Police are known for upholding the standard of the law; however, they are allowed to use deception to accomplish this task. Unfortunately, many people whole-heartedly trust police officers without realizing they can legally lie to citizens. This can lead the unaware to unknowingly condemn themselves or their loved ones when there’s a lack of concrete evidence for the case. In this blog, we will look at the various ways in which cops can lie to citizens.
Police Will Lie About
Evidence
Police will regularly lie about evidence in an attempt to secure a conviction or scare a witness into accusing someone else. For example, cops can tell the accused they have their DNA at the crime scene when in reality, the police have no concrete evidence to suspect the charged. This can force the accused to believe they are in trouble, when in fact, the police have nothing to convict him or her. While police can lie to witnesses about collected evidence, they can also lie to the accused about witnesses.
Witnesses
A reliable witness can convict someone of a crime, so police will often lie about witnesses to get the accused to confess. In some circumstances, the police will tell the accused that an eyewitness saw him or her commit the crime. Other times, police will tell the accused that a security camera captured the whole incident when they have no witnesses of whoever committed the crime. While the above lies may seem like a lot, the deception does not stop at evidence.
Consequences
In addition to evidence and witnesses, police will often lie about the possible consequences of breaking laws. For example, an officer may suggest that a conviction for a crime will result in the maximum penalty if the accused doesn’t confess to the crime; however, that’s not true. How a judge hands down a sentence has little to do with the accused’s willingness to “work with” the cops. Admitting guilt to cops could result in worse consequences when compared to fighting for your case.
In addition to possible penalties, the police can also lie to the accused about charges he or she will receive for “not cooperating.” Legally, the accused always has the right to silence; however, cops will often attempt to scare the accused into talking through crafty language.
For example, if the accused is refusing to talk about the case, a police officer may suggest that the accused’s silence will result in a charge of obstruction of justice. However, a person cannot be charged for obstruction of justice by just refusing to answer questions about a case. Therefore, while failing to cooperate with a cop in certain ways can result in an obstruction of justice, staying silent during police questioning is not one of them. In addition to consequences, police can also lie about tests and recordings.
Tests & Recordings
Unfortunately, many police will lie about recording conversations or conducting tests. Nearly everyone has heard of a polygraph test (lie detector,) what most people don’t know is that lie detector tests cannot prove innocence or guilt of a crime. Cops know this, but they will force the accused to take a lie detector test anyway. Once the accused is hooked up to the test, police will ask questions and tell the suspect they failed the test. Police will tell the suspect the polygraph test confirmed their guilt when in actuality, it confirms nothing.
Another form of lie comes from police recordings. Police will often tell suspects they aren’t recording the conversation when they are. This can lead the accused to believe their conversation is in private when it’s actually being recorded.
Use Your Fifth Amendment Right
If you or a loved one is arrested, the best thing to do is stay silent. Police will attempt to rile you into talking, but don’t let their deceit take away your rights! If cops ask you for information, you should immediately request an experienced criminal defense lawyer!
Call (909) 328-6101 now for a free consultation concerning your case!