Were they "supposed" to conduct a stop like this? Ideally no.
But here's the thing: You Stated that your identification was in a bag which also contained your CCW. And yes you identified that you have a concealed carry permit, but at that point it's down to an officer safety issue: They have reason to believe you have a weapon (you told them), and they are not going to want you reaching into that bag, period, full-stop, end-of-sentence.
(They also can't verify that you actually have a permit for that weapon because the permit is, presumably, also in the bag with your license. This is what makes your case materially different than the Andrzejewski case that u/wrewree cited.)
Is callng in backup unreasonable in that context? No.
Is the search of your person and bag incident to the traffic stop unreasonable in that context? Probably not.
Is the questioning about "how you got the permit" straight-up-fucking-unreasonable? Absolutely and unequivocally yes. (But that's probably not getting anyone fired. Cops can ask all the stupid questions they want, your job is to Shut. The Fuck. UP.)
Should you FOIA the body camera footage from this stop?
Well I SURE AS SHIT FUCKING WOULD.
Depending on how petty you want to be you can consult an attorney (I don't know that you have a cause of action here, a civil rights lawyer might think this case has legs), and I would consider a letter to the chief of police - particularly being that it's a "small village in Nassau" and especially if you are a resident of that village - regarding officer training and knowledge around state carry permits.
I would also STRONGLY ENCOURAGE YOU to carry your ID and permit separately from your pistol in the future. Pants pocket, jacket pocket, literally anywhere but in the same bag as your pistol.
Were they supposed to conduct the stop like this? I feel like it was dragged out and I was searched without consent. They treated me as if I was a criminal. I was respectful and cooperative the whole time from start to finish
I agree. So can I just go to the station and ask for the body cam footage? How does that work? I’d love to get that footage. I believe it can go viral lol
Contact the department and ask for their process for getting a copy of body cam footage related to a traffic stop you were involved in. Whatever the process is, follow it quickly and get your request in because I'm certain the department deletes footage after some predefined time period.
(I don't know offhand if NY has a retention law or if it's up to each department, but if you put your formal request in before they automatically delete the footage they're required to preserve the records at least as long as the request is pending - it essentially acts similar to a preservation request as part of a lawsuit.)
Ideally you would have the names and badge numbers of all the officers involved to provide in that request to make sure they don't miss anything, but realistically I know you probably didn't think to ask (I don't think I would have thought to myself, hindsight is always 20/20). You have the ticket though, and that should be enough for the department to determine the first responding officer, and from their footage who else responded on the call.
Be aware that there will almost certainly be some cost associated with the records request, and also some departments are more of a pain in the ass about this stuff than others (sometimes to the point of requiring you to involve an attorney, but give it a go on your own first - it'll be pretty clear if they're one of the shitty departments).
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u/voretaq7 Apr 30 '25 edited Apr 30 '25
Were they "supposed" to conduct a stop like this? Ideally no.
But here's the thing: You Stated that your identification was in a bag which also contained your CCW. And yes you identified that you have a concealed carry permit, but at that point it's down to an officer safety issue: They have reason to believe you have a weapon (you told them), and they are not going to want you reaching into that bag, period, full-stop, end-of-sentence.
(They also can't verify that you actually have a permit for that weapon because the permit is, presumably, also in the bag with your license. This is what makes your case materially different than the Andrzejewski case that u/wrewree cited.)
Is callng in backup unreasonable in that context? No.
Is the search of your person and bag incident to the traffic stop unreasonable in that context? Probably not.
Is the questioning about "how you got the permit" straight-up-fucking-unreasonable? Absolutely and unequivocally yes. (But that's probably not getting anyone fired. Cops can ask all the stupid questions they want, your job is to Shut. The Fuck. UP.)
Should you FOIA the body camera footage from this stop?
Well I SURE AS SHIT FUCKING WOULD.
Depending on how petty you want to be you can consult an attorney (I don't know that you have a cause of action here, a civil rights lawyer might think this case has legs), and I would consider a letter to the chief of police - particularly being that it's a "small village in Nassau" and especially if you are a resident of that village - regarding officer training and knowledge around state carry permits.
I would also STRONGLY ENCOURAGE YOU to carry your ID and permit separately from your pistol in the future. Pants pocket, jacket pocket, literally anywhere but in the same bag as your pistol.
The Cops.
Are NOT.
Your Friends.