Radley Balko -- once a reporter at libertarian website Reason, now at the Washington Post -- has owned this beat for over a decade now. Read Rise of the Warrior Cop if you're interested in learning more.
He wrote a follow up book on this subject that basically says you can’t just not talk to police. You have to request a lawyer and only talk to police once your lawyer is present. If I remember correctly in the book he explains there have been some rulings that let them consider complete silence as admission of guilt. Been a while since I read it though so I’m sure I’m missing the nuance.
Edited to add the book https://www.amazon.com/You-Have-Right-Remain-Innocent/dp/1503933393/ref=nodl_
More than once on this sub, I've cited the book Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America's Police. It's a bit lengthy, and covers the historical foundation of the Bill of Rights (great read if you're an American history student).
But the real takeaway is that SWAT teams bring their own exigency with them. "Exigency" is just a fancy word for urgent and unexpected circumstances that allow SWAT teams to improvise and shoot dogs and kick in doors and operate without a judge's oversight. But the book makes a compelling argument that SWAT teams create exigency, they create violence where none existed before, they create dangerous situations where none existed before.
What if there are hostages inside a bank during a botched robbery? Sure, send in SWAT. But a house where no one is in any danger? Or a house where no one is threatening anyone? Hey, what if someone is suspected of cock fighting? Just have a celebrity drive a SWAT tank into their house. WCGW?
> and I'd be shocked if there's a US Attorney out there who's willingly going to go "yeah, you know what? I'm going to push for a weed conviction rather than going after heroin / coke / opiods / meth."
You're confusing the symptoms with the problem. The driving force behind the drug war isn't attorneys or even really politicians specifically, it's law enforcement agencies going after that sweet, sweet grant money. And MJ busts are quick, easy ways to make a buck. It has virtually zero impact on the actual crime rate but it looks good on paper. Radly Balko's book "The Rise of the Warrior Cop" is a really good breakdown on this subject.
Attorney's, politicians, and even the president himself can talk all the talk they want, the reality is until someone cuts the purse strings, this problem doesn't go away. And I have yet to hear even hint at limiting these grant programs.
This guy has a book that expands on it more.
You Have the Right to Remain Innocent
You can't say "I think I need a lawyer," or "I don't talk to cops without a lawyer." Tell them to get you an attorney, in no uncertain terms. Do not deny the charges, or claim ignorance of any crime. Research your rights thoroughly.
You were formally charged, and then got to go home? That doesn't seem right. Usually once they formally charge you, they jail you.
It might not be as bad as you think.
I suggest reading the book You Have the Right to Remain Innocent.
fyi....just passing along something I've read: https://www.amazon.com/You-Have-Right-Remain-Innocent/dp/1503933393
You should NEVER talk to the police, especially federal agents.
You should not claim your right to remain silent, but instead exercise your right to a lawyer.
Demand gov't to provide written questions and only answer gov't in written statements
Feminism does not care about women but about their privileges. And the most important of all is to maintain control of sexuality. That is why they oppose sexual dolls and any alternative to a relationship where the woman marks the sexual pattern.
The feminist lie (book): https://www.amazon.com/Feminist-Lie-Never-About-Equality-ebook/dp/B071SG95CN
Postscript: When a feminist tells you that you are reifying the female body for having a sex doll, tell her to throw her dildo in the trash.
The Feminist Lie by Bob Lewis is pretty good. It exposes it for the fraud it is in pretty good detail, as well as laying out the method and tactics feminists use to silence opposition and how to counter them. Well worth the read.
>The whole "ask for a lawyer" business is kind of overstated. The only thing a lawyer will advise you is to not say another word to the police. That's the entirety of the benefit of calling a lawyer. (Also, in circumstances where it's not clear that you've been detained/arrested, the lawyer will instruct you to ask the police if you can leave, and if offered the chance, to do so).
>
>Edit: you should still call a lawyer, because you're always better off with advice tailored to your situation than without it. I'm just pointing out it won't stop the police from asking the questions.
