Law & Order

[ScottHaneda]

I have been watching Law & Order on television for a little over a year now, and a few episodes have always inspired me to wonder. I have 2 questions…

What does it mean when they ask the judge for permission to treat a witness as hostile?

And secondly, often time they bust a prostitute. In most all cases the prostitute asks them “are you a cop” and they say no. Now, there is this theory that if you ask a officer if they are a cop they have to answer you truthfully, yet on Law & Order, the officers/detectives seem to have a way around this. Is this technicality more or less a urban legend, or is there real truth to it?

thank you

[Milossarian]

No lawyer, but a fellow L&O fanatic…

If a judge agrees that a witness is “hostile,” it means he concurs with the questioning lawyer that the person on the stand is being evasive. The judge allows for more latitude in questioning, such as leading questions, than he or she otherwise does.

And, as noted in this article:

There is a persistent myth–believed even by many prostitutes and others who might benefit from knowing the truth–that police officers must answer truthfully if you ask them if they are indeed police officers. It’s not true. Cops can lie.

They can lie about who they are, what they’re doing and why they’re doing it. They can sign forms and contracts with false statements that would amount to perjury for you and me. They can get fake driver’s licenses through the Department of Motor Vehicles, listing addresses either real or nonexistent.

Similarly, police can go to great lengths in luring people to commit crimes.

[Lamia]

*Originally posted by ScottHaneda *
** Now, there is this theory that if you ask a officer if they are a cop they have to answer you truthfully, yet on Law & Order, the officers/detectives seem to have a way around this. Is this technicality more or less a urban legend, or is there real truth to it?
**

Of course it’s an urban legend. How would the police get any undercover work done at all if they had to blow their cover anytime anyone asked?

[astro]

I like like L&W but a few of the shows have gotten a little silly. There was one I saw a few weeks ago with a convoluted story line that revolved around the death of a bag lady and potential purchase of a NY apartment building owned by two estranged siblings etc etc. In the end the real estate agent was fingered as the killer.

Heretofore I had always assumed that the show was an accurate reflection of how crimes occur but the description of the commercial RE agents actions ( I am one) and why he committed the crime showed me someone was pulling the plot line out of his or her ass and had about as much knowledge of the real world mechanics and process of RE transactions as a cabbage.

It’s still an entertaining show.

[C_K_Dexter_Haven]

On the hostile witness question, you might go to the Archives and search and you would find this answered in fairly complete details: The Straight Dope Mailbag: What is a “hostile witness”?