How Will You Know If You Are Under Criminal Investigation In New York?

Interviewer: How do I know if I’m under a criminal investigation or if I’m charged or going to be charged? How do I know that I am looking at charges?

Many Criminal Investigations Are Conducted Without the Subjects Knowledge

Michael: You don’t always know. Unless you’re contacted by a police agency that wants to question you about a certain incident, you really don’t know. So if someone’s conducting a criminal investigation it’s usually done in secret.

If You Are Contacted by the Police Regarding a Criminal Investigation, You Should Immediately Contact an Attorney for Legal Counsel

Interviewer: What if you haven’t even had charges brought against you yet but the police are asking to question you, is that the best time to get an attorney or should you wait?

Michael: You need to contact an attorney as soon as you’re contacted by any law enforcement personnel. My advice is always the sooner the better in terms of consulting an attorney.

The Police Will Ask You to Come to the Station, Sometimes under the Pretense of “Just to Answer a Few Questions”

This is because oftentimes the law enforcement officials will call you and say, “Well, we just like to talk to you. We’d like you to come in and hear your side of the story. If you have nothing to hide, you shouldn’t have a problem talking to us.” That’s a false premise.

You Will Be Putting Yourself at a Great Disadvantage If You Do Not Have an Attorney Present While You Are Being Questioned

If they’re questioning you there’s always a chance that you can say something that might incriminate you whether you’re guilty of anything or not. You are placing yourself at a tremendous disadvantage by speaking to law enforcement personnel without an attorney present.

I have many, many clients who call me and say, “Well, they asked me to come in for questioning and I answered their questions and guess what? I was arrested and now I have charges.” When you represent them after they already have been interviewed, as an attorney, you are now stuck with the answers they gave to those questions that preceded their arrest. This is a terrible disadvantage.

Interviewer: So even before Miranda Rights are read to you, you can always say I want to speak to my attorney first?

Michael: Correct. It’s very, very important to keep that in mind.

Interviewer: I think that’s what a lot of people don’t know.

When Do the Police Have to Advise You of Your Miranda Rights?

Michael: Unless you are under arrest or are in some form of police custody and intent to question you, Miranda will apply. If it’s still in an investigatory stage, and the police just want to ask you some questions, they don’t have to advise you of Miranda Rights.

As soon as the focus narrows on any potential crime and on any particular individual that’s usually when Miranda Rights should be read. The problem is you do not always know when this is occurring. So the best advice is to always consult an attorney before speaking with the police.

My practice focuses exclusively on DWI, TRAFFIC and CRIMINAL matters. As a sole practitioner, he provides his client’s accessibility and a degree of personal attention that large firms cannot. For other attorneys such cases are a small portion of their practice