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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:27:59 AM EDT
[#1]
I've been interrogated before (for a crime I was not involved with), the deputies definitely pressured me into thinking that I had no choice but to talk right then and there if they were going to go "easy on me".
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:28:11 AM EDT
[#2]
why dont you go post this in the leo section..........lol oh and have fun with this one............... |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:31:40 AM EDT
[#3]
People are just that stupid.
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:38:04 AM EDT
[#5]
"You have nothing to worry about. We just want to get this cleared up."
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:40:32 AM EDT
[#6]
Their conscience causes them to do it. Nothing more, nothing less. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:41:47 AM EDT
[#7]
Quoted:
I've been interrogated before (for a crime I was not involved with), the deputies definitely pressured me into thinking that I had no choice but to talk right then and there if they were going to go "easy on me".[/quote] I'm guessing that the "go easy on you" part means they aren't going to go for maximum punishment or that they'll see to it that you get off easy. Doesn't the D.A. decide who gets off easy though? |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:46:01 AM EDT
[#8]
Keep your mouth shut if the police ask you questions, if you could even in any remote way be considered a suspect. Don't change your mind no matter what they say. They are not on your side.
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:48:41 AM EDT
[#9]
I guess they meant they wouldn't charge me with tougher crimes? I don't know. The lawyer sat down with us, an hour later, the deputy's supervisor was apologizing for an error they made and told me have a nice day. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:50:24 AM EDT
[#10]
They pressure you and try to make you forget about your rights, or try to take advantage of you. Their weapons are words. They will say anything to make you talk, sometimes even going as far as bribing you or even threatening you with something. It's all a big game. Sometimes they play the best friend routine, getting you to slip-up on something.
ALWAYS have a lawyer present, even if you can't afford one. Sometimes public defenders are good, sometimes they are highly incompetent and lazy. - rem |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 11:08:25 AM EDT
[#11]
1) 99% of people have no idea what their rights are. This is one reason my wife doesn't have access to my most prized possessions. She would have no clue how to deflect inquiries by the police to 'just take a quick look around'. Most people are incapable of standing up for their rights even if they knew what they were. 2) The police can and do lie, mislead, make fake promises and threaten suspects. It is all completely legal. If you take the bait then it is your own fault. The police are looking for warm bodies to occupy cells. That is what they do. 3) If you are arrested, you stick with the basics (name and address) and when asked a question keep repeating: "Officer, I know you are just doing your job but I do not have anything to say until my lawyer arrives" or a variation thereof. You will repeat this anytime a new officer enters the room and asks you a question. 4) You DO NOT want to make it personal. If you in any way disrespect the officer you will have made it personal and you will be in a world of pain and suffering. DO NOT talk back to him. DO NOT use profanity. DO NOT use profanity in describing his mother or wife. DO NOT "chit chat" with the officer. If you start talking about hunting, they will know you own guns, etc. If you keep your piehole shut then the only information they can gather will be from your wallet and a search of your belongings if they have a warrant.  |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 12:09:49 PM EDT
[#12]
If you've been arrested, your "belongings" that are with you, are all subject to search, without a warrant. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 12:21:19 PM EDT
[#13]
With all due respect to the cops here, when you
are under the microscope by The Man, then The Man is NOT your friend. They are trying their damndest to charge you with something, and to send you away to prison for as long as possible. Think about that. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 12:30:06 PM EDT
[#14]
The Police can lie to you, but it's a crime to lie to them. How fair is that?
If they call you in for questioning, they are not doing it for your benefit. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 12:30:09 PM EDT
[#15]
Especially if you did it.  Think about THAT.PS if you're innocent and under the microscope, talking just might help clear things up and rule you out as a suspect. As for those who think that committing a crime and then shutting up when they get arrested, and accusing the cops of false arrest is some sort of a game... well, good luck. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 12:41:41 PM EDT
[#16]
Very true. However it can still work against someone. About a year or so ago there was a member from NY here who was arrested and charged for ADW or something along those lines while stopped on the side of a road to fix a flat tire. He had to remove his rifle case to get to the jack. Some soccer mommy saw this and freaked out and called the police. He said it was a nightmare because he WAS trying to explain everything, but the police for one reason or another did not beleive him. I think the charges were dropped and he got his rifle returned to him six months or more later. He was trying to be a good guy.  |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 1:00:07 PM EDT
[#17]
I certainly won't claim that there aren't some idiots who are police officers. Idiots seem to just turn up at the most inopportune times in our lives, don't they? 
