Can a friend with a parollee be searched?

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Kerry
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Joined: Sat Aug 31, 2002 8:01 pm

Can a friend with a parollee be searched?

Post by Kerry » Fri Apr 16, 2004 9:57 pm

This question was submitted anonymously on 4/17/04 via our Spouse Abuse Tutorial "Frequently Asked Questions Form." It was sent again, with an edit, so it's clear that the submitter is sincerely concerned and would like an answer.n n Question:n n 1) Does someone with a parolee have to be search if they didn't break the law?n n 2) Does a person with a parolee have give up rights and be searched even if they didn't break any law?n n I'm going to begin by restating what I believe the question to be.n n Can the police legally search me without a warrant if I am with a parolee?n n My answer: I don't know, however, off the top of my head my thought is yes. n n While it's possible that someone might not know the person they are with is a parolee they do have the responsibility to know. The term "associating with a known criminal" rings a bell. I believe the terms criminal and parolee are inappropriate once the parole has been satisfactorily completed. Even then, it's known that police will question "ex-convicts" (their entire life) when they are searching for a suspect. n n Do I like the policy, do I think it's fair? No. But I don't know how else I would have it be.n n Your question comes from what's referred to in communication coaching jargon as an adversarial communication model. It's not as bad as it sounds. It's the model all parents, teachers, and clergy, teach children. It's used in courts of law. It's an Us vs. Them model. Another communication model is called mutually satisfying communication. n n For example: A person who operates from the mutually satisfying communication model would have no problem with being searched. Their attitude towards the police in this situation would be "in service" and as follows: —NOT NECESSARILY VERBALIZED TO THE POLICE OFFICER— [What can I do to help you officer? Search me? Why sure. I'm absolutely clear that I am clean and so is my fried. We have nothing to hide. Whatever it will take to satisfy you that my friend and are not doing anything illegal. You are doing the job I'm paying you to do. I know that you and I and the community are collectively producing 40% recidivism (return to prison). Thank you.] n n I do know that many police officers are themselves stuck in adversary and that they carry around lots of unresolved upsets and anger, and that this gets expressed as contempt, condescension, and verbal and nonverbal abuse. In lay terms, they are rude, accusatory and abusive. They carry stuff from their previous experiences into the now. And, this is what's so. It's to be expected. It happens. It never ever works to try and handle an officer's case while they are in the middle of doing his/her job. n n Note: If you have negative attitudes about police, that's your stuff. You need therapy or counseling. Once communicated (as opposed to talked about) such attitudes will disappear.n n Now we come to the metaphysical part of my answer, the airy-fairy part. I find that it works to intend what's happening. If I somehow (albeit unconsciously) cause an officer to stop me and my friend, that's MY creation, not my friend's, nor the officer's. It could be said that they are merely playing their roles in my life's drama. They are supporting me in learning the lessons I need to learn to be whole and complete—happy. n n While it may be true that the way you are communicating and relating with your friend is having a profound transformational effect, virtually inspiring him/her to continually chose to go straight, you are, I am, we are, doing a terrible job with the other 40% of the parolees. Forty percent end up back in prison. The point being, the officer doesn't know what a great job you are doing and so he/she relates with you based upon the stats. To an officer, you might be initially thought of as an enabler.n n It's not that prison correctional officers don't do their job in rehabilitating a prisoner, it's that we have yet to provide equal support for a parolee's friends, family, and the community at large, all those that communicated in such a way as to inspire some to not go straight. In other words, it won't work if we only rehabilitate one person in a family. Our communication-leadership skills drive some to a life of crime. n n Read more about this in our Community Support Group Project .n n With aloha,n n Kerry

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