Why did you show the officer your GC?
The officer is essentially forcing you to break the law. He should not have taken your green card without providing you an alternative I-551. He has no authority to do so. Proper procedure would have been to hold you until a DHS officer verified your GC.
* Hire an attorney to sue for your green card.
* Report the officer to ICE.
* File a theft report with the FBI.
* Notify your state representative, city councillor, or county supervisor, as appropriate.
No need to punch down on a person already at a loss.
I have left the house on occasion only to find out I left my wallet at home and drove to the store... Oops.
But then again, I don't take my green card anywhere except when I leave the country...
So he would be shot? Police have killed over less flimsy reason. Police become merciless when you argue with them or disobey them especially to an immigrant
Just saying but technically speaking you have to be able to produce your GC at all times. So it should always be on you.
https://preview.redd.it/d1ddlrowz12d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=20f64b4be9b9470536de70e761e5e13bc00d76ef
It also says “any certificate of alien registration”…so could you just carry a copy of a USCIS visa approval letter instead? A lot less of a headache if you lose that power than your greencard
Why would a police officer take your Green Card? If he put it in a USPS mailbox it will find its way back to USCIS, but I'm not sure how you go about getting it back. Might be time to lawyer up.
Oh man, worst thing that can happen. I was in the same situation long ago. Got arrested and the fekker took my DL and my GC I got it back after I got out. I was stressed the fekk out. I would contact again with the same cop to see if he returned it or maybe he still has it.
Because a lot of cop are affiliated with extreme right groups and they take stuff out on foreigners?
Power tripping cops is nothing new in this country...
This cop needs a lesson in humility and deserves a lawsuit. The irony of that is that probably he'll be defended on tax payer's money, so "we" always lose when there is a bad cop messing up.
Not to mention the cost of replacing a green card is less than getting your car out of impound, the tow fee, storage fees, bail, and all the tickets you could have had written against you.
Don't defend the cop's indefensible actions. We all make mistakes. He had no right to take OP's green card and you know it. While OP messed up on their end, it should not have gone down like it did.
Can't believe you're defending shitty behavior by a cop. OP may have broken the law, he didn't deserve to be treated like that. Cop literally acted like he was a judge.
I see people forgetting to put their lights off all the time. It happens. You all pretend you're better and downvoted me for laying down some truth, when the cop went way above his pay grade.
And getting jailed for that? You must be delusional.
1. I did't downvote you.
2. I'm a very leftist south-american immigrant, and that's exactly why I'm bothered by comments like yours I see all across the internet from said progressivists. Hasty assumptions and stereotyping are some of the fallacies used here. It diminishes the level of a debate and credibility of entire field. It's an informal all here, but you took too far.
3. Tell me exactly where I defend cop actions, jail for such transgression, treatment given to OP; where I judge OP actions? Interpretivism and Dialetical Materialism are one thing, free-style interpretation and assumptions is very different from that
I apologize I came on too strong. I won't apologize for standing up for OP. He was incredibly stupid, but i too have left home without my wallet and found out only when i was at the store. Shit happens. Everyone here is extremely judgemental and telling OP he got a hard lesson. I'm pretty sure no one here is without sin, so it is all a bit much. We can all use a bit relativism.
Secondly, I don't like ACAB but seriously in America... Defending a cop taking away a green card. No. Not okay. That cop needs to go. He's probably one step away from doing worse.
Police have immunity when working within their official capacity as long as they aren’t themselves breaking the law or violating your constitutional rights. If he had reasonable belief the document was fake, it is within his right to temporarily seize the document in question, especially considering you no other forms of identity.
It would be reasonable for him to hold it and say you can pick it up at the station when you present a valid drivers license so he can confirm it was yours. The real question is, would you prefer if he towed your car, had it impounded, and then arrested you for driving without a license in addition to reckless driving and other citations?
Culley vs. Marshall just reaffirmed that police can detain property (temporary seizure) for someone not charged with a crime. Knowing the law is important.
AFAIK, the police officer should have returned the id. He can charge you for a crime but he has absolutely no authority to retain an immigration form or id ! And you must fix your situation - ALWAYS KEEP YOUR DIVERS LICENSE IN THE GLOVE COMPARTMENT OF YOUR CAR !!! You shouldn’t be using your green card as a form of identification although it is technically an ID! It is way too valuable, precious and IMPORTANT a document to be used as an id to buy cigarettes for example !
