to this to family?
01:13She'll be arrested for possession of their cars.
01:16So you're the one who pulled over your scout cars.
01:18That's true.
01:19And you did that because of the allegedly obstructed rear window of this Ford Focus.
01:25Right.
01:26You didn't really notice anything else about this car, right?
01:28Right.
01:29It had all its mirrors.
01:30Far as I know what it's meant.
01:31And it was operating fine.
01:32It is.
01:32This case was a violation of Ms. Iris' Ford Amendment rights.
01:36MCL 257.709 clearly states that a person should not drive a rear vehicle if driver visibility
01:44through the rear window is obstructed unless the vehicle is equipped with two mirrors, one
01:50on each side.
01:51So the only way that they could have had probable cause to pull over Ms. Iris on this day is
01:56if her vehicle was obstructed and she was missing one of her two side mirrors.
02:01We just heard Officer Rand say nothing else was wrong with the vehicle.
02:04There was no probable cause to stop the car.
02:07The police have to follow the law.
02:08They both testified that there were police officers that they know the law.
02:11They pulled Ms. Iris over outside of their bounds as law enforcement.
02:15I understand seeing something obstructed and thinking, oh, maybe she can't see.
02:19But unless you have probable cause to pull somebody over for a traffic infraction, you
02:23cannot do that.
02:25And from this infraction, Ms. Iris was arrested.
02:28A search was conducted that is all for the police history in this case.
02:31How is it probable cause if it's not an infraction?
02:33Obstructed window, obstructed rear window is an offense and it's dangerous.
02:38But she just read me the statute and it said that the obstructed window is only an infraction
02:42if she doesn't have side mirrors.
02:44You have to do very evidence about it.
02:46I did.
02:46She asked him if he noticed anything else about the car.
02:49Did it have its mirrors?
02:50And he said, as far as I know.
02:51I drive an F-150 with a cap on the back and I can't see spit out of my window
02:55other than headlights
02:56at night.
02:57Dismissed.
02:57Dismissed.
Comments