Saratoga County Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

Last week we discussed the wisdom of "remaining silent" in the face of police questioning. We discussed how the Supreme Court's Miranda v. Arizona case places upon the police an affirmative obligation to advise a person in their custody of certain rights, among these being the right to say nothing at all.

To re-cap, it is usually a good idea to exercise this most important right, when faced with police interrogation involving anything at all of a serious nature. What the police might then call your "lack of cooperation" could lead to you spending the night in jail. This, however, is usually far preferable to incriminating yourself and (later on) spending many nights in jail.

The Right to Remain Silent is part of the "Miranda warning" which the police are supposed to give you upon your arrest. However, you have this right even before the police remind you of it. You conduct your day to day activities while cloaked with this critical protection. You do not need for an officer to advise or remind you of this right before it kicks in to protect you.

Another right you always have is the right to be represented by an attorney. Most people do not need an attorney to conduct their daily affairs, but events can and do sometimes occur for which you should absolutely seek legal counsel and protection. Being questioned by police on any sort of serious matter is surely one of those times.

Continue reading "Know Your Rights if Arrested in New York (Part II)" »

Know Your Rights:

Most people living in our country are familiar with Miranda warnings, as they are called, in that they are frequently recited on television police shows. The warnings stem from a well known United States Supreme Court case Miranda v. Arizona. From that seminal case, and those that grew out of it, came the requirement that once an individual is taken into custody and is therefore "under arrest" they must be advised by the arresting officer of certain rights that they have. Among these rights is the right to remain silent and the right to have an attorney appointed to represent the individual if the person is unable to afford an attorney on his or her own.

The right to remain silent is an important right with which each of us is protected as we go about our daily business in society. For example, an officer approaching an individual in the street is not allowed to detain a person for questioning without having a sound legal basis. Actually, the analysis is far more complicated then this, however, suffice it to be said that if a police officer is to question an individual on the street, or after a traffic stop, or in some other setting, the person being questioned is not required to answer those questions, essentially "remaining silent".

Most importantly, one's right to remain silent is not dependent upon being advised of that right by a police officer. Often times police officers are seeking information and hoping that an individual will give up their right to remain silent. Instead of reminding the person of their right to invoke silence, the investigating officer will usually just go right into the questions that he seeks to have answers for. This is most likely to occur in a "non-custodial" setting, where for instance an individual is approached on the street or after a traffic stop.

Continue reading "Know Your Rights if Arrested in New York (Part I)" »