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Posted: 12/18/2005 1:03:04 PM EDT
[#18]
Fucking lawyers.
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Posted: 12/18/2005 1:11:55 PM EDT
[#19]
You can't lie if you don't talk. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 2:32:51 PM EDT
[#20]
Fuck that, advice, don't talk. The interrogating officers are trained and experienced and will pound a prisoner down to submission. If you're innocent, it is the government's burden to prove otherwise. If you aren't guilty of a crime, there is plenty of time to sort all that out, don't get in a rush. Don't say a damn thing except to ask if you are under arrest and for a phone so you can call a lawyer. If you aren't under arrest, leave. Don't talk. Only morons are looking to make a false arrest suit; they are the same crowd showing up on Jerry Springer and Montel. It's not a game, and when you are sitting in a interrogation room at the cop shack, you are at a distinct disadvantage, basically holding no cards except your wits and patience. Nowadays, most of these interviews are being taped, so be polite, but firm and don't talk. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 2:51:51 PM EDT
[#21]
Rule number 1 when dealing with the police: Have a lawyer present at every stage possible.
If they are asking you questions without a lawyer present, STFU. I repeat, STFU. One more time, STFU. And lest anybody didn't read it correctly the first time, STFU STFU STFU STFU STFU STFU. The police are not asking questions because they want to be your friend, or because they want to go easy on you if you cooperate. They are looking to charge you with as much as absolutely possible. They are professional interrogators, and interrogate people on a regular basis. You, on the other hand, have probably never been interrogated before, and have no idea how to handle the pressures they put on you, the lies they are legally permitted to tell you, the "evidence" they can legally claim to have (which they really don't), the witnesses they can legally claim to have (but again, don't), or any of their other tactics. I have heard of too many instances of innocent people being browbeaten into confessing to a crime they did not commit in order to avoid being SERIOUSLY punished. Don't talk to them, don't give them permission to do anything. Get a lawyer immediately. If you go ahead and talk to them without counsel, or give them the permissions they want, it may very well end up costing you thousands in legal fees, even though you're innocent. I know this last part from experience. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:11:02 PM EDT
[#22]
You really only have to remember three things: No poly, no statement, no waiver. If you are not under arrest then ask to leave, don't say anything.
My friend was called by the police to just "stop by and clear up some stuff." Next stop, state prison for two years. He was guilty, of being a idiot talking to the police without a lawyer present. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:11:51 PM EDT
[#23]
Visit the real world more often, learn how things work. 
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:14:43 PM EDT
[#24]
Was he guilty of the crime, too? |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:21:41 PM EDT
[#25]
Well, you've got a lot of information from the "JBT's Are Out To Get You" crowd, but I will give you another side of the story.
When I was in law enforcement, we often questioned someone who told us what happened, and we then knew that they were not guilty of any crime. Now if you are guilty, then get a lawyer and remain silent. But if the police are just trying to determine what has happened, there is a real possibility that you can tell them what really happened and save yourself a lot of touble. I know that there were lots and lots of people that I thought, upon arrival at a crime scene, might be guilty of a crime, but, after hearing what they had to say, realized that they hadn't done anything wrong. As usual, there are two sides of the story. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:30:02 PM EDT
[#26]
Speaking as a former "Good Guy" (I couldn't play a tough cop to save my axx, and have been told so by numerous partners over the years...) Everyone on this esteemed forum needs to read this essay, then re-read it, and then re-read it again until you can recite it from memory while under duress. It is initially written toward contact with BATFE, but it applies to almost any LEO contact. Pay careful attention to the part about the differences between Search Warrants and Arrest Warrants. If authorities arrive with a search warrant but no arrest warrant, leave the premesis immediately and go find your lawyer in-person.
