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Charles T. Ganz

When can you refuse to answer police questioning?

On Behalf of | Jul 11, 2018 | Firm News

Interacting with police is not always simple to navigate, especially in the current social climate where civilians and police are often at great odds. Additionally, many civilians are unclear exactly what the law has to say about protecting individual rights when interacting with law enforcement, particularly when it comes to answering questions or remaining silent.

We are probably all familiar with the general concept of “pleading the Fifth” and remaining silent when questioned in a courtroom scenario, as this aspect of individual rights is well represented in pop culture, from sketch comedy to police procedurals, and everything in between. What many civilians do not know, however, is that they generally enjoy the right to refuse to speak to police in most instances.

Identifying yourself

While legal minds disagree about the details of how a person must comply or may refuse to comply with police questioning, the law does require you to provide an officer your name if he or she asks, and usually also requires you to provide some form of identification. Beyond this, you are at your own discretion. You may legally choose to not answer any other questions that an officer asks, but the way that you do this and the circumstances surrounding the interaction may mean that remaining silent or refusing to answer questions leads to criminal charges and arrest.

Any time you receive criminal charges, you must address them immediately with a strong legal strategy that protects your rights and addresses the evidence against you. The less you say to an officer, the less evidence the prosecution has to build a case.

Protect your rights in the future

Let’s say an officer stops you on suspicion of drunk driving. If you know that you are over the legal limit, or suspect that you are, then criminal charges are likely to result from the stop. However, that does not mean an automatic conviction. The prosecution must still take the evidence against you and build a case for you guilt.

The more questions you answer during the stop, and the more information that you give about yourself and your actions in general, the more building blocks the prosecution can use. You may want to consider telling the officer that you do not wish to answer any more questions without your attorney present. This will almost certainly result in charges anyway, but you place yourself in a stronger position for building a legal defense.

It is important to note that you should not lie to an officer. It is wiser to simply refuse to answer a question. Refusing to answer a question is not a crime, whereas lying to an officer usually is. Protect your future fiercely as soon as you receive any charges by building a strong legal defense, to keep your own rights and priorities secure in the future.

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