Alec Baldwin Didn’t Have to Talk to the Police. Neither Do You | Hacker News Reader

Alec Baldwin Didn’t Have to Talk to the Police. Neither Do You

nytimes.com

7 pointsmooreds10 comments

This is something to keep in mind. I can imagine the pressure associated with having to deal with the police and hoping you can explain the problem away. But they are the experts and can find a crime even if you don't think you did anything wrong. I remember reading somewhere that most of us commit a crime on a regular basis and don't know it since there are so many laws in the criminal code. It's best to talk to a lawyer when dealing with the police.

https://archive.is/HxThe

Baldwin also talked to Stephanopoulos in a now infamous interview where he stated he did not pull the trigger FBI testing shows differently. Poor guy can't keep his mouth shut and all of these interactions will hurt him in the long run https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOKpiWrUPUI

The problem with living in an artificial bubble with people around you paid to agree with you is that when you step out of the bubble, you don't know how to properly interact with reality. Prince Andrew seemed to suffer the same problem with his silly defenses of his behavior that only someone paid to agree with him would nod along with.

This makes me think of something I have heard people say (mostly on tv, but sometimes in real life)

"I wanna talk to my lawyer"

But how many people have a criminal defense attorney on speed dial that can be contacted at a moments notice and will jump to your defense during the interrogation process?

Can you call an attorney up and say, "hey I want you to be my lawyer in case I get in trouble"? "Let me have your cell phone number."

I’ve always wondered the same. I’d be completely lost as to what I’m supposed to do in such a situation.

So in this situation there was initial questioning on set immediately after it happened and the 911 call was made. But the questioning that really tripped up Alec Baldwin was after the fact the detectives called him in for more information.

In any situation like this where an accident happens and someone is severely injured or dead and the police don't make any immediate arrests because again it's an accident they don't know who's culpable, you should immediately begin to contact lawyers if you don't know of one already.

As you contact lawyers they will take 10-15 minutes to listen to what you describe and decide whether or not they're willing to assist you or they'll give you some immediate general advice. In this case they will probably say something like if the police contact you back call to come in for additional questioning contact me and I will be your attorney and they'll have a fee arrangement and so forth. And this is your contingency plan because the police are going to call a cooperating suspect and ask you to voluntarily come in to answer questions.

The other situation is when you're not immediately arrested perhaps the police have gathered enough in the initial investigation that the district attorney is going to press charges. Again the response is the same immediately after the fact contact a lawyer explain the situation and get their advice and they can work with the district attorney to see if charges are planned. Then you voluntarily turn yourself in for a rest and processing and you already have your attorney.

Now the situation where you are immediately placed under arrest the advice is always don't talk to the police mention that you're specifically exercising your right to remain silent. If they process you and release you on your own recognizance that's fine get an attorney at that point If they want to hold you tell them you need to contact an attorney and you don't know of one. Because you are legally allowed access to an attorney they must assist you in some minor way allowing you to make phone calls allowing you to look up attorneys to contact and so forth. Call a couple explain the situation that you're under arrest pick one that you like doesn't have to be the one that you stick with. But they'll usually be the one that can get you out so you can then find a better attorney if needed.

You don't have to talk to the police at that moment. Say I would love to talk to you I just need to have my lawyer present. Of course they will push you to talk but you are not under any obligation to do so.

Then once you get home look up defense attorneys online and talk to a few over the phone. Select one and pay them for a few hours of their time. Based on their assessment you can then proceed to have a conversation with law enforcement if your attorney advises you to.

There are services that are like insurance which give you access to a lawyer in certain situations if you pay a monthly fee.

One example is U.S. Law Shield. The idea is that if you shoot someone in self defense, they have a number that you can call to get a lawyer.

You can have a lawyer or law firm on retainer. It's not practical for average people but Alec Baldwin I would think he does or at least one the studio uses because it's a work place accident.

The other thing is he wasn't under arrest or detained when he talked to the police. He volunteered, which is mind blowing arrogance on his part. Sometimes it's beneficial to talk to the police in situations like this but when you're called in for questioning always bring an attorney to advise you and listen to their advice.

Police will tell you time after time people love to tell their stories because they are either the victim or the hero in their own mind. When the police call you in for additional questions they already have a narrative and are simply trying to get you to admit to their narrative that they've built up.

I found myself helping someone that had to deal with a crime. They did not have to talk to the police immediately. The detective wanted to talk immediately but you don't have to until you find a lawyer if that's your wish. The other interesting thing was that the person I was helping started to get a bunch of mail from different attorneys offering their services. My only conclusion was that there's a place where attorneys can find out who might need a lawyer so they can offer their services.

The police want to do things immediately but you can wait to talk to them until you find an attorney.

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