What To Do If You Talked To The Police

Almost every criminal lawyer will tell you not to talk to the police because talking to the police almost always hurts your case. So what can you do if you already talked to the police? 

Stop Talking to the Police

Don't talk to the police still applies even if you already talked to the police. Just because you started talking doesn't mean you can't stop. If you keep talking, you could give them more information to use against you or chances to try to say small changes in how you explained things means that you're lying.

Your Miranda rights even tell you that if you choose to answer questions, you can stop at any time. So if you've already talked to the police, you can tell them that you're not going to answer any more questions without a lawyer present.

Tell Your Lawyer When You Talked to the Police

If you talked to the police, make sure your criminal lawyer knows. It doesn't matter how briefly you talked or if you don't think it was important. Remember, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.

If your lawyer knows you talked to the police, your lawyer can prepare for how the police might twist your words. Your lawyer can also request body camera footage or other recordings of what you said. Recordings are especially useful in things like DUI cases where you may be too intoxicated to remember exactly what you said.

If you don't tell your criminal lawyer you talked to the police, it can make you lose your case. For example, if your criminal lawyer argues the prosecution didn't prove you were there and then the prosecutor plays the recording of you telling the police you were there, the jury will probably ignore any other arguments your lawyer makes and find you guilty.

Get What You Said Thrown Out

Your criminal lawyer may also be able to get any statements you made to the police thrown out of court. The police might have forgotten to read you your rights or made a technical mistake when they did. They may also not have had a legal reason to hold you for questioning in the first place.

If the police violated your rights before you talked, what you said usually can't be used against you even if you confessed to committing the crime.

Reach out to a local criminal lawyer to learn more.


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