Poll: Your Thoughts on This Law

[Miramonti]

a person's intention to use a false or secret compartment to conceal the contents of the compartment from a law enforcement officer may be inferred from factors including, but not limited to, the discovery of a person, firearm, controlled substance, or other contraband within the false or secret compartment, or from the discovery of evidence of the previous placement of a person, firearm, controlled substance, or other contraband within the false or secret compartment.


It looks like you've got to get caught with something illegal in it before they can charge you. If you have a compartment with nothing in it then you have no problems.

I don't have a problem with it because it just seems to increase the consequences for people who are already guilty of a crime, i.e. stashing drugs or weapons. My concern would be does it *excessively* punish those who are caught, since they would already be up for charges on whatever illegal they were stashing. Next thing you know though, they will try rewriting the law to make it easy to charge you for intent to hide contraband even tho theres no contraband in it, because they'll find compartments with nothing in them and won't be able to nail you on it.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

So, lemme see... Some cop doesn't like you, puts something in your car, and VOILA, he now owns your car. Cool.

Nah, would NEVER happen huh.

Having had some interesting interactions with state police in a few states, I would say that this law sux. The local cops can't stand the staties in MA. They would love something like that here.

 

[Mister T]

yet another retarded law...

Stupid laws are made by stupid people and we seen to have an abundance of both in this country

 

[UltraQuiet]

While I have mixed feelings about this law (although I would probably support law enforcement) I am surprised no one has brought up a similar law already on the books in a lot of states. It deals directly with your ability to conceal something in your vehicle. I'm talking about window tint laws. Enacted primarily because police officers complained they could not see into vehicles with dark tint. I don't know how many of you consider these to be similar laws but I certainly do.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Of course in the law it states there has to be the intention of keeping it from law enforcement. Any lawyer will fight that one on the basis of "keeping stuff out of site of thieves"

 

[JupiterJones]

This law facilitates the seizure of private property without due process.

 

[Thrillhou]

Well if an officer found a secret compartment then the compartment would no longer be a secret and the law would not cover that compartment, right? They need to reword the law so that it can be less open to literal interpretation.

The window tinting law was enacted to protect cops. The police need to be able to see inside a vehicle they are stopping so that they can determine if the situation is dangerous. It it stupid how the law allows for more tint on SUVs and minivans than it does on regular cars.

 

[bozack]

What about a secret compartment within a secret compartment??......

 

[Jzero]

<< I don't know how many of you consider these to be similar laws but I certainly do. >>


Not really the same...another complaint is that window tint can also obscure vision at night.
This thing appears to say you can't have a secret compartment in your car installed with the intent of deceiving law enforcement. It's way too broad. If I get stopped under suspicion of DUI and the cops search my car and find an empty secret compartment hidden behind the door panel, who is to say that it was to hide marijuana, or if I put it there to hide my CD-wallet in case someone breaks into my car?

The bottom line is that I own my car, and my car is my private property--I can modify it anyway I please as long as those modifications don't make it unsafe to drive, and I hardly think a secret compartment would do so.
Furthermore, I can keep whatever I want in my car, being as that it's my private property, and I can hide it however I please. If whatever I have hidden in my car is illegal, than come after me for possession of drugs or a concealed weapon or whatnot. Don't try to make it illegal to have a secret compartment--criminals will build them anyway.

"If you make it a crime to have a secret compartment, only criminals will have secret compartments."

 

[her209]

I can see how terrorists would want to build secret compartments for their car bombs.

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

<< Good Law >>

But I'm going to have one in my car anyway.

nik