So, you just got a visit from Johnny Law... [The author, James Jeffries, III is a retired U.S. Department of Justice lawyer and a retired colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve practicing firearms law in Greensboro, NC. He is a 1959 graduate of the University of Kentucky and a 1962 graduate of the UK College of Law, where he was Note Editor of the Kentucky Law Journal.] |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:40:01 PM EDT
[#27]
There are also a lot of cops that have bad nights, and say things like "mind if I take a look in your car?" when figure out they can't charge you with DUI (because you're not drunk). Then, when you say "sure... go ahead" they find your toolbox, and arrest you for something stupid like "possession of burglary tools" even though they had no knowledge of any crime, either committed or soon-to-be-committed. Then you have to post bond. Then you have to pay for a lawyer. And you have to take off work to go to court, which costs more money. This is what happened to me. And, even though I was completely innocent, I still have a BS arrest on my record involving the word "burglary". Try getting a job in the securities industry with THAT word on your record. It's not easy. It required multiple trips across the country to finally get that straightened out, and the necessary paperwork to prove THAT NOTHING HAPPENED, which cost me thousands more. Also, there are usually THREE sides to every story, per the police. Side A, Side B, and Side C (some bizarre mix of Sides A and B that the police come up with, complete with a lot of assumptions that often are not be true). I am certainly not saying that ALL police officers are like this. But They Are Out There, and you can never tell at first question what kind of officer you're dealing with. Best to just STFU and get a lawyer. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:53:48 PM EDT
[#28]
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:54:30 PM EDT
[#29]
Sorry to hear your story, ibomelli. I never saw a police officer do anything even close to that. Not saying that it is impossible, just saying I never saw it. If I had, I would have pressed charges on the police officer. And I'm not kidding. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:56:25 PM EDT
[#30]
I've never SEEN a man buttfuck another man, either..but that sure as hell doesn't mean it doesn't happen. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 3:57:55 PM EDT
[#31]
Sorry to hear your story too, modog.
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Posted: 12/18/2005 4:27:03 PM EDT
[#32]
If a cop is talkin' he ain't got nothing (or much) to go on.
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Posted: 12/18/2005 4:30:59 PM EDT
[#33]
Sad that everyone automaticlly equates talking to the police with being charged with a crime. There are a number of times where we also have victims and/or witnesses come down and be interviewed. Whatever
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Posted: 12/18/2005 4:45:17 PM EDT
[#34]
Yeah, yeah, 'Search incident to arrest'. Actually, they can search your person and the "immediate grabbable area" for weapons without RAS or PC, let alone a search warrant. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 5:12:13 PM EDT
[#35]
No, we equate it with the possibility of being deprived of our freedom indefinitely. Our advice is to tread lightly in the presence of a police officer. How is that possibly 'sad'? We are not mind-readers who can read the intentions of an officer's questions, nor can we identify those officers who will misunderstand or misinterpret our response. 95+% of police officers are 'good guys'. Keeping our mouth shut helps to protect us from the rest. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 5:16:31 PM EDT
[#36]
Its sad because you equate contact with the police as being questioned for commiting a crime. Simply reviewing the responses on this thread show that. As has been covered by a few of us, not all interviews with the police are due to you being a suspect in a crime. If one can't tell the difference, well that's your issue. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 5:25:09 PM EDT
[#37]
To a degree, maybe, but clouded by their ignorance that the interrogator is able to lie with impunity, and the misconception that cooperation is to their benefit, along with the poorly placed hope in some cases that they can weasel out of charges rather than just keeping their mouth shut. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 5:34:49 PM EDT
[#38]
Again, I'm not a mind-reader. 99% of citizens' encounters with law enforcement is during traffic stops when they have committed a crime. Why would anyone therefore conclude that a police officer approaching them at work or at home be there for the purpose of investigating a crime that had absolutely nothing to do with them? How is an officer supposed to know who is the 'victim' and who is the 'criminal'. A dead body could be the 'victim' or it could be a dead 'criminal' assailant. Just like I go to a doctor for medical advice, I go to an attorney for legal advice. I may have a lot of 'issues', but not knowing my rights is not one of them.
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Posted: 12/18/2005 5:39:22 PM EDT
[#39]
A friend of mine did 3 months on remand in Wormwood Scrubs prison in London for a murder he did not commit.
Police are NOT your friends. With a little investigation on their part he'd have been out in a day or two. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 5:42:29 PM EDT
[#40]
I got in a hurry and didn't proof read the damn post. I've seen the real world from a jury box, and I've seen the tactics used by real world police interrogaters. By the way, for the literal, "pound" is figurative in this case, although actual assault by police officers is common enough. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 5:43:45 PM EDT
[#41]
Yep, God forbid they actually talk to anybody in person, lest their words be misunderstood, or they get caught in a lie. At least if that happens here, they can just change their board name and start over. Here's one. When faced with a situation where you are interacting with the police, pretend that you have something to hide. It will really make them just lose interest and ignore you. Really. I know it's true, I read it on the internet. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 5:57:50 PM EDT
[#42]
Whoa, I didn't mean to start an internet fight.
