By Lindsey Schibelhut, Senior Reporter.
When traveling down the street, no one wants to hear that infamous siren wail and see those flashing red and blue lights. In this situation would you know your constitutional rights?
On Jan. 12, Counter Culture, 620 Gratiot Avenue, Saginaw, hosted the forum “Isn’t this illegal? Your constitutional rights and the police.” The event was moderated by attorney Jack Schulz, with special guests Detroit civil rights and criminal law litigator Shawn Godwin and Saginaw criminal defense attorney James Piazza, who spoke about the do’s and don’ts of police interaction.
“Anytime a police officer asks you a question, keep your mouth shut. I don’t care how badly you want to explain yourself,” says Piazza.
According to Godwin, the only information you should be giving to an officer is proof of identification.
“When the police pull you over, if you’re driving- you got to provide a driver’s license, you got to,” says Godwin, “and if you can’t provide a driver’s license, then you have to identify who you are – your name, your date of birth, your address, so that they can check to see if there are any warrants out for you.”
Godwin goes on to say you don’t have to provide a license if you are approached by an officer while walking, but it will expedite the process.
Most people think it’s the duty of the officer to read you your rights, which is not the case according to Piazza.
“If they don’t read you your rights and they still question you, what do you say? ‘I’m not answering any questions!’ ” says Piazza. “You can’t win. Police are allowed to lie, cheat, tell you they got you on videocamera, they got your DNA and they got 42 witnesses. What do you got to say to that? ‘I want a lawyer,’ that’s your answer.”
The next area people should be aware of is police searches. It is important to say at the time clearly “I do not consent to a search without a warrant,” according to Piazza.
“Even if you got nothing to hide, why allow a police officer a foot in the door?” says Piazza.
Jack Schulz explains why forums like these are beneficial to the public.
“People are wrong about what they think about their rights are, as much as they are right. And I wanted to clarify that for them and I wanted to provide a forum where they can learn and do something educational,” says Schulz. “Knowing the law should be a privilege.”
One of the most important things to remember when confronted with an officer is to deal with them politely. When on the street be passive, don’t resist, but don’t give them anything.
“Don’t give them a reason for them to be obnoxious to you either. Just ‘yes sir,’ ‘no sir,’ ‘I’m not going to answer that question sir, please and thank you,’ ” says Piazza.
Attendee Steven Cirilo spoke about how the knowledge he gained will impact him in any future police encounter.
“I’ll know how to handle the situation. Like, if I ever get pulled over or if I get stopped on the sidewalk. That you do have power to not say anything, to request an attorney. By doing so, you’re not getting yourself in trouble or allowing the police officer to bully you or make you feel like you have to give information to incriminate yourself. That’s great power and knowledge for any of us,” he says.
Patricia Kinsman came to hear about her legal rights and speaks about how the information she gained is so important.
“The main thing I learned is to say nothing and to talk to my lawyer. It’s just good to have knowledge about what my rights are,” she says.
Other topics discussed during the session were: passenger rights, being asked to exit your vehicle, informing the officer about Concealed Carry Weapon (CCW) permit, recording the police, when to ask for an attorney, repercussions of refusing a breathalyzer test and K9 units (drug dogs) among others.
Counter Culture holds forums such as this one once a month, and the topics vary each time.
“Attendance has been growing,” says Schulz. “The quality of the speakers has been great.”
Schulz hopes the audience learned that they have the right to not be harassed.
“There are certain things you can do to protect yourself, so you don’t incriminate yourself,” he concludes.
Lastly, if there’s one thing people should walk away knowing, is that when it comes to the police, it’s best not to have the gift of gab.
Piazza concludes, “You are going to just put yourself in jail by talking. If you don’t learn anything or hear anything else out of this session tonight, that’s it, do not answer a question.”
For more information about upcoming events visit: www.facebook.com/counterculturearts/.