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Driver’s License and Registration Please

Everybody basically knows what that means. You have been pulled over by a law enforcement officer and they want to see your driver’s license. Maybe it was speeding, maybe a dead inspection sticker, tag light, any number of reasons, but what does it matter…just pull over. Roll down your window, keep your hands on the wheel at 10 and 2 and be respectful. You might receive a citation or a ticket but it’s not the end of the world. Let me introduce you to Rupert…Rupert is one of those people who thinks the cops are always out to get him. Maybe he watches those YouTube videos about people arguing with the police at traffic stops or perhaps he thinks of himself as an activist standing up against the man. Sounds like this: Officer – May I see your driver’s license and registration please? Rupert – I’m not showing you Shit! Why did you pull me over? You ain’t got no reason to be pulling me over…and so on and so on. Meanwhile Rupert’s friend is video taping the whole transaction while Rupert shows off for the camera. This will not end well for Rupert. The officer calls for back up and is now asking Rupert to step out of the vehicle. Rupert rolls up his window and calls who? THE POLICE! he wants to speak to the officer’s supervisor. Meanwhile the officer is shouting commands to Rupert…GET OUT OF THE VEHICLE! KEEP YOUR HANDS WHERE I CAN SEE THEM! Rupert pays no attention to the commands and then the officer smashes the driver’s side window and drags Rupert from the vehicle. Chaos ensues as the passengers in the vehicle are ordered OUT OF THE CAR! GET DOWN ON THE GROUND! Officers with guns drawn, some are well trained and experienced and some are rookies full of adrenaline and fear. Certainly Rupert and his friends are going to jail or worse if someone reaches for their phone in the console or a purse under the seat. READ ALL ABOUT IT! POLICE SHOOT UNARMED MAN AT TRAFFIC STOP! It’s a strange time we’re living in. Rioters in the streets burning cities down, movements to defund police departments and police officers gunned down in broad daylight. Media coverage highlighting the plight of the poor in spite of their criminal behavior. Regardless of what side of America you’re on, the left or the right, socialist or capitalist, black, white brown or green, do yourself and your loved ones a favor. When you get pulled over by a police officer just give them your license and registration, say yes sir, yes ma’am and live to fight another day.

Proverbs 13:20

Read it – Apply it – Change your life

20 Walk with the wise and become wise;
    associate with fools and get in trouble.

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Credit Card Fraud…Mafia Style

Some people think: Credit card fraud? Oh heck no, not me. Have you ever used someone else’s card to make a purchase? Yeah, probably so. It’s harmless enough. Here’s how it goes: Your daughter is running up to the store to get some items and you say, “Here, use my card”. No problem right? Well it really doesn’t violate any state or Federal law but it probably does violate your contract with your credit card company but so what. Step across the line, go ahead. It’s not fraud as long as no fraud was committed or intended and that’s really up to the owner of the card.

TRUE STORY: Dan and Becky have been together for eight years. Every Monday and Thursday Dan would use Becky’s credit card to get gas in his car for his commute to work. Dan would also use the card for lunch or dinner from time to time. Becky happens to look at the credit card statement an notices there are often two lunches or dinners paid for on the same day. Can anyone guess what happens next? Becky starts her investigation. Every man knows that it is impossible to withstand a woman’s examination of the evidence and the cross examination of the days, dates, places and times that the dual dinners and lunches occurred. Eventually the truth comes out. Becky discovers that Dan has been having “lunch and “dinner” with co-worker, Ellen, and paying for it with her card. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. In the end Dan was charged with credit card fraud and obtaining money under false pretenses

ANOTHER TRUE STORY: Imagine a van loaded with credit card blanks, skimmers, cameras and three men from an Armenian crime crew. They were arrested in a Bank of America parking lot where they were parked. Their van was positioned so they had a clear view of the ATM so the camera could take close ups of pin numbers. The fraudsters would take turns standing in line so they could get close enough to skim the info on the card and they would match the pin and clean the account. The Bank of America teller noticed that the van had been there all morning and alerted his manager. Now imagine 100 of these Armenian crime crews throughout the United States doing their best to do their worst. Devastating. Honestly, I think if any of us think long enough and hard enough about how to commit fraud we could probably come up with a 100 ways to do it. Just remember this: There are 101 ways to get caught.

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Feels Like… I’m in a Wack a Mole Game!

