DK, on this issue I am with you all the way !
It is a cop out to turn around and simply say "no harm done". While in this case that might be very well true, the same can not be said of all cases. People reputations and characters have been permanently damaged in many such incidents. While I am conservative and believe the police and courts need to be able to do their job effectively, we must watch that we do not lower the legal standards too much in this country in a kneejerk response to crime and terrorism.
I think it many times comes down to personal experiences. If you have not been the victim of false accusation it is hard to imagine the feeling. I personally had one when I first moved into the town in which I now reside. My town is a tiny historic little hamlet nestled on the north shore of Long Island. We have many politicians and business people who live here, hence we also have an intense police presence. When I was moving here I was on my the last trip when I decided to stop at a Church around the harbor, which I did. I was in the parking lot saying a prayer for the new house, when a Suffolk County police officer pulled in behind me. He asked me what I was doing and I explained the situation. His reply to me was "bullshit, you are buying drugs". Now this stunned me, my first thoughts were "in a church parking lot ?", well it turns out that some teenagers who lived behind the church sold pot and would meet people in the parking lot at night. With no further probable cause, he pulled me out of my car, searched me from head to toe, including sticking his hands inside of my pants. He then proceeded to tear my car apart. Now keep in mind I was moving, so in my car I had delicate items I did not want on the moving truck. He put all the stuff on the ground in the parking lot, some of my antiques were damaged, and certainly my reputation was hurt considering people were passing in cars and looking from homes. To me this is not the best way to introduce yourself to neighbors !
To make a very long story short, there was no probable cause, I did not fit the profile of some addict. I was dressed in a 3 piece suit driving a Cadillac CTS, and other than being in the wrong place at the wrong time, I was doing nothing wrong. I even tried to explain to the officer that I was on his side, that my company gives many donations to PAL, PBA, SDA, and a host of other police organizations, that we work with Suffolk County Police's IT department to help expedite benefit administration. As well as working with the Medical Examiner and Forensic labs departments.
He did not care. He was rude, arrogant, and a little too physical for the situtation, so now he is no longer a police officer. I did get an appology letter from the police department and have been able to clear my image with friends and neighbors, but this illustrates the damage that can be done and the need for legal standards to be upheld by the police and courts.