How to behave during detention: 5 rules of conduct if the police arrived

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How to behave during detention: 5 rules of conduct if the police arrived

Detention can occur anywhere: on the street, at home, in the office. Police officers may detain you if you suspect a crime. If you were detained, then you automatically became a suspect.

The first thing to remember: the suspect and the accused are not responsible for giving false testimonies. You can invent and use different versions of what happened as a way of protection. And also do not give evidence at all.

How to behave when detained by police

1. Do not resist. You must obey the authorities. Trying to avoid detention will be a big problem for you. Pull yourself together and do not panic. Do not show the police helplessness. Speak confidently, politely. But do not try to “negotiate” with government officials to let you go. During operational activities, as a rule, video is being recorded. Giving a bribe is a crime with a real term of up to two years. In no case do not resist. If you behave aggressively, shout, threaten, and even more so pounce on the authorities with fists, this can turn into a criminal punishment.

2. Pull the time. Law enforcement officers must introduce themselves and announce why they are detaining you. There are several reasons: the police have reliable information that you have committed a crime, or a preventive measure in the form of detention has already been taken against you (Article 91 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation).
You must be presented with an official ID. Carefully study it, write down the last name, first name, patronymic and position of the police officer. You have the right to call the call center and check if the employees who came for you work there.
It is important for law enforcement agencies to obtain evidence immediately, so they can conduct a search, seizure of papers. There must be a ruling on the search and seizure in the office, and a court decision in the dwelling. Until you are put in the car, try to protect the information: hide documents in cloud storage, set passwords on your smartphone, laptop and other devices.

The police may ask you to turn on the computer and enter the password. Remember: you are not required to do this. Provide information only at the written request of the authorities, keep copies of the transferred papers.

3. Be silent. The suspect has the right to refuse to give explanations and testimony (part 4 of article 46 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation). Do not answer any questions from the police. Do not succumb to threats. It is safest to refer to article 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation: no one is obliged to testify against himself, his spouse and close relatives.

4. Call a lawyer. Usually, authorities explain the rights of detainees after they are brought to the inquiry agency during the preparation of the protocol. So the suspect is deprived of the opportunity to invite his counsel as early as possible. Remember: the right to defense arises from the suspect from the moment of detention (paragraph 3 of part 3 of article 49 of the Code of Criminal Procedure). An attorney can accompany you during the delivery to the investigator. If this is not possible, ask him to come to the place where they will deliver you. The right to one call is guaranteed to each detained person (part 3 of article 46 of the Code of Criminal Procedure).

5. Read the protocol. The detention protocol is drawn up within three hours after the arrival of the suspect in the body of inquiry or to the investigator. Do not sign any documents without reading their contents. Carefully read the protocols of detention, interrogation, search, seizure. Record your comments. Demand a second copy of all paperwork. You can detain a suspect in a crime for up to 48 hours (Article 10 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation). After this period, you must either be released or indicted. In the second case, you will turn from a suspect into an accused. After which the court will choose a preventive measure: you can be sent to a pre-trial detention center or released home on recognizance not to leave.

5 police tricks during detention

Trick 1. Interrogate as a witness. They may declare to you that you are a witness in some case and ask them to testify. Having received the necessary information, the investigator “suddenly” realizes that you are the suspect, and declares that you are detained. Better take a lawyer with you right away.

Trick 2. Call for interrogation instead of detention. It is important to understand the difference between “detained” and “invited”. Typical trick: the investigator comes to your office and invites you to go with him for interrogation. You have the right to refuse such an invitation and ask to send a summons. If you are not allowed to leave the interrogation, then ask why. You will either be released or announced that you have been detained.

Trick 3. Rub into trust. The main goal of the investigator during detention is to immediately obtain evidence. To do this, he either intimidates or inspires confidence. In no case do not trust him.

Trick 4. Promise the Golden Mountains. The investigator assures that he will ease your fate, let him go home if you agree to testify, and if you do not agree, he threatens to put him in a cell to criminals. Do not testify under such pressure - wait for your lawyer.

Trick 5. Arrest on Friday afternoon. Only a hint that you have to spend one night behind bars can terrify a person. Investigators take advantage of this: they invite for interrogation and detain the suspect on Friday afternoon. The weekend is coming, there is no bosses, the lawyer can not get permission to meet, relatives can not pass anything. A man spends two days and three nights without communication with the world. If you were invited with a subpoena on Friday, reschedule the date. The sick leave will help.