You have the right to remain silent (Legal Jiu Jitsu - Vol 1 - Ch 4)
Government agents hate this right. Most people don't use it.
This is a rough draft of Chapter 4 of a book that I'm working on to teach anyone that wants to learn how to exercise their rights and defend themselves in a court of law (with or without a lawyer) how to do so. Other chapters are linked at the end of this article.
The right to remain silent
You control your vocal chords.
Because of this, you can choose not to speak to anyone that you don't want to speak with.
This includes police, government agents of all stripes, and everyone else.
The exceptions to the rule
Under the united states system of law there are ONLY two times when you have to speak with someone:
- When you are being deposed during the discovery phase of a lawsuit.
- When you are on the witness stand during the trial phase of a lawsuit.
Even then, if your answer could potentially be used to incriminate you in any kind of lawsuit you can state that you stand on your right to remain silent in response to any question asked of you.
How do you exercise this right?
As George Gordon used to say about this right, using it is easy:
- Shut up
- Close your mouth
- Don't say anything
If someone wants to attempt to force you to answer their questions they can file a lawsuit against you and try to get you to agree to be deposed during discovery or to take the witness stand during trial.
Talking to Government Agents
If a police officer, CPS agent, IRS agent, or any other government agent is asking questions of you without your having initiated the conversation it means that they probably don't have enough information to file a lawsuit against you or arrest you.
By asking questions they are attempting to get you to say something that they can use against you.
There is nothing you can say to them that can help you.
Here is a solid explanation of why you should never talk with police from law professor James Duane.
This video applies equally well to speaking with any government agent that comes snooping around.
Of course, our courts have been slowly corrupting this right and you now have to state clearly that you are making use of it in order to avoid having it used against you to make you look guilty in a court of law.
Answering questions
If you really want to answer questions from a police officer or government agent, agree to answer their questions in writing once they have provided them to you in writing.
By requiring that all questions be in writing you do a few things:
- You have proof of what was asked (no longer your word vs theirs)
- You can take your time to answer each question carefully
- You can choose which questions to answer
- You can run the questions (and your potential answers) by a lawyer
Police Stops
When faced with a police officer you have the right to remain silent... no matter what the police officer says.
The police are allowed to lie to you. This has been upheld over and over in our court systems.
If you are afraid of being arrested you might consider the fact that you should be more afraid of being convicted of something in court.
The police are trained to question you in a manner designed to cunningly coerce you into giving up your right to remain silent so that they can get more convictions (raise more revenue).
Stopped out in public
If an officer walks up to you in public you have no duty to talk with them.
Tell them you don't answer questions.
Ask them if you are under arrest. If they say no, ask them if you are free to go. Repeat until they either arrest you or let you be on your way.
If they ask to search you state clearly "I do not consent to searches".
Police can walk up to you and start asking questions... just like anyone else can.
You can ignore them just as you can ignore anyone else.
Refusing to speak with police is not a crime.
Refusing to identify yourself in any way is not a crime.
- I don't answer questions
- I don't consent to searches
- Am I under arrest? Am I free to go?
Kenny Suitter has a great video that explains how I don't answer questions works.
Watch some of his other videos to see how he deals with police.
If the police have probable cause to arrest you they will do so. If they do not, they will come ask questions until they either decide to leave you alone or decide that they have established probable cause.
At your home
If the police show up at your home to ask questions then you can simply tell them that you don't answer questions.
If you believe that is too rude you might instead say "Sorry officer, I don't answer questions. If you want me to answer any questions you might have please provide them in writing and I will answer them with assistance of counsel."
They are at your door. You don't have to answer their questions.
If they have a warrant (arrest or search) I'll cover that in the next chapter. If they do not have a warrant then you can simply act just as if they had approached you in a public place... and shut the door when you are done talking with them.
Over the phone
If called by police over the phone let them know that you don't answer questions.
If you want to be more friendly tell them that you don't answer questions over the phone but that if they want to send you questions in writing you will consider answering them.
At a traffic stop
Most people should simply get their ID+registration+insurance together, hold them out, and stick to "I don't answer questions".
If asked to take a test, tell them you do not consent to any test.
If asked to search your car (or yourself), tell them that you do not consent to searches.
While traffic laws only apply to people involved in the business of transportation and you have no duty to have or provide ID, registration, insurance, or anything else it is also true that mis-applying transportation codes to the traveling public is a huge revenue machine for governments (billions of dollars a year) and that you better be very sure of what you are doing if you want to refuse to provide your papers.
Your average cop knows that you don't have to talk to them.
They don't know that transportation codes do not apply to travelers.
I plan to cover this in detail in a future booklet... but recommend that unless you KNOW how things work and are willing to fight that you simply provide your papers and refuse to answer questions.
Non Police Government Agents
You don't have to talk to CPS, the IRS, or any other government agent outside of a court of law.
You can deal with them just as you would the police.
Don't every talk to a government agent that shows up at your door and claims that they are there to help.
Obligated, Required, Want, Need, etc.
Police and other government agents are trained to use particular wordings in order to make it sound like you have to do what they say without actually saying so.
If you are OBLIGATED to do something then you must do it.
If an agent claims that they require something or that you are required to do something then you are not obligated to do that thing.
Require (in law) denotes that one thing must be done in order for some other thing to happen.
For example:
- I require to see your child (in order to file a complaint against you and take your child)
- I require your drivers license (in order to establish nexus and write you a ticket)
- You are required to sign this document (in order for us to have legal permission to do something to you)
Don't be fooled by the word require.
Also, if they want or need something, say no. Just because someone else needs or wants something from you does not mean you must provide it.
Record. Record. Record.
I mentioned earlier that if you want to answer questions you should get them in writing and respond in writing as well. This is because doing so establishes a record of what was actually asked and answered.
Courts are all about records. If you encounter a government agent you should record them on video and/or audio if at all possible.
You have the right to record them in public.
You have the right to record them on your own property.
When you video tape them you are letting them know that if they break the law (civil) then you will have proof of it and it will no longer be your word versus theirs.
Police Brutality
Any time you run into police you run the risk of being assaulted, battered, imprisoned, and/or killed.
For this reason it is a good idea to be polite, record them if at all possible, and refuse to say any more than absolutely necessary. Being in a public place where others can see what is going on is also helpful.
Identification
Police (and other government agents) are supposed to provide proof of identity upon demand.
This is because if you have never met them before you have no idea whether they are who they claim to be or not.
Anyone can wear a uniform, a badge, a gun, etc.
Politeness
Personally, when approached by police I say hello and ask them if there is anything I can help them with.
If they let me know of an actual problem (tail light or blinker out, road flooded ahead, etc.) then I thank them for letting me know and wish them a nice day... and start to leave.
This is so far outside of what they are used to that they often simply say you're welcome and leave before they realize it as you are treating them as they treat others off duty... not as a police officer.
Cops are people. Throw them out of cop mode for a moment by treating them as you might treat a friend and in many cases they will treat you the same way and never think to ask for id/papers/etc.
Of course, if they start in with questions, demands, and/or otherwise act in a rude manner when I greet them and ask if I can help them with something then I have no problem simply demanding that they prove they are indeed a police officer, telling them that I don't answer questions, and then asking if I am under arrest or free to go until they arrest me or leave.
To see the other chapters of this series that have been published so far view my blog @tony.jennings
Be sure to follow me if you want to see further chapters as they are published.