Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by tikiman163 1803 days ago
You'd be shocked how infrequently law enforcement officers get investigated, let alone prosecuted, convicted or sent to prison for anything you just listed. That goes triple for lawyers, lawyers have sent innocent men to prison for 30+ years for pretending exculpatory evidence didn't exist and they don't even get asked to apologize because it could throw other convictions into doubt. They should be thrown into doubt, but the thought that a murderer or mob boss might go free (even if that lawyer has only ever prosecuted non-violent drug offenders) is so powerful that lawyers have to be caught in the act and seen by thousands before they'll even begin to consider looking into the activities of a prosecutor. Defense attorneys on the other hand tend to be under paid and overworked, increasing the odds of a false conviction.

Remember kids, the criminal justice system has a strong bias towards conviction if charges are filed, so don't talk to the police. You're only helping them build a nonsense case against you, even if they've got another suspect you never know when a rookie cop is going to decide that getting you on Jay walking is good for his numbers this month. Unless you personally witnessed a serious crime like assault, rape or murder, shut the fuck up.

1 comments

> Unless you personally witnessed a serious crime like assault, rape or murder, shut the fuck up.

And even then, only share your observations of the crime in question. If the conversation turns towards you in any way, shut the fuck up.

And even then, get a lawyer first consult them on everything you say before you say it.

And never forget the only things you should ever say during a traffic stop:

Why have you pulled me over?

I don't know. Here are my license and registration.

I'm not required to discuss my day.

When was your radar last calibrated? (avoid this one unless you really want to piss them off)

Am I free to go?

Am I under arrest?

I would like to speak to a lawyer.

If it's not on this list, have your lawyer present and consult them directly before saying it.