I think the whole excessive force thing is him filing a complaint lol, if you just complain to their boss and that's it you don't get anything, doubt even a sorry. OP, it really sucks what happened to you, I doubt those guys even know what a real pipe bomb looks like, you should make a point to ask that. Definitely get a new lawyer, but also don't be too harsh on the police, just get your sorry and medical expenses, don't press for more.

When anyone and their grandmother can get instructions for a homemade bomb from the internet, it's hard to know what a "real" bomb looks like. However, I agree that the police used excessive force unless we didn't get the whole story. For example... Cops: What's that in your glove compartment OP: Why the **** are you looking in my glove compartment, I didn't give you no damn permission ... Cops: Looks like a bomb!!! OP: Are you mental? That's no damn bomb you ******* idiot!! Cops: *drags OP out of car and slams him on hood* Some times excessive treatment has to do with how you react to their questions.

The lawyer from this FML is useless and needs to be disposed of. And the cop needs a good flogging :O

If he files a complaint with the department, although he may not get anything, they are required by law to investigate. Even if it never makes it to internal affairs, at least they look into it. I, however, don't believe the ops complete story. Without probable cause they probably wouldn't have removed op from his vehicle, unless op was either suspicious in some way or said something that the officers are trained to flag. This is all based on my experience with law enforcement however and is personal opinion.

@63 - Some areas are just worse than others. if I got pulled over for speeding by my parents' home with bloodshot eyes, I could easily get off with being "tired and sick" and a ticket. If I went downtown with the same excuse, you can bet your ass my car is getting searched.

66 - It's the same in my area. My first night driving, I forgot to switch my headlights on (the roads are very well lit). I drive all throughout the "good" section of my city without a hitch (even though I passed several cops). The second I pass into the "bad" section I got pulled over for "suspicious activity." Apparently drug dealers like to drive with their lights off (according to the DUI officer who stopped me). Nine years later, I still have a stuffed animal in my backseat that my parents gave me that evening named Dewey the DUI Squirrel to remind me about my lights.

*you're

And here it comes. The obligatory *you're

So close, 59, so close...

"Bomb! Put your hands where I can see them!" *Cue a dramatic takedown montage in which op likely was tazed and stricken defenseless by the use of bear mace.* "He's resisting arrest!!"

How about the police do their job the proper way and things like this wouldn't happen? I'm firm believer in following law and not giving police a reason to believe you're a suspect, but OP also didn't deserve to be treated as one when they did nothing wrong. Police brutality is a real thing; so are we just going to let the police rough us up every time they have a little "suspicion?" How about a calm and orderly way of dealing with a "suspect?" Marshal law, anyone?

Yes Doc, I totally agree because: A) a can of wipes /totally/ looks like a steel pipe with end caps and wires poking out either end, and B) being thrown against the hood of a car in a violent manner is actually quite enjoyable, similar to being punched in the face.

and who says cops are such great people themselves? I respect what they do on a daily basis but in reality, much like it politics, there are more than enough corrupt cops out there who, "just because they can " , ruff people up.

I highly doubt you would keep this opinion if you were the one slammed against the hood of a car.

There are cops who abuse their power just because they can, just like there are respectable upstanding officers. How do you know which category the cops in this situation fall into. I'm a firm believer that many officers are law abiding and uphold the law while following a code of moral conduct. However, I'm not naive enough to believe it's outside the realm of possibility that cops do exist that abuse their power and unjustly harass innocent citizens. Just like in all jobs, there are good people and bad people. Putting on a badge doesn't automatically make someone an upstanding, moral person.

At my job at the gas station, we were a police substation so I knew cops from two cities, the country and the state. I must say that more than a few times, I heard them bragging that they "scared the shit out of" multiple innocent folks for "fun". That isn't okay. Especially when you're the face of what's right.

The US is currently under marshal law (and has been since 9/11) and is quickly becoming a prison country in which the citizens have no rights. Welcome to the NWO. Those FEMA camps just popped up right?

103- I'm not even going to go into the ridiculousness of that comment, but seeing that you're in Australia, how about you let us Americans worry about our own country, eh? (no offense implied)

#104 Worry away. But do some research before calling it ridiculous.

It's happening all over the world not just in America and some of the FEMA campus have been there since the 70s they just put up a lot more and its not full Marshall law yet but it's fixing to get there

Exactly! I dunno if OP knows this, but you can always find a different lawyer to represent you, or at least provide a consultation. The first part is an FML...the lawyer part is just a "well find someone else"....

Why does the OP even need a lawyer?Lawyers normally won't take a case that they can't win or aren't financially worth their time. Is OP "sue happy" and looking at it as a way to make some cash? How rough was he treated? Did the cop send him to the hospital or cause some sort of damage to his car? File a complaint with the police department. You don't need a lawyer for that.

Most lawyers will take any case because they get paid regardless

Why? His lawyer probably just saved him money on a case that they would've lost!

unfortunately there is never a right way to go about this things for the police, I mean if it had been a bomb and it turned out that they had failed to inspect the person properly the police department at large would have been under major flak from the country at large, conversely like in this situation when they did and not in a very pleasant way it gets chalked up as police brutality, I don't personally condone how the police handled the situation but I do not condemn them either this truly is an FML for OP

No, they can't. Under probable cause, a cop may search your car without a warrant, frisk you, or at times even arrest you if there is enough evidence to support their belief. They cannot force you to admit to anything or even answer any questions at all, and are NEVER allowed to use excessive force due to probable cause, unless you attack them or resist in a threatening way. What happened to OP violated his constitutional rights and went far beyond the claims of probable cause, which gives him reason to complain or even sue.

Sometimes people keep window wipes in a specific (unlabeled) canister other than the container they were purchased in. I have. Whenever they need more wipes they buy another packet and refill the canister. It's not necessarily a labeled canister, or even something that looks like it holds window wipes.

No. Call the Grammar Police. Because I don't know what this comment's even saying.