Suppose a cop stops you and questions you. Having read the ACLU brochure on your civil rights, after you answer the questions you ask, “Am I free to go?” What do you do if the cop ignores your question and refuses to give a yes or no answer? Can you be charged with resisting arrest or something if you walk away from such an ambiguous situation?
If the officer doesn’t answer your question, I’d say that you should refuse to answer any more questions, tell the officer you’re leaving, and walk away slowly. If the officer tells you to stop, or to come back, follow his instructions, and continue to not answer questions without a lawyer. You will have forced the officer to answer whether you were free to go without resisting.
Check these two out and you should be able to get a good answer. Also, there is a video made by an ex-cop that gives you some great info from out in the field.
If the officer didn’t answer me directly, I might even say, very politely, “You didn’t say I’m free to go, so I will assume I’m not. I consider myself in custody unless you tell me otherwise. I decline to answer your questions and wish to see a lawyer.” Repeat the last sentence, politely, as necessary.
I think I would do just the reverse and say, similarly politely, “Since you refuse to answer my question about whether I am free to go or not, I assume that I am not in custody and am free to go. I am going to exercise my right to leave now. If I am mistaken and you do wish to forbid my leaving, please say so now.”
This has the advantage of not voluntarily subjecting oneself to real or imagined custody. After all, the police do not have to provide you with a lawyer during custody, so you might be waiting quite a bit of time (suppose the extraordinary case where they just leave you in the interrogation room for days on end, not questioning you but also not permitting any civilians to contact you either; and since you’re not really in custody, no civil right violation has occurred).
The difference is that an officer (and there are some out there, alas) who was looking for a pretext to smack you around will have one if you walk away, even slowly. Depending on your reading of the situation and his or her temperament, better, I think, to stay put and force the issue on your own terms, while appearing compliant.
How about this:
Smile, and say, “Listen, officer, I’m glad I could help, but if there isn’t anything else I really have to get going. Do you mind?”
That sounds like it could have come from an episode of Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Everyone the police questions always has some important appointment and can’t be bothered to stick around for the inconvenience of being questioned about a murder.
Bingo.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/01/national/main3561663.shtml?source=related_story
Apparently, walking slowly away from a cop is threatening behavior and a valid reason for the cop to taser you.
The only problem with that phrasing is that (if he’s devious, and many are) the cop might decide to say “Yes, I mind” to get you to stay, while later claiming he never arrested you, he was just telling you that it would have personally bothered him for you to leave.
If this was just a friendly chat, or a ‘Did you see the suspect?’ interviewing a witness, then of course a friendly approach is fine. But the question is about what to do when the cop isn’t so friendly and it’s not clear whethere they’re arresting you or not.
Apparently, the state might have to pay for that line of reasoning: he got $40k from it.
Were I approached by a cop, it’s probably because I know him. Anyway, assuming not, and I were at the time in no mood to stick around, I’d simply ask: am I detained?
If he refused to answer, I’d respond with, “Well, since you haven’t formally answered me, clearly, you have no intention of detaining me. Good day.” And then I’d walk off.
Although I think these types of questions are fun to discuss as a general question, in reality it doesn’t matter. The cop can always say he said “such and such,” regardless if he did or did not. You can always claim you said “such and such.” That is of course unless you have a cell phone recording it or the cop has some kind of a camera in his car pointing at you.
Question #1: Why are you answering the officer’s questions in the first place?
Question #2: If you reach a point you want to leave, why don’t you simply say you refuse to answer any more questions?
Sure, but
a) some cops might be honest, even when it’s not completely in their interest;
b) you might be more convincing to a judge or jury when you’re telling the truth than when you’re lying; and
c) there might be a recording you don’t know about.
Given those points, I’d stick with doing things so I didn’t have to lie about them later.
Not necessarily answering questions, though that’s generally what they’re after when they first approach you. Could be any brief conversation at all, even if there were no more questions than “Hello, ma’am. How are you?” The question is what happens when you are done talking and wish to leave, even if that’s immediately.
Yep, I say that to the nice officer. Now it’s my turn to ask: Am I free to go? And what do I do if he ignores this question? Logically, if he doesn’t say I’m being detained, it means I can walk. Streetwisely, my ass knows it needs to watch out because walking can be very risky (depending on the given cop, depending on my perceived race, depending on my perceived queerness, depending on a situation with infinite possible variables). That, I think, summarizes the answers so far… and still makes for a practical dilemma, as far as I can tell.
Why would you ask?
Unless the officer has stopped you to talk to you, there is no reason to ask if you can leave. If the officer has stopped you to talk to you, and asked you questions, when you stop answering them, the officer is going to do something after your first refusal to answer a question. That’s when you will know if you are free to leave or not.
I’ve been bitching about that for YEARS now !
Hell, even the regular Law and Order. The cops tell you that your co-worker was murdered and sodomized, but you are too busy signing documents and yelling at underlings. Hell, even laborers keep unloading crates, stocking vegetables, helping old ladies, etc. Then finally the detectives hear “Is that all guys? I really have to finish (watering the lawn, killing cats, stroking my penis)”
If a cop comes to my workplace about a freaking murder, he has my full attention. These people on L&O must have very interesting lives such that murder investigations piss them off.
Logic would suggest that this is the best route to take, if you feel that the officer isn’t going to give you a straight up yes or no. If he continues to ask questions and you’re ready to go, just repeat “I refuse to answer any more questions. May I go now?”
When he realizes you really aren’t going to answer any more questions, he’ll either arrest you or be on his way. Then you’ll know.
Christ, but that does irritate me. No matter WHO they’re talking to, the person is ALWAYS so busy that he/she keeps doing what they were doing. I know the director wants to keep the scene moving visually, and it’s probably more entertaining than watching them sit in chairs talking to each other, but come on. It’s often quite ridiculous.
Oops