So I got stopped by a cop.

My only question is what do I say when they're talking to me? I sit quietly and let them speak? When they ask a question I say, "I plead the 5th."?
If it's - "hey whats wrong?" I say "nothing." or I say,"I plead the 5th"?
 
Remember -- the 5th literally is admitting you've done something incriminating, and refusing to say what it is. The 5th amendment prohibits requiring you to testify against yourself. To plead the 5th is saying "I refuse to answer on the grounds it may incriminate me." That right there might be enough to get you hauled downtown and jailed for 24 hours.

I'm no lawyer. I doubt anyone else here is either. Just tread carefully.
 
Evan S said:
My only question is what do I say when they're talking to me? I sit quietly and let them speak? When they ask a question I say, "I plead the 5th."?
If it's - "hey whats wrong?" I say "nothing." or I say,"I plead the 5th"?
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Here's the drill. LEOs have the legal right to two pieces of information: (1) your full legal name; (2) the address of your place of residence. That is all they can get out of you verbally. No social security number. No mailing address. Nothing else. So, this is how it goes. A LEO must identify himself as such, and in his legal capacity as LEO demand you to identify yourself. At this point you must give him the 2 pieces of info above.

Now the LEO is going to ask you more questions or any verbal response. You say at that point - "I have no further statements to make without an attorney present". Then you fall silent regardless of what he'll say. And he'll say plenty to try and trick you - "what, you got something to hide?", "but I'm not asking you about a crime!" etc. YOU REMAIN SILENT (once you've said that you will not make further statements without an attorney present).

A LEO can still make you do things - for example, take your hands out of your pockets to check that you are not carrying a weapon if he feels in immediate danger (and they'll lie about that, so you must cooperate).

Can he still get words out of you? Yes, under a limited set of circumstances. He can ask to perform a search. You are then compelled to respond - "yes" or "no". And one more - but this depends on you... if you want o leave, you say "am I free to leave?" If cop says "no", you must ask "what is the reason for my detention?" - at which point you must get his badge number and make note of the reason he gives (it will be important in case of legal trouble, or if you want to file a lawsuit for false arrest). If he says you are free to leave, then you leave even if he is still talking. Or you just remain silent beyond your name + address and statement that you will not say anything without an attorney present.
 
Okay, here's some more definitive information...

Common Fifth Amendment Misconceptions

Although most people have passing familiarity with the Fifth Amendment and their right to remain silent, there are many misconceptions about how the Fifth Amendment works.

False: Police must read you the Miranda warning when they arrest you.
True: You won't automatically be read the Miranda warning if you are arrested, nor do you need to be arrested before being read a Miranda warning. If police arrest you, but don't expect to question you (usually because they already have enough evidence to prove you committed a crime), you may not be read the warning. Similarly, if police ask you to voluntarily come in for questioning, but don't have sufficient evidence to arrest you, you'll be read the Miranda warning before being questioned.

False: If you were questioned without being read the Miranda warning, and are then charged with a crime, the charges will automatically be dropped, or the court will automatically find you not guilty.
True: It's wrong to think that no Miranda warning will get you off the hook. Prosecutors may still have sufficient other evidence to convict you of a crime, even if they ignore the evidence that you provided under questioning.

False: Anyone who "pleads the Fifth" must be guilty of something.
True: If police question a suspect, or have arrested them for a crime, then the police have some evidence that leads them to believe the person has committed a crime. But, in fact, there are corrupt people in law enforcement, and innocent people have been convicted of crimes they didn't commit. Innocent people who are worried about having their words twisted and used against them may choose to "plead the Fifth" when being questioned about a crime they did not commit.

False: Police can't ask you any questions until they read you the Miranda warning.
True: Police can ask you basic identifying information, such as your name, address and date of birth, without having read you a Miranda warning. In addition, while the police have the right to ask you questions and you have the right to politely decline to answer those questions, the police do have other ways of obtaining evidence (such as a search warrant), and may still find reason to arrest you.

False: You can't change your mind if you waive your rights under the Fifth Amendment, answer investigator's questions or allow yourself to be questioned without an attorney present.
True: Just because you waive your rights and agree to be questioned does not mean you must answer all questions. At any time you may change your mind, and choose to remain silent. In that case, the police must stop questioning you. Likewise, if you initially decide to talk to police without an attorney present, then change your mind, police must stop questioning you while waiting for your attorney to arrive, and then give you the opportunity to confer with your attorney.

http://research.lawyers.com/Pleading-the-Fifth-and-Miranda-Warnings.html
 
From the ACLU website
IF YOU ARE STOPPED FOR QUESTIONING

1. It's not a crime to refuse to answer questions, but refusing to answer can make the police suspicious about you.

2. Police may "pat-down" your clothing if they suspect a concealed weapon. Don't physically resist, but make it clear that you don't consent to any further search.