Jerry stopped at the “Neon Sign“ on the way home from work. It’s a social thing, not a “I need a drink or I’ll die thing.” Just a couple of beers after work, harmless right? Jerry ordered a club sandwich and a Budweiser, chatted it up with the bartender, bought one of his buddies a beer and his buddy returned the favor. Forty five minutes and three beers later the social event was over. Jerry says goodbye to his bar room buddies and heads to the parking lot. Now here’s the thing, Jerry wasn’t drunk. Matter of fact you don’t have to be drunk to get a DWI. Three beers in 45 minutes depending on your body weight and how your body processes alcohol can result in a Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) of .08 percent, over the legal limit here in the State of Virginia and Jerry is under arrest for DWI. I met Jerry when I posted his $1000 bond. His story is very similar to my story except: I never got caught. Now Jerry had a court date where he was convicted of DWI. He paid his fine, he received five days in jail which the Judge suspended, he had to complete a VASAP program and he was put on 3 years good behavior. He survived right? Not so fast. Jerry paid the $400.00 for the Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program (VASAP) and attended all of the classes except the last one, he had to work. Jerry was charged with another jail-able offense: Failure to comply with VASAP 18.2-271.1 Jerry was arrested again. Jerry was released on his personal recognizance and paid for yet another VASAP class. Whew finally the whole DWI ordeal was over…Not so fast. Remember the three years of good behavior probation? Yep, that’s right, Jerry was arrested for violation of probation because he missed that VASAP class. Every time Jerry would try to do the right thing and lift up his head to recover from his DWI the justice system would descend upon him once again. Jerry said, “I feel like I’m in a daggone Whack-a-Mole Game and I’m the one getting whacked!” “Every time I think it’s over, here they come again!”

Here is the irony: Virginia owns all of the liquor stores here in Virginia. In 2020 they had sales of 1.2 BILLION DOLLARS! Oh did I put that in all caps? That’s a lot of booze for the little ole’ State of Virginny…Kind of unholy Eh? First they sell it to us and then they stick it to us for drinking it…and driving of course. Bail Bonds VA has resources for Jerry! Celebrate Recovery is a 12 step faith based program for people with hurts, habits and hang ups. It’s FREE and it’s helped thousands of people like Jerry get through our judicial system.

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You Looking at Me?

Sounds funny now right? As some of you know, back in the day those were fighting words. Johnny is sitting with his friends down at the skating rink. Some guy across the rink is giving him the ‘you wanna piece of me‘ stare and then a hard brush on the shoulder and it was on. Fist fight in the parking lot. Most people gathered around to watch the fight until one of you started getting the worst of it and somebody would step in and break it up. Black eye, bloody lip and a chipped tooth was all you lost but your macho pride was intact. Here‘s what happens these days: Police are called to the scene, The guy with the black eye says he fell down and hurt his eye, the guy with the bloody lip and the chipped tooth doesn’t want to press charges but the crowd, yes the crowd lets go the “Tale of the Tape” and tells the entire story from beginning to end. Police: “Who hit who first?’ Crowd: “Well that guy over there said something to that guy over there and then that guy over there punched that guy over there and then they started fighting and then…Well… you get the picture. Here is today’s reality. The guy who hit first gets charged with assault. If he was the guy who administered the bloody lip he could very well get charged with malicious wounding. 18.2-51 Virginia law on malicious wounding can be summarized as: any person who maliciously shoots, stabs, cuts, or wounds any person, or, by any means causing him bodily injury with the intent to maim, disfigure, disable, or kill, then he can charged with a class 6 felony. If you draw blood in a fight that’s enough to get charged with malicious wounding. Here is some more bad news. Malicious wounding is a presumption charge, it presumes that you are NOT eligible for bond and you are held without. That’s right! Hire an attorney to file a motion for a bail hearing and spend about a week in jail praying you get a bond. What would have been a scuffle in the parking lot a few years ago now turns in to a felony charge with some serious consequences. Remember what Matthew recounted in Matthew 5:38-40? It’s the place where Jesus says that if someone slaps you upside the head let them slap you on the other side as well. It’s really good and applicable instructions on how NOT to get arrested.

