So I got stopped by a cop.

OldCorpse said:
NEVER TALK TO COPS, period.
Click to expand...

This is true... I let the guy know that I am ready to stop seeing his face as soon as he is done looking like a noob in public. Hehe... However! You do this while respecting the UNIFORM and everything it stands for... just imagine the selfless heroes that wear the same uniform... dudes that would make you get emotional by showing a devotion to a greater cause completely undeserving of such a measly salary.

But I agree with Chapel when he said that there are tools that can be completely oblivious about how retarded they are being some times... well... it looks like Evan is learning a very good lesson. Thank you Officer Tool... you were not 100% useless after all...

Ok, so why am I so incredibly annoyed? If the guy really told his girlfriends sister that he may have killed her just cause Evan looked bummed as hell, maybe a little shifty in the officer's eyes or what have you... that moron needs a lawsuit in his record. Just make sure and drop it before it costs the department any money!
 
Evan S said:
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.
Click to expand...

No thought whatsoever... the guy didn't have a clue what he was doing... maybe he really was in training... (or a complete asshole) was he young?
 
To confirm it. I asked again if that's what he said to her, and she definitively responded yes. I was thinking about calling some news stations. However, I don't really desire to be on the 11 O'clock.

I answered the cops questions honestly and reasonably. He seemed very angry when I explained that I was not upset that my girlfriend did not want to talk to me. That I understood she was tired and didn't feel like seeing me at the time. I'm not aloud to be bummed at that? I can't still feel good about my relationship, love my significant other and still be a little bummed out that she didn't want to see me at the current moment?

Guys, I'm going to be honest here. I have a look on my face. It's just how I look. I've gotten it all my life, the I look like I just lost a friend type look. I'm a deeply serious person. When I shouldn't be. However, just looking a certain way does not warrant anyone even a PO to detain me for an hour over NOTHING.

// both officers were mid to late-20's the female officer had been on the force for 2 YEARS. The other office the male, was training her. Which I think only needs 4 years experience to be a field training officer. They were defiantly cruising the neighborhood though.
 
chapelgrovefilms said:
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.[...]
Click to expand...

No, no, no. He cannot be hauled down to the station for refusing to answer questions about this case or any other case. Period, end of statement. Refusal to answer questions is NOT grounds for detention. What can happen, is that he can be arrested and taken down to a station; or if there is a limited range of reasons (such as f.ex. imminent danger to the community etc. - reasons which will be carefully examined when a lawsuit is filed, so the reasons better not be BS). The reason can never be not answering questions - period. Again - NEVER TALK TO COPS, period.
 
Evan S said:
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."
__________________
Click to expand...

I highly doubt he really thought you might have killed someone. He probably was just implying "Hey, for all I know you might have just killed somebody." Which would be stupid, of course.

As for my "stupid comparison", let me clarify. The cops see a guy walking down the street. He looks 'suspicious' (whatever that means), so they stop him to question him. He says, "No, I'm fine. Just having a bad day." What the cop doesn't know is this guy just left you bloodied in an alley nearby and stole your wallet. Now, do you want the cop to just accept the guy's word that nothing is wrong and let him go on his merry way? Or do you want him to follow his instincts and dig a little further?

And again, just because your girlfriend was fine and nothing was wrong with HER or her family, that doesn't necessarily mean to the cop that YOU aren't still nervous because of something else that he doesn't know about.

I'm just trying to see the possible other side of things. As I said, maybe the cop WAS just being a jerk. If so, you should definitely be upset!
 
OldCorpse said:
No, no, no. He cannot be hauled down to the station for refusing to answer questions about this case or any other case. Period, end of statement. Refusal to answer questions is NOT grounds for detention. What can happen, is that he can be arrested and taken down to a station; or if there is a limited range of reasons (such as f.ex. imminent danger to the community etc. - reasons which will be carefully examined when a lawsuit is filed, so the reasons better not be BS). The reason can never be not answering questions - period. Again - NEVER TALK TO COPS, period.
Click to expand...

Consult a lawyer. Get the truly definitive 'final word'.
 
chapelgrovefilms said:
Consult a lawyer. Get the truly definitive 'final word'.
Click to expand...