3. Ask if you are under arrest. If you are, you have a right to know why.

4. Don't bad-mouth the police officer or run away, even if you believe what is happening is unreasonable. That could lead to your arrest.


In short, they can't arrest you for refusing to answer questions. In my case, I may have had a parking violation. I don't think they can arrest you for that. They could have given me a parking ticket. However, I don't think they could have done much more. Considering I was not trespassing or causing disturbance and had a legitimate reason to be there.
 
chapelgrovefilms said:
Remember -- the 5th literally is admitting you've done something incriminating, and refusing to say what it is. The 5th amendment prohibits requiring you to testify against yourself. To plead the 5th is saying "I refuse to answer on the grounds it may incriminate me." That right there might be enough to get you hauled downtown and jailed for 24 hours.

I'm no lawyer. I doubt anyone else here is either. Just tread carefully.
Click to expand...

This is hilariously, unequivocally, 100% wrong. Every sentence there is wrong.

No, you DO NOT admit guilt by taking the 5th. No you CANNOT be arrested for taking the 5th.

Read this article for the origin and meaning of the 5th:

http://www.slate.com/id/2061972/

Quote:

The law also prohibits prosecutors from making reference to a defendant's refusal to take the stand as probative of guilt.

The 5th says NOTHING about your guilt or innocence, and CANNOT be grounds for arrest and IS NOT evidence of your guilt.
 
Keep in mind the 5th amendment only applies in the U.S.

My question is, why ask such a serious legal question to a bunch of virtual strangers? Ask an attorney. Anything else is a risk.

Good luck!
 
OldCorpse said:
This is hilariously, unequivocally, 100% wrong. Every sentence there is wrong.

No, you DO NOT admit guilt by taking the 5th. No you CANNOT be arrested for taking the 5th.

Read this article for the origin and meaning of the 5th:

http://www.slate.com/id/2061972/

Quote:

The law also prohibits prosecutors from making reference to a defendant's refusal to take the stand as probative of guilt.

The 5th says NOTHING about your guilt or innocence, and CANNOT be grounds for arrest and IS NOT evidence of your guilt.
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You can be taken in for questioning and held for 24 hours without charges being pressed. Get a cop hacked off and see this for yourself.

As for the rest of it, I just posted information that clarifies. You're quite right that you don't have to be guilty to plead the 5th.
 
It'd be silly to plead the 5th if it were only because you were guilty. You may as well confess.
 
Only read Evan's posts... Dude... he sounded like a dick.

I too would have filed a report. None of us were there but I take everything Evan said to be true and in that case I can relate... I hate authority unless I am it :D I am sure we all feel the same way to some extent, but when I am feeling down I hate having some jerk drill me for no reason, or a retarded reason, only making me feel worse.

There are ways to let the guy know he is a tool while cooperating 100%, which you should always do since his JOB is to protect you, even if he sucks ass at it. Cooperating with him while letting him know though your tone that you think he is not "highly regarded" can also help him realize how dumb he might seem in front of his partner.

Anywho... if the guy in fact said to your girl's sister that he though you might have killed her REGARDLESS of any lack of cooperation I would have possibly tried to sue the department only to later drop the lawsuit just to leave that in the jerckoff's record.
 
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Not everything that seems like it should be straightforward and cut-and-dried actually is.
The law is a twisty, tangly mess. Best advice is consult a qualified attorney. If you find yourself standing in front of a judge someday being charged with obstruction or something similar, and the judge asks you why you did what you did, you really don't want to have to say, "Well some guy on the Internet told me...."
 
Everyone assumes the cop was concerned that Evan might have hurt his girlfriend. For all anyone knows, there may have been a robbery just around the corner and witnesses might have identified the getaway car as one vaguely resembling the one Evan was in.

Cops have a hard job to do. Some of them don't do it well, especially if they're still learning to do it. I don't know if this cop was being a jerk or not. Maybe he was. But someday some cop may be questioning a guy who just left you in a puddle of blood in an alley. Let's hope he doesn't just take the guy's word for it that nothing is wrong.
 
