Dealing with the Law

When dealing wih police, keep your hands in view and
don't make sudden movements. Avoid passing behind
them. Nervous cops are dangerous cops. Also, never
touch the police or their equiptment (vehicles, flashlights, animals, etc.) - you can get beat up and
charged with assault.

The police do not decide your charges; they can only
make recommendations. The prosecutor is the only
person who can actually charge you. Remember this
the next time the cops start rattling off all the charges
they're supposedly "going to give you".

Questioning.
Interrogation isn't always bright lights and rubber hoses- usually it's just a conversation. Whenever
the cops ask you anything besides your name and
address, it's legally safest to (respectfully) say :

"I am going to remain silent. I want to see a lawyer."

This invokes the rights which protect you from
interrogation. When you say this. the cops (and all other
law enforcement officials) are legally required to stop
asking you questions. They probably won't stop, so
just repeat the magic words or remain silent until they
catch on.

Remember, anything you say to the authorities can and
will be used against you and your friends in court.
There's no way to predict what information the police
might try to use or how they'd use it. Plus, the police
often misquote or lie altogeather about what was said.
So say only the above words and let all the cops and
witnesses know that this is your policy. Make sure that when you're arrested with other people, the rest of the
group knows the above words and promises to use them.

One of the jobs of cops is to get information out of
people, and they usually don't have any scruples
about how they do it. Cops are legally allowed to lie when they're investigating, and they are trained to be manipulative. The only thing you should say to cops, other than identifying yourself, is the words:
"I am going to remain silent. I want to see a lawyer."

Here are some lies cops will tell you:

"Youre not a suspect - just help us understand what happened here and then you can go."

"If you don't answer my questions, I'll have no choice but to arrest you. Do you want to go to jail?"

"If you don't answer my questions, I'm going to charge
you with resisting arrest."

"All of your friends have cooperated and we let them go home. You're the only one left."

Cops are sneaky buggers and there are lots of ways
they can trick you into talking. Here are some scams
they'll pull:

Good Cop/Bad Cop: Bad cop is agressive and menacing; while good cop is nice, friendly, and familiar
(usually good cop is the same race and gender as you).
The idea is bad cop scares you so bad you are desperately looking for a friend.

The cops will tell you your friends ratted on you so that you will snitch on them. Meanwhile, they tell your friends the same thing. If anyone breaks and talks, you
all go down.

The cops will tell you that they have all the evidence
they need to convict you "take responsibility" and
confess the judge will be impressed by your honesty
and go easy on you. What they really mean is:
"we don't have enough evidence yet, please confess."

Jail is a very isolating and intimidating place. It is
really easy to believe what the cops tell you. Insist
upon speaking with a lawyer before answer any questions or sign anything.

The Golden Rule: Never tust a cop.

The Miranda Warnings:

The police do not have to read you your rights (also know as the Miranda warnings). Miranda applies when there is (a) an interrogation (b) by a police officer or other agent of law enforcment (c) while the suspect is in police custody (you do not have to be formally arrested to be in custody"). Even when all these conditions are met, the police intentionally violate Miranda.

And though your rights have been violated, what you say can be used against you. For this reason it is better
not to wait for the cops "you know what your rights are,
so you can invoke them by saying:
"I am going to remain sient. I want to see a lawyer."

If you've been arrested and realize that you have started answering questions, don't panic. Just re-invoke your
rights by saying the above statment again. Don't let
them trick you into thinking that becauseyou answered some of their questions, you have to answer all of them.

Police Encounters

There are three basic types of encounters with the police: Conversation, Detention, and Arrest.

Conversation

When the cops are trying to get information, but don't
have enough evidence to detain you, they'll try to weasel some information out of you. They may call
this a "casual encounter" or a "friendly conversation",
If you talk to them, you may giv them the information they need to arrest you or your friends. In most situations, it's better and safer not to talk to cops.

Detention

Police can detain you only if they have reasonable suspicion (see below) that you are involved in a crime.
Detention means that, though you aren't arrested,
you can't leave. Detention is supposed to last a short
time and they aren't suppoed to move you. During
detention, the police can pat you down and go into your bag to make sure you don't have any weapons. They
aren't supposed to go into your pockets unless they feel a weapon.

If the police are asking questions, ask if you are bing detained. If not, leave and say nothing else to them.
If you are being detained, you may want to ask why.
Then you shouls say the words: " I am going to remain
silent. I want a lawyer" and nothing else.