James Duane of the famous Don't Talk to the Police video recommends in his book You Have the Right to Remain Innocent that you should explicitly ask for a lawyer instead of pleading the fifth. He cites a supreme court decision that makes it so the fifth amendment no longer has the protections it used to have. Explicitly stating you want a lawyer and then remaining silent is your best option.
Here are a couple of excellent books about blacks using firearms to defend themselves against white supremacists.
https://www.amazon.com/Negroes-Guns-Robert-F-Williams/dp/1773230522
https://www.amazon.com/This-Nonviolent-Stuffll-Get-Killed/dp/082236123X
Pumping millions of dollars into police departments across the nation and encouraging them to use military tactics on drug busts against blacks and hippies is tame compared to a guy with a Twitter fetish?
Nixon was the quintessential "tough on crime" Republican. He loved putting guns and money into cops' hands so they could fight a non-existent crime wave that wasn't sweeping the nation all so he could pander to his bases for reelection.
Nixon was truly paranoid and did so much to wreck our country all to please some demons in his head.
Trump is like that weird uncle at family gatherings that spouts off nonsense, and who gets drunk and posts on social media all the time. You know the guy is unhinged, but that is the key - everyone knows he is weird and unpredictable. You know you take everything he says with a grain of salt. Nixon at least sounded rational and sane. Plus, Trump is not responsible for ending nearly as many human lives as Nixon. The Vietnam was was a damn shame, killing so many people all for nothing. All Nixon had to do was pull out when he took office, but he didn't.
I highly recommend this book to learn about how law enforcement in the US has changed over the years. The author devotes quite a bit of space discussing how both Nixon and Reagan set the stage for how things are today: SWAT teams knocking down doors going after marijuana; record numbers of people in prison; billions of dollars in tax money spent on police at local, state, and federal levels; creating generations of felons who struggle being productive members of society due to "tough on crime" drug convictions over what should be minor or nonexistent offenses. Who started all of this? Nixon. As bad as he is, Trump has barely scratched the surface compared to Nixon.
Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America's Police Forces by Radley Balko may be interesting reading for you.
By defund the police, people are referring to the militarization of cops, not literally not paying them anymore. At least, the rational ones are. Why does a Sheriff's office need a tank?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Militarization_of_police
https://www.amazon.ca/Rise-Warrior-Cop-Militarization-Americas/dp/1610394577
Remember the show Luke Cage? There was that horrible prison guard, Albert Rakham. Sure, a correctional officer isn't a cop, but they look and act alike and there are certain obvious similarities.
Anyway, I couldn't help but notice that in the comics, Rakham looked like Officer Wiggum of The Simpsons. In the show, they made him look more like a poster of one of Hitler's fit, blonde brownshirts. Character looked totally different from the 70's version.
I mentioned that to a friend and she said, "Well, I guess the writers read the book Rise of the Warrior Cop." X-D
He wrote a book version of this talk a few years back.
It's a short book and a quick read, and goes into some of the changes in advice since that talk was published.
In particular, one of Scalia's last majority opinions before he died was a groundbreaking decision that invoking the 5th can be used against you: if you were previously cooperating and then decided to no longer cooperate, that decision can be used as evidence against you. Terrible, terrible decision, but it still stands.
Duane's new advice is "invoke the sixth."
Read the book.
Hey, I just want to mention in this thread the book:
Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America's Police Forces
It covers the history of how the police have changed over time and become what they are today. It's an interesting read of society, government, and how power is exerted and justified. Check your local library today to see if they have a copy. Or you could "borrow without asking" a digital copy from the internet. Or buy it if your into that sort of thing.
The militarization of the police force in the United States has been an ongoing issue for years, not really sure how you can pin that on Trump. If you are curious, Radley Balko released a book about this in 2014 (Amazon).
https://www.amazon.com/You-Have-Right-Remain-Innocent/dp/1503933393
Such a good read with important advice. Book was given to me by my neighbor who was a long time corporate attorney who now volunteers for innocent people initially convicted of crimes. He is one of the most upstanding people I how; great father, very successful career, active at his church, etc.... and he told me I would never believe the amount of corruption he has seen by law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges.