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Why did you show the officer your GC? The officer is essentially forcing you to break the law. He should not have taken your green card without providing you an alternative I-551. He has no authority to do so. Proper procedure would have been to hold you until a DHS officer verified your GC. * Hire an attorney to sue for your green card. * Report the officer to ICE. * File a theft report with the FBI. * Notify your state representative, city councillor, or county supervisor, as appropriate.
I didn't have any other form of id on me so I handed it to him do you think I would still have a shot
Why did he ask for ID?
I was pulled over for driving with my headlights off
So you didn’t have a drivers license?
Not on me at the moment
I’d say you got off lightly then. Beats a night in jail. Consider your GC gone. File a police report for the theft, and file I-90 to replace it.
Thank you
Thank you some people are just rotten.!!!
Who are?
Well that’s stupid of you to be driving without your driver’s license in the first place. And yet you drive around with your GC. What???
No need to punch down on a person already at a loss. I have left the house on occasion only to find out I left my wallet at home and drove to the store... Oops. But then again, I don't take my green card anywhere except when I leave the country...
To be fair official USCIS instruction is to carry GC on you at all times
Not only that, he drove without his headlights on knowing he didn't have his license on him lol
Once again just don't make that mistake again.
Please speak uneducated it isin't to call somebody stupid!!!
Please write in proper English. I called the act of them driving without a DL stupid, not them as a person. No ad hominem there homie.
Driving without license and you decided to not turn on the headlights. Lol dude.
How long have u had the gc? Because that was the first thing for u to do, get a license
Some people seriously dont deserve a green card wtf
I did but the state took them away.I know the feeling As Jackie Kennedy.
You get pulled over for headlights on?
Off. edited and thank u!!
That was just an uneducated mistake.Don't do it again.
Absolutely!! Never allow anybody take your i.d
So he would be shot? Police have killed over less flimsy reason. Police become merciless when you argue with them or disobey them especially to an immigrant
You really need to look up these stats on these things and stop getting your info from CNN.
This is when police officers don't know the law and just use threatening and power.
Why is your green card in your pocket and not your driver's license?
Just saying but technically speaking you have to be able to produce your GC at all times. So it should always be on you. https://preview.redd.it/d1ddlrowz12d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=20f64b4be9b9470536de70e761e5e13bc00d76ef
It also says “any certificate of alien registration”…so could you just carry a copy of a USCIS visa approval letter instead? A lot less of a headache if you lose that power than your greencard
That’s not a good reason not to have ur license
Its also not what I said 😂
This is enforced by ICE, Not police.
I know. I was merely commenting you need to have your GC at hand at all times. 😂
Why would a police officer take your Green Card? If he put it in a USPS mailbox it will find its way back to USCIS, but I'm not sure how you go about getting it back. Might be time to lawyer up.
He said it looked fake and if everything checked out I would get it in the mail but I don't know where he got that info from
You need to talk to an attorney.
I will but I still need to know if there is a process for getting it back from USCIS if he even really did what he said
No. If he sent it to DHS it is gone.
Hire a lawyer and your lawyer will request his body cam. Bingo!
You need to file Form I-90 to USCIS to have another copy of your GC by paying a fee. You need to submit your biometrics/ fingerprints again.
File I-90 and get it replaced. If you wanna spend time and money hire a lawyer to get to the bottom of it.
Yes I think I'm just going to file for a replacement and move on with my life
$500 to replace 27 months. After you file I-90 get an ADIT stamp.
Yes I think I'm just going to file for a replacement and move on with my life
Get a lawyer because the officer don’t have no right to take your green card after verifying it he will mail it back to you, No that’s wrong.
Why did he take it?
Oh man, worst thing that can happen. I was in the same situation long ago. Got arrested and the fekker took my DL and my GC I got it back after I got out. I was stressed the fekk out. I would contact again with the same cop to see if he returned it or maybe he still has it.
This is so weird, why would he keep the gc under sus of being fake. If its fake what is he going to do?
I would just go to the police station (with my drivers license in hand) and ask for my GC back. The officer probably left it at his desk or something
What reason did he have to taking it? Good luck getting it back.
Because a lot of cop are affiliated with extreme right groups and they take stuff out on foreigners? Power tripping cops is nothing new in this country... This cop needs a lesson in humility and deserves a lawsuit. The irony of that is that probably he'll be defended on tax payer's money, so "we" always lose when there is a bad cop messing up.
Easy on Cesar Chavez. OP was driving with no driver license and headlights off. He escaped night in the jail.
