Posted on 07/30/2008 5:21:36 PM PDT by OnRightOnLeftCoast
In one of the more engaging, convincing and easily understood presentations I've ever seen, Prof. James Duane of the Regent University School of Law explains why even angels devoid of the slightest moral blemish should never speak to police officers, tax collectors or other law-enforcement agents investigating crimes.
(Excerpt) Read more at tuccille.com ...
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Don't snitch! Keep it Real! Keep the criminals on the street...
I just thought this bears repeating.
With the scores of thousands of laws we have, we are only felons who haven’t gotten caught yet. But they’ll decide what to charge us with when they get around to it.
This is a pretty good video to watch. There is nothing in there that accuses police of doing anything wrong. The focus is that if the police want to question you about your possible involvement in a crime, you open up the possibility of admitting guilt, or even if innocent, of providing information that could get you falsely convicted. The gist is that there is nothing at all that you can say that will improve your situation. If you are guilty, you’ve got plenty of time to explain that later.
Duke University Lacrosse team/rape accusations come to mind?
I wouldn't say MOST.
I've encountered only one who was a real dick, and he was likely that way before he ever became a cop. Most others have been very professional.
bump
In my opinion, the police are just another street gang that I have to avoid.
This is a must watch, a good lesson for every citizen.
As a former Police Officer and Corrections Officer I have advised all family members on how to deal with any Police investigation.
1. Never allow the Police into your home without a warrant.
2. Never agree to go with them to the station “just to talk”.
3. Never answer question regarding any potential crime without a lawyer present.
4. Never ever volunatrily give DNA without a court order.
5. Never give fingerprints unless under arrest or by court order.
Click on the link and watch the video. :-)
Agreed. I will never speak to the Police and have had this rule for sometime.
JoMa89
I’m sure that if either he or a family member of his was a victim of a crime, then he’d want potential witnesses etc. to talk.
This guy is a moron.
“So the couple who saw a woman run a red light and broadside my car should NOT have come up to the policeman and told him they saw her run it.”
In a situation like that, the cop has bigger fish to fry - namely the light runner. It’s when they *don’t* have anything better to do that you should clam up.
Amen to that.
I think I’ll “play this one by ear.” I’ll balance my privacy concerns with my moral and civic concerns.
As discussed in the videos, the problem here is that, even if innocent of the underlying offense, you are always liable for any seemingly false statements (innocent or otherwise) made to the police or other government interrogators (FBI, prosecutors, etc.) during the course of the actual investigation. If they cannot prosecute you for the crime, they may be able to prosecute you for inconsistencies in the various statements you made.
Just imagine trying to answer the same set of questions exactly the same way after you have been asked them again and again during numerous interviews. Not only is it hard to tell a lie consistently from one occasion to the next, it is even hard to tell the truth that consistently over time. Think about it. All they need is a single contradiction between two statements to accuse you of lying to the police. (IIRC, this is basically what got the Vice President's Chief of Staff (Mr. Liddy) convicted in the Plame case.)
The only way to not be put into that box is to give the police and prosecutors nothing to compare to your answers in court. Let that be the first and only time they ever hear anything from you (outside of exercising your 5th Amendment rights). Better yet, let them prove their case without even that aid.
my husband and i have decided that should either of us ever come to a situation where we are questioned by police, we would lawyer up before we spoke a single word...
Mark for later.
Does that make it bad advice? Do you have something against the 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th Amendments to the Constitution?
Using your reasoning, the Founders must've been somehow in collusion with Al Queda or their ilk when they wrote the Bill of Rights. It gives ordinary citizens and accused criminals all sorts of "outrageous" rights. What the Hell were they thinking?
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