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How to Turn a Paper Cup into a Missile

So…what had happened was…you were driving down the road minding your own business when a car pulls up on your rear end that gives a new meaning to tailgating. Lights flashing, horn blowing and hand signals are giving you the impression that this person behind you is having an emergency. You would gladly move over into the right lane on this four lane highway but there is a car on your right, one in front of him and one behind him. The person behind you is yelling obscenities at you, you can’t hear them but you see them in your rear view mirror. They are out of control! Red Light! You stop for the red light! This seems to exacerbate the out of control driver having a conniption fit on your bumper, finally you can change lanes and let crazy lady go around you. Instead, the road raged driver follows you into the right lane and continues her erratic behavior! Is it possible that road rage is contagious, kind of like a yawn? Maybe so because your road rage button just got pushed! Looking in your rear view mirror you’re palms up sayin WTF is wrong with you lady? She passes you on the left but decides to shadow you,  parallel to your car still shouting vulgar insults with an intensity that makes you think she just might try to run you off the road. THATS IT! Had enough. You reach for the McDonalds cup in your cup holder and toss it out the window at her car. Your temper has flared! You have contracted the rage! Finally she speeds off and leaves you shaking and shaking your head. Wow that happened so fast!

Blue Lights: Yep, right in the rear view mirror.  “Drivers license and registration please.” “Did you have an altercation with a driver a little while ago?” “Why yes I did!” You tell the officer the whole story with emotional enhancement how she tailgated you yelling and screaming even tried to run you off the road. “Did you throw anything at her vehicle?” The officer asks.  You confess, “Well, I think I tossed a McDonalds coke at her when she was threatening to run me off the road.”

Game Over: You are under arrest! That’s right, any person unlawfully throwing any missile at a motor vehicle when occupied by one or more people is guilty of a Class 6 Felony! If the person throws the object maliciously its a Class 4 Felony. This is a very serious offense!

Check it out! 18.2-154 Shooting or throwing missiles!

Not worth it right! Absolutely Not! Keep your wits about you and don’t get arrested.

Think about this. The application of knowledge is wisdom

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Those Are My Cigarettes Ms. Ratchet

So… let me get this straight. You haven’t worked since March. Nobody is hiring, desperation sets in and you are looking at the stack of bills on the table with your head in your hand. The phone rings. Your friend’s friend is on the line with what sounds like the best offer you’ve had all year. Drive a van down to North Carolina and simply buy cigarettes, 5 cartons at a time at as many convenience stores as possible. Work your way up through Virginia and bring them back to New York. You make a cool $500.00 every time you do it. Sounds easy enough right? Well congratulations, you just became a trafficker of contraband that has major organized crime implications.

Cigarettes in New York City sell for over $13 dollars a pack, not much of a riddle when you can buy them for $5.15 per pack in Virginia.  For Example:

Mohamed Seid Ahmed Mohamed of Chesterfield County pleaded guilty in federal court in September to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and to trafficking in contraband cigarettes worth almost $20 million over a 2½-year period. He faces up to five years in prison when sentenced. Mohamed used a cigarette shop and a restaurant as fronts in his operation, which authorities said cheated Virginia out of more than $1 million in sales tax.

However if you have more than 25 cartons but less than 200 cartons you could be guilty of a class 1 misdemeanor…Read More

§ 58.1-1017.1. Possession with intent to distribute tax-paid, contraband cigarettes; penalties.

Any person who possesses, with intent to distribute, more than 5,000 (25 cartons) but fewer than 40,000 (200 cartons) tax-paid cigarettes is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor for a first offense and is guilty of a Class 6 felony for any second or subsequent offense.

Lots of good people get arrested trying to do the right thing in the wrong way. Trafficking  cigarettes is a good way to get on the bad side of the law. A real good way to get arrested!

