Should I talk to the Police when arrested for DUI?

NO!!!

Speak to your attorney first!

Do not make statements to the police (these are often ill-advised admissions they are trained to elicit).

If you are stopped, identify yourself but everything else you tell the police will be used against you. You have a Fifth Amendment right to remain silent and not incriminate yourself. So, do not engage in casual chit-chat with them – discipline your mouth, please. Demand they immediately put you in touch with me (Cell:425-367-1122) or a public defender.

What can you say?

  • I do not consent to any search or detention.
  • I want my attorney or a public defender & help reaching them.
  • I am not answering ANY questions.
  • If I’m suspected of DUI for alcohol and/or drugs, then:
  • I won’t take a PBT or any Field Sobriety Coordination Tests —
  • But I’ll provide you with 2 breath samples at the police station or blood.

SO PLEASE … Don’t speak freely or even at all with the Police. Wait for Legal Advice from Your Attorney Before Making ANY Statements!

Please take a look at this excellent article on the website of Louisiana attorney James Kirk Piccione, “Top Ten Reasons Why You Should Not Talk to the Police.

Do not give the police the evidence they need to have the prosecutor charge you with a crime. If they already have it, you are going to be charged. If they don’t and you voluntarily give it to them, then you really messed up, eh? You should NOT talk to the police, whether you are guilty or innocent – it doesn’t matter. Period. If you’re detained at the roadside or the police station or in the back of a patrol vehicle, or you are in jail, do not talk. Not to the police, the correction officers or even your bunkmate about the facts of your case. Don’t talk about your case details over the regular jail phone, as those are recorded.

Instead, Call Me Collect immediately at: (425) 806-7200. I’ll come to the jail, and then you can speak freely as it will be safe and covered by the attorney-client privilege of confidentiality. Then I’ll work hard to get you out of jail and start fighting the government’s case against you. Never give a statement to law enforcement without your attorney. NEVER.

Revised (1/9/2017)