Know Your Rights | What To Do When Encountering Questions from Law Enforcement | ACLU (2024)

FAQs

Know Your Rights | What To Do When Encountering Questions from Law Enforcement | ACLU? ›

Although this might seem more official or formal than a casual conversation, you're under no obligation to answer them. You can decline to answer and walk away. The police are not allowed to use your refusal to answer questions as a reason to search or arrest you.

Although this might seem more official or formal than a casual conversation, you're under no obligation to answer them. You can decline to answer and walk away. The police are not allowed to use your refusal to answer questions as a reason to search or arrest you.

The Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution says that every person has the right to not answer questions asked by a government agent. They can ask you questions but you cannot be arrested just for refusing to answer them. But the police or FBI may become suspicious if you refuse.

Nonetheless, they may still assume you committed the crime. Even if you're not being investigated for a crime, you have the freedom to refuse to answer police questions. This holds true whether an officer approaches you on the street, summons you to the station for questioning, or arrests you.

To be clear, the freedom of speech afforded to you as a U.S. citizen by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution permits you to say whatever you want to a police officer without fearing recrimination (except it's against the law to overtly lie to a police officer).

Notice that these rights only come into play when two things happen: you've been arrested (meaning you're "in custody" and not free to leave) and police want to question you. In legal jargon, this is called a "custodial interrogation." (We have a whole article devoted to the meaning of custodial interrogation.)

Your Constitutional Right To Not Answer Questions

When the police want to interview you, you have a constitutional right to not answer their questions. It is the government's burden of proof, not yours.

You have the right to remain silent. For example, you do not have to answer any questions about where you are going, where you are traveling from, what you are doing, or where you live.

Police can search your car without a warrant if you voluntarily consent to the search. However, you have the right to refuse consent to a search, and you are not required to consent to a search of your vehicle.

Can you just walk away from cops if they try talking to you? ›

If you walk away or run away from a police officer who is engaging with you verbally, you could be charged with resisting an officer or a similar offense. In many cases, though, you have the right to walk away. You are only obligated to stay if you are under arrest or being detained.

The Interrogation Process

Unfortunately, many of these deceptive tactics are perfectly legal. However, the police cannot use the following methods to obtain information from criminal suspects: Threats. Physical torture. Psychological torture.

Unless the police officer threatens legal consequences, you generally have the right not to answer or to walk away. Most jurisdictions, however, require an individual to give their legal name if requested. But things change if police suspect that a person was involved in or will commit a crime.

Insulting the police officer may provoke them, causing the interaction to escalate. It's important to avoid saying things like “Do you know who I am?” and “Don't you have anything better to do?” Additionally, you do not want to create poor excuses for why you were breaking the law.

Always adhere to posted speed limits to avoid being spotted by an eagle-eyed law enforcement officer. Signal your intentions by using your turn signals in advance of making your move. Slow down when the lights turn yellow as opposed to speeding through the intersection.

Instead, the general rule is that police are allowed to follow you for a reasonable distance to observe your driving and determine if a traffic stop needs to be conducted. As you might imagine, a reasonable distance is interpretative and will vary based on the specifics of the situation.

The right to remain silent. The right to consult with an attorney and have the attorney present during questioning, and. The right to have an attorney appointed if indigent.

The term "failure to investigate properly" covers several issues related to the police force's inadequate handling of a case. This can include any of the following: Failure to secure a crime scene. Failure to properly collect evidence related to the case. Failure to interview witnesses.

Based on the Reid interrogation technique, there are seven different techniques law enforcement can use to obtain a confession. Law enforcement can use direct confrontation, dominance, deflection, address objections, be empathetic, intensify the moral justification of the crime, and offer alternative choices.

But…the asking and answering depend on circ*mstances. For example, if they are taking a criminal activity report from you (let's say someone burglarized your home), and they'd like to call you at some point during the investigation, they will ask you for your phone number.