I bought that guy's book, "You Have the Right to Remain Innocent" last week and blazed through it in a couple of days.
Definitely worth the $5.
Radley fucking Balko. Buy his book, damnit.
Edited to include link.
The worse the riots get, the bigger their defense budget will be next year. Couldn't get the city to pay for upgrades last year? Not gonna be a problem next year. Rise of the Warrior Cop is kind of a dry read, but it breaks down things like police budgets before and after major events like the Rodney king riots.
Ooh, also check out "You Have the Right to Remain Innocent". Amazing (terrifying) book in the subject. (Non-affiliate) link below...
https://www.amazon.com/You-Have-Right-Remain-Innocent-ebook/dp/B01DAD218W/ref=sr_1_1
>Courts have ruled that you must actually invoke your right.
It appears that SCOTUS also ruled that it can be held against you in court if you were not detained at the time.
The trick is to agree to answer all and every question and to cooperate fully, but only after your lawyer arrives. Once the lawyer arrives, it inevitably tells you to shut the fuck up. At which point you remain silent, but it's not your idea. If you could, you'd still cooperate fully. But oh well...
All according to James Duane
He also wrote a book where he went into the details, to the extent that those details somewhat contradict the original basic video. For example, taking the 5th might and will be used as incriminating evidence in court, and so on.
I'd strongly recommend reading the book before giving the advice to say "I have nothing illegal in the car"
Don't try it. It's apparently been gutted by the courts over the last few years, to the point that it's apparently not safe to use it. If your lawyer tells you to use it, then do what your lawyer says. But don't try to invoke it without a lawyer.
Instead you should say "I want my lawyer" then shut up.
Source: The book "You Have the Right to Remain Innocent" by James Duane. https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1503933393/
(And for those who prefer reading, You have the right to remain innocent!)
I’d be hesitant to go with “I don’t answer personal questions”… I’m not sure adding the qualifier of ‘personal’ is a great strategy. The advice I usually see to be more ‘polite’ is to say one will answer questions after speaking to their lawyer. Since no lawyer would tell their client to answer questions without their presence if at all it becomes in effect “I don’t answer questions”. Something like “I’d be happy to answer your questions after speaking to my attorney”.
As to why not add the ‘personal’ qualifier.. it is because what is a ‘personal question’ is a bit subjective and even if we went with things that most reasonable people agree aren’t personal, like a cop asking someone what day of the month it is, one can imagine scenarios where it could be used against them. For instance if someone doesn’t know the day of the month it could be used as evidence to infer someone was intoxicated or in certain frame of mind. Obviously would be with other factors a LEO can thread into a very carefully crafted story, which is their job and one they are much much much better at then you or I.
Definitely don’t take ‘not speaking to the police’ as remaining totally silent as that’s specifically not seen as someone retaining their rights against self-incrimination. Make a clear unambiguous statement about not answering questions.
I’d suggest anyone getting into the weeds like I’m doing read the book (pamphlet really) the guy on YouTube wrote after the popularity of the above video. He clarifies exactly what you want to do as simply as possible. “You Have the Right to Remain Innocent” (https://www.amazon.com/You-Have-Right-Remain-Innocent/dp/1503933393). There is some things that had subtly changed since that YT lecture. If anyone doesn’t have the six bucks for the ebook searching for the title on Google with pdf on the end turns it up.
That's so terribly naive that I have to assume you are trolling.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-7o9xYp7eE
and his very excellent book
https://smile.amazon.com/You-Have-Right-Remain-Innocent/dp/1503933393
do excellent jobs of explaining why you 1) likely have committed a crime, you just don't know it, and 2) talking to the police is an excellent way to commit additional crimes AND admit your guilt.