Sticky Situation Regarding Knives in Maine. Please Help!!!
Posted: January 16th, 2011 | Author: Mitch | Filed under: Camp Sites | Tags: amp, boarder, campground rules, camping in maine, cops, different story, fireworks, illegal trafficking, knives, legitimate reason, loud music, new hampshire, pocket knife, private campground, private property, state of maine, thanks in advance, traffic, valid reason | 2 Comments »Okay; so this story is going to be long. But I really need help. A bunch of my friends ((who live in NH)) went camping in Maine. It was literally a five minute drive over the boarder. We went camping on a Private Campground; you have to pay to get in. But its all private property. Now the cops came and arrested my boyfriend ((For no legitimate reason but that’s a different story)) Well when they were arresting him they found a pocket knife. It was in his pocket but the clip to it was on the outside. I’m not sure how many inches the knife is but its a small on that you have to push a button to open ((he uses it for his work)). Now the cops charged him with Illegal trafficking of a deadly knife into the state of Maine. So my questions are these:: 1. Since we are from NH does this rule still apply. 2. since we were on a privately owned campground can he still get into trouble ((Also it says no where on the campground rules are knives illegal;; it says just chainsaws and fireworks are illegal)) 3. Since they have no valid reason for arresting him wasn’t the knife illegal found? 4. If it is valid he has court in October; what will most likely be his fine/punishment.
Sorry to write so much;; I just wanted to be as detailed as possible.
Thanks in advance for any help you might have. && I’ll be sure to clear up any questions about the situation you have that might make for a better answer! =)
They were on the property because someone from another camp site called the cops for my friends loud music.
The camp owners said the music was fine:: we even have pictures of the camp workers dancing with all of us! But the other people called the cops and they came.
But regardless of why they are there is a knife still illegal when your camping on private property?? && when it says no where in the camp rules is a knife illegal.
We are from New Hampshire where is perfectly legal to carry one:: so we were shocked when he got charged with traffic deadly knives into maine.
I’m not sure if its considered a "switch blade" which is illegal in all 50 states. Because in NH his work has provided him with that knife to use on the job. ((So I’m not sure that a company would hand him an illegal knife))
and as far as him being arrested I will tell the story…
The cops came onto the campground and started screaming and swearing up a storm. LIke we were in bootcamp or something. They told everyone who was around our campsite to quote "Pack your ***** crap. Your all getting ****ing kicked out" Now the cop said to my boyfriend if you dont want to be arrested I suggest you pack your crap. My boyfriends reply was "well I certainly don’t want to be arrested. Looks like I’m packing" when he turned around to unzip our tent ((to get our stuff of course)) a cop didnt say a single word and in 3 seconds of his hand being there the officer threw him on the ground. Then two other officers jumped ontop of him. Now my boyfriend is an ex-marine. Very well mannered……Cont….
….Cont…. he is very well mannered and there was no reason for the cop to just randomly throw him down. Later we have a conversation on a video phone of one officer saying "Oh for an exMarine he wasn’t that tough" and another officer replying with "especially when I was shoving his face in the sand" and made a moving gesture with his hands of how he was shoving his face in the sand.
The cops came in asking NO question.They just started screaming and yelling and swearing. Now the only thing me and my boyfriend did was enjoy some music. And when he went to touch our tent he was thrown on the ground & arrested. Later:: after things got more calm in an hour I asked one officer why he was arrested in the first place. and he stated that "He was told to leave and made no attempt to start doing so" ((Which he clearly was and 5 seconds is not enough time to make a clear effort anyways)) and when asked why they can come in swearing at everyone the reply was "we have first ammend. rights too
now this is becoming a REALLY long post. But as for prior history.
Ex Marine. CLEAN record. Besides 2 speeding tickets. Never been arrested. Never been in jail ((even over night)).
Why were the police on private property? Without that info, I can’t answer the question. Were they summoned or did they just appear? The police can’t do anything without cause.
The knife your boyfriend possessed is called a switchblade. It is illegal in all fifty states. Below I answer your specific questions:
1. Yes, of course you have to obey Maine law when you are in Maine, even if you are from New Hampshire. You consent to be governed by the laws of the state when you enter the state.
2. Yes, you have to obey Maine law even when you are on private property. It doesn’t matter if switchblades are not against campground rules, you still have to comply with the law.
3. If the search of your boyfriend was not done under color of law, he has an argument that the knife is the fruit of an illegal search, and may not be used against him–basically that his due process rights were violated. The Supreme Court has limited the availability of this exclusionary rule in recent years. Since you don’t state the underlying facts, I can offer no opinion as to whether the rule applies, but I am skeptical–what might not seem like a good reason to you may well be a good reason to perform an arrest and search under the law. All that is required is a reasonable suspicion.
4. You provide no facts that would allow anyone to answer this question. What was he charged with? What is his prior history?
Edit: No more than probation. If the story is as bad as you say, the prosecutor will probably drop the charges, but I’ll bet the cops’ story is different! I’m not saying you’re not being accurate, but if the cops are really this bad, they’ll make something up!