Check Out How New York Does It!……

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Mom & Dad Go To Jail

I know this sounds like the worst bedtime book in the world but believe it or not it happens…a lot. Here is how it goes.  Remember when you were young and your parents would get in a knock down drag out screaming match that would wake up the neighborhood? If that does not sound familiar it is pretty safe to say you were not raised at my house. There was never really any physical violence, just words that would slice through the heart and glares that would punch a hole in your head. Well back in those days if the town police dropped by to check on the conflict because of a complaint….local law enforcement would calm everyone down, send Dad next door to the neighbor’s house and send Mom to bed. These days the cookie crumbles just a little different. Law enforcement comes in and the first thing they do is separate the conflict participants. An officer takes Mom into one room, Dad goes out on the porch and the interrogation interviews proceed. The questions sound logical enough and the answers sound pretty normal as well. What seems to be the problem? “Well I work all day long and he drinks all day long” No harm no foul right? But remember, Dad is out on the porch. If any of you have ever had any experience with this type of police encounter you have already guessed what is going to happen next…Drunk in public, even on your own porch is a pretty common occurrence.  The Deputy is speaking with Dad about how much he has had to drink and how this whole thing got started. “Well she is always threatening me in front of the kids, she says she is going to knock me over the head with a frying pan and she threw a beer bottle at me and it’s a good thing I ducked cause it smashed her glass cabinet where she keeps all her collectibles” … you guessed right again, assault on a family member. Wait a minute, I thought you said he ducked? That’s right! Assault is just the threat of violence, battery is the actual physical part of domestic violence. So let’s review. Dad is going to jail for drunk in public. Mom is going to jail for assault on a family member. The kids can hopefully go to a neighbor’s house or a relative’s if the officers are empathetic enough to allow it. The alternative is emergency foster care as well as the unexpected interruption of  family life. Mom won’t be able to have contact with Dad for 72 hours because of the mandatory protective order. She will however have to appear in court for arraignment and again for trial. Remember why Mom was mad in the first place? She works, he drinks. Good chance she may lose some pay over this, maybe even her job…and another thing, Mom can no longer own a firearm, purchase a firearm or use a firearm…ever. The Domestic Violence Offender Gun Ban is an amendment to the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act of 1997, enacted by the 104th United States Congress in 1996, which bans access to firearms by people convicted of crimes of domestic violence. The Act is often referred to as “the Lautenberg Amendment” after its sponsor, Senator Frank Lautenberg (D – NJ). So what did we learn? Things are different today than they were a few years ago. There are 101 ways to get arrested…try not to make this common occurrence one of them.

 

 

 

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But That’s is My Medication

But That's is My Medication.

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But That’s is My Medication

Ways to Get Arrested # 5

You have seen them before, little plastic boxes with the days of the week stamped on the compartments, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, you know we put our pills in there so we can organize our medication. Or if you’re a guy you just slip a couple of prescribed vicoden into your pocket in case your tooth starts to bother you. Last night I helped a fellow get out of jail for possession of Drugs/Schedule 1 or 2 because his pain medication fell out of his wallet when he was producing his license for a traffic stop. Oh yea he’ll probably produce his prescription at his trial and his charges will be dismissed but he still went to jail, have at least 2 court dates and have the arrest: not conviction,  on his criminal history. Calling a bail bondsman imagesand paying the $100.00 will seem like a sweet dream compared to what comes next.

He was placed on pretrial supervision, it is kind of like pre-conviction probation. It sort of flies in the face of the presumption of innocence and is arguably one of the driving factors in the alarming and unprecedented and ever-increasing incarceration rate in America.

Pretrial service agencies started out as what seemed like a great and noble idea. In 1961, Russian born philanthropist Louis Schweitzer and magazine editor Herb Sturz (Open Society Institute) saw an opportunity through then Attorney General, Bobby Kennedy to alter the bail system in New York City. It appeared that many inmates of color were being held on bonds they could not or would not pay. We in the Bail Community know that very few people stay in jail because of money…they typically have burned every bridge they’ve crossed and no family member is willing to indemnify them. One of the huge problems with pretrial service agencies is the removal of family influence on the offender. To five you an idea of the toll the pretrial services act of 1982 has taken on America. In 1982 there were 139 people per 100,000 incarcerated in the U.S. As of 2009 there were 754 per 100,000…. More on this later.

In the end, these cases usually come down to a scenario that looks like this: Plead guilty to a felony and you will serve no jail time, 3 years probation, fines community service and a drug class. Plead guilty to a misdemeanor and get 1 year in jail,(misdemeanor time in Virginia is served at 50% so 6 months in jail) How this common practice in pretrial negotiations benefits the State or society is a mystery…Stay tuned to 101 ways to get arrested on the internet!

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Just a Ride to WalMart

Here’s a great way to get arrested! Here’s all you need to do. First you give a friend a ride to WalMart because you are a good neighbor and your friend told you she needed some baby supplies and she needed to return a item. You say sure, no problem: You walk into the store together, you even take a turn pushing the cart and go to the check out station together. In fact, you were with her the whole time except for when she filled the new “Baby Bag” she was purchasing with various other items she had no intention of paying for.

Here is what happened next. The cameras caught the entire visit on film, you were detained then placed under arrest for felony shoplifting (over $200.00 in value) taken to the local county jail where you prayed that you get a bond…or maybe pre-conviction (pretrial probation) probation.

But wait a minute! You didn’t have a blessed thing to do with this! You were just being a good Samaritan and now your facing a Felony charge. It’s not fair…but it happens every day in every WalMart in just about every town in America. Have questions? Send us a note on how you got arrested and maybe we’ll use your story in our updates! 101 ways to get arrested! Choose your friends wisely