Consult an attorney again? I already did, years ago (thanks, dad!). Others may wish to. What I learned is the following: as long as you gave your name and address, you cannot be forcibly taken to a police station for not answering questions (taking the 5th). You on the other hand may wish to consult an attorney. It can get rather expensive though, since by that standard, you may have a lot of questions to consult: f.ex. can a police officer legally cut off my head because he didn't get a donut for breakfast :) In other words, we all learn some basics as citizens. All kidding aside, admittedly, most people don't have a good handle on these issues.
 
You know, whenever anyone here puts out a legal question on the boards, my usual reply is "Ask a qualified attorney." I should have stuck to that this time.

Please, when you read my posts in this thread, pretend they all just say "Ask a qualified attorney." :)
 
OldCorpse said:
Consult an attorney again? I already did, years ago (thanks, dad!). Others may wish to. What I learned is the following: as long as you gave your name and address, you cannot be forcibly taken to a police station for not answering questions (taking the 5th). You on the other hand may wish to consult an attorney. It can get rather expensive though, since by that standard, you may have a lot of questions to consult: f.ex. can a police officer legally cut off my head because he didn't get a donut for breakfast :) In other words, we all learn some basics as citizens. All kidding aside, admittedly, most people don't have a good handle on these issues.
Click to expand...

I think we should differentiate between 'pleading the 5th' and exercising your right to remain silent -- which also stems from the 5th amendment to the Constitution.

Technically, what Evan is being advised to do is exercise his right to remain silent. Pleading the 5th is technically only done in a court of law or some similar legal proceeding. At least, so I've read.

But I'm not an attorney. :)
 
OldCorpse said:
Consult an attorney again? I already did, years ago (thanks, dad!). Others may wish to.
Click to expand...

Meaning no disrespect at all, but I feel like it's always better to go straight to the source, rather than depend on what someone else -- particularly a virtual stranger -- tells you the source has said (or will say.) If it's my freedom or livelihood on the line, I want to hear the word from the horse's mouth.

But again, that's just me.
 
chapelgrovefilms said:
I think we should differentiate between 'pleading the 5th' and exercising your right to remain silent -- which also stems from the 5th amendment to the Constitution.

Technically, what Evan is being advised to do is exercise his right to remain silent. Pleading the 5th is technically only done in a court of law or some similar legal proceeding. At least, so I've read.

But I'm not an attorney. :)
Click to expand...

Well, you are wrong :)

The 5th includes the right to remain silent - so taking the 5th encompasses the right to remain silent.
 
chapelgrovefilms said:
Meaning no disrespect at all, but I feel like it's always better to go straight to the source, rather than depend on what someone else -- particularly a virtual stranger -- tells you the source has said (or will say.) If it's my freedom or livelihood on the line, I want to hear the word from the horse's mouth.

But again, that's just me.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. Which is why I find it hilarious that folks are advising "talk to cops, don't worry, everything will be oookay and kumbaya!" etc. Definitely consult an attorney, do not rely on the word from some internet posting (including my own - even if I did provide sources and links to attorneys explaining that right). I linked to the video as a way of saying "here, this is what is said about that - consult an attorney". Indeed, my advice is "don't talk to cops, consult an attorney" :happy:

OK, I'm off to bed.
 
Taken from an article referencing Alan M. Dershowitz, "Is There a Right to Remain Silent?".

"Dershowitz points out in the book that the language of the Fifth Amendment does not specifically create a right to remain silent. The Fifth Amendment simply protects against a person being compelled to be a witness against themselves."

"While case law may be contradictory regarding the Fifth Amendment and the actual right to remain silent, the decision in Chavez v. Martinez shows that a careful and literal reading of the law reveals that there is not an explicit right to remain silent, but only a right against self-incrimination."

http://www.totalcriminaldefense.com...endment-right-to-remain-silent-questions.aspx

It's a sticky wicket. As a qualified lawyer.
 
I don't know, here at the university I have a subject called constitutional law, a month ago this same question was discused there. Our teacher (an attorney himself) told us that if for any reason you were arrested (being guilty or not) or when you suspect that they are questioning you, you shouldn't speak before consulting an attorney, at least you have that right here in Spain, I suppose that that will be the same in many countries.


I suppose that I'll have to believe my law teacher......
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top