if the police question me and i ask for a lawyer and they deny me, then read me my rights when im confessing can i get it thrown out?
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if the police question me and i ask for a lawyer and they deny me, then read me my rights when im confessing can i get it thrown out?
i was detained by the police for a couple hours and they were asking me questions about a robbery that i did not commit, there were drugs involved though, and after about and 2 hours of telling them my story i asked for a lawyer and they said they didn’t have to get me one because they didn’t read me my rights yet, then when they kept telling me how i was going to jail and everything and decided to coopereate they read me my rights, can i get the statement thrown out?
Asked on June 8, 2009 under Criminal Law, New York
Answers:
B. B., Member, New Jersey Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 14 years ago | Contributor
I'm not a New York lawyer, and I don't know all of the details of your case. But it sounds to me like you have a good chance of having your confession -- and any other evidence the police were able to find as a result of your confession -- thrown out, for violating your rights. That has to be done by a motion, and I would very strongly recommend that you have an attorney do that, because it isn't a simple matter. One place to find a defense lawyer is our website, http://attorneypages.com
The key to this, probably, is whether during those two hours of questioning, a reasonable person in your situation would have understood that he wasn't free to leave, whether or not actually "under arrest." If so, once you asked for a lawyer, it is pretty well settled law that the police had to stop questioning you at that point. Period. You have the right to an attorney, whether or not the police have read you your rights!
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