Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: Never read my rights

SOUNDS LIKE WE SHOULD TALK. Larry Wolf

310 277 1707

Re: Never read my rights

You can be arrested without being read your rights. The Miranda rule doesn't bar such an arrest, but it does prohibit the police and the prosecutors from using against you any statements you make after you are in custody and before your rights are read to you. They also are barred from using any other evidence which they develop as a result of these statements unless they can show that they inevitably would have found that evidence by other means.

(This summary really oversimplifies the applicable law quite a bit, but I don't see any reason to believe that any of the nuances of the law come into play here. Of course, I don't know much about the facts of your case, so there may be other rules which would apply.)

The intent of the officer doesn't matter at all. What matters is whether there comes a time when a reasonable person in your position would understand that his/her freedom to leave has been significantly restricted. (Again, this is a simplification of a complex and nuanced rule.) Where an officer fully intends to make an arrest but gives no outward sign of this intent, Miranda may not apply.

If the police can make their case without using your statements, either directly or indirectly, then you can be prosecuted and convicted.

To get a better picture of how these laws apply in your case, you should consult with a lawyer and tell him/her in detail what happened.