A detention can easily turn into an arrest. If the police are detaining you and they get information that you are involved in a crime, they will arrest you, even if it has nothing to do with your detention. For example, if
someone gets pulled over for speeding (detained) and
the cop sees drugs in the car, the cops will arrest her for possession of the drugs even though it has nothing
to do with her getting pulled over. Cops have two
reasons to detain you: 1) they are writing you a citation
( a traffic ticket, for example), or 2) they want to arrest you but they don't have enough information yet to do so.

Arrest

Police can arrest you ony if they have probable cause
(see below) that you are involved in a crime. When you
are arrested, the cops can search you to the skin and
go through your car and any belongings. By law an
officer strip searching you must be the same gender as
you.

If the police come to your door with an arrest warrant,
go outside and lock the door behind you. Cops are
allowed to search any room you go into, so don't go back into the house for any reason. If they have an arrest warrant, hiding won't help because they are allowed to force their way in if they know you are there.
It's usually better to just go with them without giving
them an opportunity to search.

Reasonable Suspicion vs. Probable Cause

Reasonable suspicion must be based on more than just a hunch - cops must be able to put their suspicion into
words. For example, cops just can't stop someone and say, She looked like she was up to something." They
need to be more specific, like, She was standing under
the overpass staring up at some graffiti that hadn't been
there 2 hours ago, she had the same graffiti pattern written on her backpack. I suspected that she had put up the graffiti.

Cops need more proof to say they have probable cause
then to say that they have a reasonable suspicion. For
example, "A store owner called to report someone
matching her description tagging a wall across the street. As I drove up to the store, I saw her running away spattered with paint and carrying a spray can in her hand."

Searches

Never consent to a search! If the police try to search your house, car, backpack, pockets, etc. say the words
2: " I do not consent to this search." This may not stop
them from forcing their way in and searching anyway,
but if they search you legally, they probably won't be able to use the evidence against you in court. You
have nothing to lose from refusing to consent to a search and lots to gain. Do not physically resist cops
when they are trying to search because you could get
hurt and charged with resisting arrest or assault.
Just keep repeating the above statment so that the
cops and all witnesses know that this is your policy.

Be careful about casual consent. That is, if you are stopped by the cops and you get out of the car but don't
close the door, they can search the car and claim that
they thought you were indicating consent by leaving the
door ajar. Also, if you say, I'd rather you didn't search,"
they can claim that you were reluctantly giving them permission to search. Always just say the words : I do not consent to this search.

If the cops have a search warrant, nothing changes - It's
legally safest to just say the words above. Again, you
have nothing to lose from refusing to consent to a search, and lots to gain if the search warrant is incorrect or invalid in some way. If they do have a search warrant, ask to read it. A valid warrant must have a recent date (usually no more than a couple of weeks),
the correct address, and the judges magistrate signature; some warrants indicate the time of day the cops can search. You should say the above words
wheather or not the search warrant appears correct.
The same goes for any government official who tries to search you, your belongings, or your house.

infiltrators and informants

Undercover cops sometimes infiltrate political organisations.
They can lie about being cops even if asked directly,
Undercover cops can even break the law (narcs get hazard pay for doing drugs as part of their cover) and
encourage others to do so as well. this is not legally entrapment.

FBI and other government agents

The essence of the words: "I'm keeping my mouth shut until i talk to a lawyer" not only applies to police but
also to the FBI, INS, CIA, even IRS.
If you want to be nice and polite, tell them that you do not wish to speak with them until you've spoken with your lawyer, or that you won't answer questions without
a lawyer present. If you are being investigated as a result of your political activity, you can call the National Lawyers Guild at (415) 582 - 1055; they will help you
find a lawyer you can talk to.

Taking Notes

Whenever you interact with or observe the police, always write down what is said and who said it.
Write down the cops' names and badge numbers and the names and contact numbers of any witnesses.
Record everything that happens. If you are expecting alot of police contact, get in the habit of carrying a small tape recorder and a camera with you.
Be careful - cops don't like people taking notes, especially if the cops are planning on doing something
illegal.
Observing them and documenting their actions may have very different results; for example, it may cause them to respond aggressively, or it may prevent them from abusing you or your friends.

Conclusion

People deal with the police in all kinds of circumstances. You must make an individual decision
about how you will interact with law enforcment.
It is important to know your legal rights, but it is also important for you to dedcide when and how to use them
in order to protect yourself