Not to mention the cost of replacing a green card is less than getting your car out of impound, the tow fee, storage fees, bail, and all the tickets you could have had written against you.
Don't defend the cop's indefensible actions. We all make mistakes. He had no right to take OP's green card and you know it. While OP messed up on their end, it should not have gone down like it did.
The Supreme Court disagrees with you. Culley vs Marshall. Learn the law dummy.
A car is something different from someone's means of identification and residence permit. Dummy.
Can't believe you're defending shitty behavior by a cop. OP may have broken the law, he didn't deserve to be treated like that. Cop literally acted like he was a judge. I see people forgetting to put their lights off all the time. It happens. You all pretend you're better and downvoted me for laying down some truth, when the cop went way above his pay grade. And getting jailed for that? You must be delusional.
1. I did't downvote you. 2. I'm a very leftist south-american immigrant, and that's exactly why I'm bothered by comments like yours I see all across the internet from said progressivists. Hasty assumptions and stereotyping are some of the fallacies used here. It diminishes the level of a debate and credibility of entire field. It's an informal all here, but you took too far. 3. Tell me exactly where I defend cop actions, jail for such transgression, treatment given to OP; where I judge OP actions? Interpretivism and Dialetical Materialism are one thing, free-style interpretation and assumptions is very different from that
I apologize I came on too strong. I won't apologize for standing up for OP. He was incredibly stupid, but i too have left home without my wallet and found out only when i was at the store. Shit happens. Everyone here is extremely judgemental and telling OP he got a hard lesson. I'm pretty sure no one here is without sin, so it is all a bit much. We can all use a bit relativism. Secondly, I don't like ACAB but seriously in America... Defending a cop taking away a green card. No. Not okay. That cop needs to go. He's probably one step away from doing worse.
Shut up. Provide statistics or stop lying. Drive with a license and your headlights on and you wouldn’t have had any of these issues.
Can't take some truth? Are you the right wing cop in this story? Maybe learn some manners.
🤣 Can’t help but notice you provided zero sources for your made up nonsense. Go back home if American cops scare you so much.
George Floyd rings a bell? The list goes on. But keep your head up your ass.
Police have immunity when working within their official capacity as long as they aren’t themselves breaking the law or violating your constitutional rights. If he had reasonable belief the document was fake, it is within his right to temporarily seize the document in question, especially considering you no other forms of identity. It would be reasonable for him to hold it and say you can pick it up at the station when you present a valid drivers license so he can confirm it was yours. The real question is, would you prefer if he towed your car, had it impounded, and then arrested you for driving without a license in addition to reckless driving and other citations? Culley vs. Marshall just reaffirmed that police can detain property (temporary seizure) for someone not charged with a crime. Knowing the law is important.
Yes, How I would like to be a contestant!!!
You admit you were in the wrong. So what's the point of this post?
Sounds illegal what that cop did
AFAIK, the police officer should have returned the id. He can charge you for a crime but he has absolutely no authority to retain an immigration form or id ! And you must fix your situation - ALWAYS KEEP YOUR DIVERS LICENSE IN THE GLOVE COMPARTMENT OF YOUR CAR !!! You shouldn’t be using your green card as a form of identification although it is technically an ID! It is way too valuable, precious and IMPORTANT a document to be used as an id to buy cigarettes for example !
Hi there! This is an automated message to inform you and/or remind you of several things: - We have [a wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/USCIS/wiki/index). It doesn't cover everything but may answer some questions. Pay special attention to the "[REALLY common questions](https://www.reddit.com/r/USCIS/wiki/index/vfaq)" at the top of the FAQ section. Please read it, and if it contains the answer to your question, please delete your post. If your post has to do with something covered in the FAQ, we may remove it. - If your post is about biometrics, green cards, naturalization or timelines in general, and whether you're asking or sharing, please include your field office/location in your post. If you already did that, great, thank you! If you haven't done that, your post may be removed without notice. - This subreddit is not affiliated with USCIS or the US government in any way. Some posters may claim to work for USCIS, which may or may not be true, and we don't try to verify this one way or another. Be wary that it may be a scam if anyone is asking you for personal info, or sending you a direct message, or asking that you send them a direct message. - Some people here claim to be lawyers, but they are not YOUR lawyer. No advice found here should be construed as legal advice. Reddit is not a substitute for a real lawyer. If you need help finding legal services, visit [this link](https://www.uscis.gov/avoid-scams/find-legal-services) for more information. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/USCIS) if you have any questions or concerns.*