Simi Valley, CA Criminal Defense Law Firms & Lawyers

Basically, you are asking for a prediction of what will happen in the future, which no attorney can provide. Also, these are questions you should be asking your defense attorney since (s)he knows more about your case and the prosecution's evidence than I do. I can tell you that Justice does not always prevail. You should sit down and talk with your attorney regarding your concerns.

Get an attorney to look the case over. Auto theft is a felony and a serious offense. Also he should not talk to anyone about the charges until he talks to legal counsel.

Of course, if you could prove the officer was dishonest, you could get your charges dismissed for no probable cause for the stop. There may be a video from his police car, and you should have your attorney file Discovery motions (these are motions an attorney files to basically subpoena the State's evidence) to find this out. The video often shows what happened a certain time period before the actual stop was made, and could show that you used your turn signal. Also, tho, there are usually specific laws about how soon before you change lanes or turn that you have to actually begin the signal - you can't just turn it on right before you make the turn or change lanes. Now, you are correct that him being "suspicious" is not valid cause for him pulling you over. However, unless is is caught on video, he's not going to ever admit he actually said that to you. Well, I have never, in 22 years of practicing criminal defense, seen an officer knowingly admit to anything that would get a case thrown out. As far as shining a light in your car, anything that can be viewed with a flashlight, without the officer having to open something, is fair game for him. Therefore, he didn't violate any of your rights when he found the grinder by merely shining the light in your car.