The original intent of my question was to find out why a person that committed a crime would talk to a questioner assuming he did not really wish to go to prison. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 6:38:15 PM EDT
[#43]
I was hauled in and accused of setting fire in the dorm at collage. The fire happened on a Saterday night and I had gone home for the weekend about 60 miles away knowing all along that was my ace in the hole. My roomate and I were questioned that Monday afternoon for about and hour and every time that asked me if I set the fire I kept telling them, "If I did it do youi think that I would tell you." Then they seperated us and tried to get me to say it was my roomate. Funny thing is they never asked where I was when the fire started. So when they asked me if the roomate had set the fire I say no. Then they asked how do I know he didn't do it and I replied because he was in New Orleans that night. Then they asked how did I know he was in New Orleans. I told them I had driven him home that Friday evening and drove him back that Monday moring and that saterday night we were getting drunk in a bars and they could go and ask the bar tenders, look at the credit card charges, and then I looked at the chief in the eye and challanged him that if he was calling me a liar then he could follow me back home to New Orleans and I would bring him in my room and show him the reciepts from Saterday night, but that would have to explain he was wrong. They let both of us go, but never admitted they had us wrong.
Now I'm sure they thougth they had the right people and they would crack the case fast. I've always wondered what was running through their heads when we left. The fire was started outside our door. The cops and fire department had removed the door off the hinges, took finger prints in the roon, turned in upside down, and left it a freaking mess. Picture what a frat party with free beer could do to a room, the cops tore it up worse. The thing that never occured to me was to keep my mouth shut. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 6:49:47 PM EDT
[#44]
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Posted: 12/18/2005 7:08:39 PM EDT
[#45]
I wonder what brought about that level of distrust from law abiding citizens? How about you? Any ideas? |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 9:29:49 PM EDT
[#46]
 FWIW, my father is a 30+ year LEO. His advice to me always was "if the police bring you in for questioning, keep your mouth shut, even if you did nothing wrong." |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 9:54:50 PM EDT
[#47]
People confess because of:
1. guilt/conscience; 2. a belief that they acted reasonably and lawfully (particularly if the interrogator suggests that he acted reasonably and that the best way to be sure the judge knows it is to ecplain everything): 3. a mistaken belief that they can talk themselves out of trouble; 4. a mistaken belief that they are smarter than the police; 5. an innate desire to please and obey authority figures; 6. garden-variety stupidity. Tips: Refuse to meet the cops. Refuse to meet the cops at the station or at your home/office. Your lawyer's office is best, followed by a restaurant or other public place. You don't have to have a lawyer handy to invoke your 5th Am. rights. Just say "I will not make a statement at this time. I want a lawyer." That will terminate the omterview, except in a few rare situations. Even if you're just a witness, anything you can talk about by yourself, you can talk about with a lawyer present. The exception to keeping your mouth shut is when you're in a shooting you know to be justified. In that instance, I'd tell a client to spill his guts. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 9:54:54 PM EDT
[#48]
My dad was a police officer for over 30 years in both state and federal LEO. He taught interviewing at Quantico and gave me the best piece of advice ever, INVOCATION!
As soon as a police officer says a word to you, clearly state, " I want an attorney, I will not answer any questions without counsel". Once invocation has been performed, legally police officers cannot ask any more questions of any kind. Until you secure an attorney say nothing else. |
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Posted: 12/18/2005 10:55:13 PM EDT
[#49]
Wait a second, I must have missed something, who said the world was fair? Did some liberal wannabe slip in here again? |
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Posted: 12/19/2005 1:06:27 AM EDT
[#50]
It seems stupid to us that people would talk without a lawyer, yet it is done all the time, and even by people you would not consider stupid.
I had to take a homicide interrogation class a few years ago. No surprise that everyone in the class was LEO and mostly homicide detectives. Except for I and another co-worker. I don't think the class was necessary for us as much but I will definitely say that it was an interesting class! |
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