Isn't obstruction when you bear witness to something and refuse to testify or talk to the police? The 5th amendment only talks about SELF-incrimination.

//I don't expect him to take my word for anything. Simple fact was, he only had to knock on the door ask for my girlfriend see if there was a problem. This was an open shut case . The fact is he continued AFTER THE FACT.

AND

If I was in a pool of my own blood in an alley I would hope he would stop whoever it was coming out of it, but this is a stupid comparison. My girlfriend was in her house asleep in her bed, and her whole family was there 5 or 6 of them. I was already at the house for a few hours, she had just gotten off work and was tired.

I'm explain to much. I plead the 5th :P

The point I'm trying to make is that the cop used poor judgment and misused his authority. I did nothing wrong, and he continued to assume I had, when all evidence pointed to a non-situation.

Not making eye-contact with them, and not-responding to their questions would have gotten them away a lot faster in my opinion. Than if I had talked to them. I gave them a simple reason which was blown way out of proportion. Not to mention the fact he thought I KILLED someone, but didn't even think of putting me cuffs. I just don't understand the thought process. I'm not a threat to others, yet I may have killed someone... RIGHT.
 
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Evan S said:
Isn't obstruction when you bear witness to something and refuse to testify or talk to the police? The 5th amendment only talks about SELF-incrimination.
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Yes, but as the quoted material stated (sort of), innocent people can have their words twisted and wind up facing charges as a result.

Consult a lawyer. That's what I would do. (But that's just me.)
 
chapelgrovefilms said:
You can be taken in for questioning and held for 24 hours without charges being pressed. Get a cop hacked off and see this for yourself.
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Of course - cops can do any number of things. And then you sue them. If they detain you without probable cause that passes legal muster - they'll get sued, and they'll pay the price. And don't worry about them lying - it's not so easy... in a lawsuit situation under cross-examination, a competent attorney will make their stories fall apart rather quickly. Your best bet is to behave politely and assert your rights - usually a cop will then figure you understand your rights, and will not be willing to lie and jeopardize himself legally by making a BS reason to detain you.
 
Holy crap this thread is moving fast... note I edited my first post a bit.

chapelgrovefilms said:
I'm just curious.....have you ever met anyone who was a real tool and could be convinced of that fact and change his ways? :)
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Hehe... very good point. But I guess I have gotten very effective at this sort of thing. :)
 
Evan S said:
Isn't obstruction when you bear witness to something and refuse to testify or talk to the police? The 5th amendment only talks about SELF-incrimination.

//I don't expect him to take my word for anything. Simple fact was, he only had to knock on the door ask for my girlfriend see if there was a problem. This was an open shut case . The fact is he continued AFTER THE FACT.
Click to expand...

No. You may be concerned that if you bear witness, you will be accused of the crime yourself - as has happened countless times. Therefore again and always - NEVER TALK TO COPS, period.
 
We are moving fast here. I added to my last post



"If I was in a pool of my own blood in an alley I would hope he would stop whoever it was coming out of it, but this is a stupid comparison. My girlfriend was in her house asleep in her bed, and her whole family was there 5 or 6 of them. I was already at the house for a few hours, she had just gotten off work and was tired.

I'm explaining to much. I plead the 5th :P

The point I'm trying to make is that the cop used poor judgment and misused his authority. I did nothing wrong, and he continued to assume I had, when all evidence pointed to a non-situation.

Not making eye-contact with them, and not-responding to their questions would have gotten them away a lot faster in my opinion. Than if I had talked to them. I gave them a simple reason which was blown way out of proportion. Not to mention the fact he thought I KILLED someone, but didn't even think of putting me cuffs. I just don't understand the thought process. I'm not a threat to others, yet I may have killed someone... RIGHT."
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As I said, there may have been some other crime committed that Evan wasn't aware of, that could be the reason for the cops' interest in him. He could conceivably be a suspect in that crime if he's in the general neighborhood, matches the general description of the suspect, etc. On that basis, he could be hauled down to the station for continued questioning if he refuses to answer questions at the scene. This may have nothing at all to do with the girlfriend.

If they just came back to question Evan because he was sitting in his car parked at the side of the road and they thought that, in and of itself, was 'suspicious', then he certainly has a reason to be irritated by it. If it were me, though, I would answer reasonable questions, and file a complaint later -- which is what it sounds like Evan did.
 
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