No warrant required?

[ScottDLS]

I'm intersted in Gigag04's response on this:

Whenever I get out of my vehicle for any reason (Traffic Stop, Checkpoint, etc...) I always lock my truck with the keys inside on the floormat. I have an electronic combonation lock on the outside which will unlock the doors when I enter the code.

If my truck was to be towed, how will anyone inventory my truck if the doors are locked, keys inside and no one can get in assuming I won't provide the code?

When the towing company opens the truck with a "slim jim" in 5 seconds, they will use the keys that you have kindly provided to open the trunk...

[RPB]

yup, what ScottDLS said.

Wrecker needs to secure the steering wheel and put in neutral ... unless you want a damaged vehicle.
Additionally, if a 4 wheel drive ... etc etc.

[McKnife]

Are wreckers legally allowed to break into my vehicle? Are police legally allowed to break into a vehicle?

I'm not trying to sound ignorent, this really interests me. I've never had a vehicle towed, but I would be furious if it happened.

[RPB]

Are wreckers legally allowed to break into my vehicle? Are police legally allowed to break into a vehicle?

I'm not trying to sound ignorant, this really interests me. I've never had a vehicle towed, but I would be furious if it happened.

You'd be more furious if you had 4 wheel drive, and need transmission replaced.
You can't leave your vehicle there ...
Wreckers are trying to secure and protect your vehicle for you, otherwise, they'd just hook up the chains and drag it in gear with your parking brakes on .....
They kinda HAVE to get in, so your vehicle isn't damaged....You can't leave your vehicle there ...

A rollback wrecker "could" be called, (when/IF one is available, at additional expense to you) and a wrecker driver could "try" to drag it up on the bed with a brake on and in gear and wheels turned sideways .... if that's what you insist on maybe ... I wouldn't want to see my car laying on it's side because I refused to cooperate though. Certainly couldn't sue a wrecker company for my own failure to mitigate my damages and instructing people to follow unsafe non-standard procedures which wouldn't protect, and would probably damage my property.

Of course if there's drugs in your car, it may not be your vehicle long anyway, unless you buy it at the auction. In which case, you'd want the transmission to still work instead of replacing it ...

[mctowalot]

We have our ways...(insert villainous laugh here)

Don't need no stinking keys.

Let's just say there really are 1001 uses for WD-40

[RPB]

We have our ways...(insert villainous laugh here)

Don't need no stinking keys.

Let's just say there really are 1001 uses for WD-40

[philip964]

Our rights are being taken under the title of "safety". TSA - enough said.

Ok the quote I dont remember his name, "when you trade your freedoms for safety, you get neither"

Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson. William Jefferson Clinton. I forget.

[C-dub]

Wreckers want an inventory too ... for when the drunk bails out the next day, come pick up there car (always in the best of moods when they hear the price) and asks

"What about the $400.00 I had in there?"
Where'd my rifle go?
Where's my TOOLBOX?
etc etc etc.

And it protects the arrestee from sticky fingered tow truck drivers. Good add RPB, thank you!

All true, but it still doesn't mean a thing unless the driver was involved in the inventory. Not everyone is completely honest and trustworthy. While LEO's may be more honest than the average citizen and certainly more so than a criminal they are not infallible.

[C-dub]

I don't live in California...

A great argument if and until it get's appealed to the SCOTUS and they say a warrant is not required. Then it won't matter if you live in California or not.

[mctowalot]

I'm about to hit the road but want to post a few points:

(And thanks to the poster above for putting things so eloquently)

- Just as not all cops are corrupt, the same is true for wrecker drivers. My fingers are not sticky, though they are sometimes slippery from all the WD-40.

- Normally sane and rational people become the opposite at the storage lot. I have personally witnessed several folks attempt to pin preexisting damage on the tow truck driver. One guy insisted there were marks on his bumper from the tow "sling". But the only part of his car that was touched by the wrecker in this case were the tires.

- Many times 2 or more officers inventory (write down) the contents of a towed vehicle. People will claim things are missing that were never there in the first place.

While I don't have time to post the links, I think you'll find the following terms educational once Googled:

(Of course you might want to throw the term "tow or wrecker" in with your search)

- Go Jacks
- Skates
- Snatch block

And the king of wreckers, the Israeli designed "Sampson". It's a wrecker that the driver only needs to pull up parallel to the target and the wrecker loads itself.

Enjoy!

P.S. Check out the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation website. I think you'll find their take on the opening of a vehicle for the purposes of towing it to be quite interesting.

[Bullwhip]

yup, what ScottDLS said.

Wrecker needs to secure the steering wheel and put in neutral ... unless you want a damaged vehicle.
Additionally, if a 4 wheel drive ... etc etc.

Lift the front wheels, doesn't matter which way they point. FWD, transmission doesn't matter. RWD, takes 10 seconds to put it in neutral, so transmission doesn't matter. Can't do either, put it on skates. Any tow driver who can't do that should be liable for any damage he causes.

No reason at all to break into a locked car when you can reach the stuff underneath. Best protection of all is to say "it was locked, we didn't open it, here's why..."

[Katygunnut]

I would have to assume that there are already smartphone apps that allow you to easily erase all (or better yet a selected set) of the data in a phone. Ideally, you could do this just by entering a pre-set false "panic" code into the phone and/or it could be triggered after a set number of incorrect password attempts.

In addition to protecting against unreasonable searches by authorities, this would have practical value for anyone that was doing something their spouse might not much appreciate. Remember what happened after Elin got hold of Tiger's phone?

My younger brother likes to write I-Phone / Droid Apps in his spare time (his day job is as a programmer). Maybe I'll see if he could make this.

[Ameer]

In addition to protecting against unreasonable searches by authorities, this would have practical value for anyone that was doing something their spouse might not much appreciate. Remember what happened after Elin got hold of Tiger's phone?

It can also be marketed to protect innocent people from identity theft and cyber crimes.

[mctowalot]

I like it! Call it the "Get Smart" app.

"This phone will self destruct in 5 seconds..."

Better yet, carve out a smart phone compartment in your shoe.

It would probably be best to avoid any airports.

[Originalist]

gig - I thought we still had "incedent to arrest" as long as there was a reasonable belief the vehicle would be reoccupied?