You Have the Right to Remain Silent Part II.

Did you know that sometimes people get arrested and while in the lockup are tricked into making a statement to other "inmates" that makes them look guilty? The person thinks they are waiting with a group of other arrestees and start talking to them. In reality, everyone in the holding cell except for them is law enforcement posing as someone who had just been arrested. These officers are skilled at getting people to talk, especially since the person is there by themselves, unrepresented by a criminal attorney. The cells are wired and recorded. Ultimately, the statement is brought into the criminal process and used as a confession in criminal proceedings. It is like the Truman Show, except you are not Jim Carrey and your show gets played for a jury, not moviegoers.

Men sitting in a jail cell with other arrestees

These are called Perkins Operations and are permitted by the US Supreme Court in Illinois v. Perkins, (1990) 496 U.S. 292. The Supreme Court allowed these undercover informants in jail cells as long as the defendant is not aware that they are speaking with law enforcement, and charges have not yet been filed. This is a favorite tactic of law enforcement in Los Angeles. Criminal defense lawyers see this again and again. Often times the officers have nothing, so they pick up the defendant on something unrelated, maybe a probation violation, throw them into a lock up with a group of undercover officers and end up with enough to file charges. The cops aren't your friends, and neither are the other people sitting in lock up with you. Their cases are none of your business and your case is none of theirs. If you get arrested, sit down and shut up. Stare at the wall, meditate, think through your favorite recipe for barbecue ribs, whatever. Take the advice of Fox Moulder from television's the X Files: Trust No 1.

I handled a murder case in Los Angeles once where my client and his acquaintance were charged with murder. They were brought separately into a lock-up, both Perkins operations. One of them talked for over an hour, he bragged and literally beat his chest. The other laid down on the bench and slept. Never said a word to anyone. Guess who was convicted and who was acquitted after trial? Confessions can be difficult pieces of evidence to get around in a criminal case. Most times they are fatal to an effective defense. I have won cases with confessions, a written and signed confession in People v JJ, and a recorded confession in People v AJ. It may be possible to still win, but confessions never make it easier.

Make my job easier and your life easier by staying quiet. You have the right to remain silent, use it! If you get arrested in Los Angeles or Southern California, call me immediately.

You are in jail, not therapy, not AA, you are not hanging with your boys or girls or whoever. You do not need to impress anyone; you are not there to make friends. Stay quiet to stay out!