What to do if you are arrested.
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
Just a breif guide on the do' and do nots when you find yourself "helping the police with their enquiries". the three most likely intercation swith the police will be as follows:
1. Traffic
2. Public order offnces (drunkeness/fighting)
3. Crime
1. Traffic. If you are stopped by the police driving a car it is either because you have done something wrong or a random stop check. Golden rule. be polite and helpful. do not enquire whether he has anything better to do because in all lilkeyhood he will! If you have done something wrong be apologetic and aknowledge the error of your ways, and you stand a far better chance of being let off with a warning. A bad attitude and rudeness will more often than not land you with a ticket/fine or summons to court (who has the last laugh now). A final note on traffic, if you have been drinking and caught driving you are knackered no-one likes a drunk driver and you get what you deserve (Police officers have seen too many fatal accidents to put up with it)
2. Public order. If you are out in town and your behaviour is so noticable that a police officer has to speak to you, do exactly as he advises. If he asks you to calm down or stop swearing or stop peeinf against his police car he is giving you an opportunity to call it night without waking up in a drunk cell. Once again be polite apologetic for whtever you have done and don't argue. you have enjoyed the effect of eight pints of lager but he has not he is stone cold sober and your impression of madonna with two traffic cones is probably not so amusing to him (especially if he just put the cones down himself). Many people wake up in the morning with a hangover in a police station purely because they did't walk away when they had the opportunity or because they had to have the last word or say the last F*** OFF.
3. Crime. If you are arrested for a crime e.g. shoplifting/ theft etc. putting up any form of a struggle will go badly for you. If you succeed in getting away you will be in far more trouble and if you don't get away you will be in some form of discomfort as the officer is allowed to use force to restrain. Instead be polite, complient and helpful if you have done it then admit it and you may get a caution and it's happy days. If you are innocent then it is unlikely that you will be arrested in the first place however you may still be interviewd on tape. Make sure you request a solicitor (they are free if you have been arrested) and answer any questions as fully as possible if you are hiding something, they will find out and make the officer far more suspicious. If you didn't do it beacsue you were next door with neighbours wife then tell them, it will go no further but will rule you out of their enquiries.
On a final note, like all jobs their a good officers and poor officers but if you are polite and respectful human nature dictates that things will go better for. Police officers do not go round bossing people around for no reason and if they ask you to do something there is usually a good reason for it although it may not be immeadiatly clear to you after 8 pints of lager. Police officers have a difficult job and spend their careers wading through violence and aggression from offenders and so if you are nice to him he will be nice to you quid pro quo (without being gender specific by saying he I am obviously also referring to female officers also)
1. Traffic
2. Public order offnces (drunkeness/fighting)
3. Crime
1. Traffic. If you are stopped by the police driving a car it is either because you have done something wrong or a random stop check. Golden rule. be polite and helpful. do not enquire whether he has anything better to do because in all lilkeyhood he will! If you have done something wrong be apologetic and aknowledge the error of your ways, and you stand a far better chance of being let off with a warning. A bad attitude and rudeness will more often than not land you with a ticket/fine or summons to court (who has the last laugh now). A final note on traffic, if you have been drinking and caught driving you are knackered no-one likes a drunk driver and you get what you deserve (Police officers have seen too many fatal accidents to put up with it)
2. Public order. If you are out in town and your behaviour is so noticable that a police officer has to speak to you, do exactly as he advises. If he asks you to calm down or stop swearing or stop peeinf against his police car he is giving you an opportunity to call it night without waking up in a drunk cell. Once again be polite apologetic for whtever you have done and don't argue. you have enjoyed the effect of eight pints of lager but he has not he is stone cold sober and your impression of madonna with two traffic cones is probably not so amusing to him (especially if he just put the cones down himself). Many people wake up in the morning with a hangover in a police station purely because they did't walk away when they had the opportunity or because they had to have the last word or say the last F*** OFF.
3. Crime. If you are arrested for a crime e.g. shoplifting/ theft etc. putting up any form of a struggle will go badly for you. If you succeed in getting away you will be in far more trouble and if you don't get away you will be in some form of discomfort as the officer is allowed to use force to restrain. Instead be polite, complient and helpful if you have done it then admit it and you may get a caution and it's happy days. If you are innocent then it is unlikely that you will be arrested in the first place however you may still be interviewd on tape. Make sure you request a solicitor (they are free if you have been arrested) and answer any questions as fully as possible if you are hiding something, they will find out and make the officer far more suspicious. If you didn't do it beacsue you were next door with neighbours wife then tell them, it will go no further but will rule you out of their enquiries.
On a final note, like all jobs their a good officers and poor officers but if you are polite and respectful human nature dictates that things will go better for. Police officers do not go round bossing people around for no reason and if they ask you to do something there is usually a good reason for it although it may not be immeadiatly clear to you after 8 pints of lager. Police officers have a difficult job and spend their careers wading through violence and aggression from offenders and so if you are nice to him he will be nice to you quid pro quo (without being gender specific by saying he I am obviously also referring to female officers also)
