TexasCHLforum.com

Ameer wrote:

srothstein wrote:Ameer,

In the Court of Criminal Appeals decision (Kurtz) that said that a traffic stop was an arrest, they specifically said it did not rise to the status of a custodial arrest that would trigger Miranda. The key point is that Miranda does not say you must be warned of your rights when you are arrested, but when you are being asked questions while in custody whether arrested or not.

Thank you Steve. What about that cliche question, "Do you know how fast you were going?"

Unless we're free to ignore the flashing blue lights and keep driving, it seems like we're in custody during a traffic stop. I'm speaking of the Plain English meaning of the words not Lawyerish. Now that I think of it, that may be my problem.

IMHO - That is the biggest problem we have today with our justice system. The simple fact is that common english isn't sufficient to express legal concepts. Seems to me that it takes the law out of the hands of the people and restricts the understanding of it to an elite group.........didn't our forefathers fight a war at one time over that very concept?

I have to agree with a previous post stating that you should call DPS and get a determination from them. Sealed is a euphimism for 'not easliy available, but there anyway'. I was always under the impression that juvenile records were sealed once you gained legal adulthood. However, under the Patriot Act, employers can check your juvenile records for criminal offenses. A young man with our company was arrested as a juvenile and charged with "Terroristic Threats" (he threatened to beat up a fellow student). He didn't list it on his employment application because 1. he received deferred adjudication and was told it was expunged, and 2. It was a juvenile offense. His employment was almost terminated for falsification of application. Be ready to supply supporting documentation to DPS in the event they want you to list it on your application. Good Luck!