The following instructions are meant to be general guidelines in any encounter between a citizen and a police officer. Generally speaking, the following instructions are guidelines to follow for individuals who ask themselves what they should do if they are stopped by the police.  These suggestion and information do not constitute legal advice.

You should be polite and respectful when dealing with police officers. One should never badmouth a police officer. Stay calm and in control of your words, body language and emotions. Do not get into an argument with the police. Remember, anything you say or do can and likely will be used against you in a court of law.

Remember to keep your hands where the police can see them. Do not try to run. Do not physically touch any police officer. Do not resist, even if you believe you are innocent. Do not complain or tell the police officers they are wrong or that you are going to file a complaint against them. Do not make any statements regarding the incident. Try to remember the police officer's badge and patrol car number if available.

If you were injured during the incident, immediately take photographs of the injuries and make sure you seek prompt medical attention. If you do seek medical attention, be sure to document the name, address and telephone number of any and all medical providers by whom you were seen so as to make an accurate record of the injuries.

Write down everything you remember as soon as possible after you are released from jail. You should try to find witnesses and their names and phone numbers. You should also try to take photographs of the scene or the condition of your vehicle upon its being released from impound.

If you feel your rights have been violated, file a written complaint with the Police Department's Internal Affairs Division or Civilian Complaint Board, but only after you have consulted with an attorney to ensure that anything you say in a written complaint will not subject you to additional criminal penalties and/or fines and incarceration.

GENERAL RULES

Please be advised that you should never interfere with effective law enforcement, but should always understand your own rights and responsibilities and how you may invoke them in your encounters or relationships with the police. All individuals have the right to courtesy and respectful police treatment and the police should be treated in kind.

If you believe your rights have been violated, do not try to handle the matter on your own without consultation by an attorney. If you find yourself in any of the situations described above, contact an experienced DUI ATTORNEY IMMEDIATELY.

IF YOU ARE STOPPED FOR QUESTIONING

• It is not a crime to refuse to answer an officer’s questions; but refusing to answer can make the police suspicious of you. You cannot be arrested for merely refusing to identify yourself on the street. However, please be advised that if the police are acting on a tip, or what is referred to as exigent circumstances, you may be detained for the purpose of determining whether or not you fit the description of any individual(s) that the police are looking for. Remember that in this situation, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law; thus, you should assert your right to remain silent and to the presence of counsel.

• Police may "pat down" your clothing if they suspect a concealed weapon is on your person. Please remember not to physically resist, but be clear that you do not consent to any further search and verbalize your lack of consent to the police officers. If you are within ears length of any other people, be sure to state your non-consent unequivocally and in a loud enough manner that it can be heard by those around you or in the near vicinity.

• Ask if you are under arrest. If you are, then you have the right to know why you are under arrest. In situations where you believe you are under arrest, but the officer has not specifically said so, simply ask the officer, "Am I free to leave?" If the officer states that you are not free to leave, then you are under arrest.

• Do not badmouth the police officer and/or run away even if you believe what is happening to you is unreasonable. If you attempt to run away or begin to badmouth the officer, this could lead to the filing of additional charges for resisting arrest.

IF YOU ARE STOPPED IN YOUR VEHICLE

• Upon request by a police officer, show them your driver's license, registration and proof of insurance. In certain cases, your vehicle can be searched without a search warrant as long as the police have probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed.

Please note that the Supreme Court decided that police officers may look through your vehicle in any location within the passenger compartment where they believe a driver's license or registration may be present to assist them in identifying you as a result of a traffic stop. Therefore, if you want to avoid police searching your vehicle without your consent, be sure to have your valid driver's license, registration and proof of insurance in a location within the vehicle from which you can retrieve it immediately upon the officer’s request. To protect yourself later, you should also make it clear to the police that you do not consent to a search of your vehicle. It is not lawful for police to arrest you simply for refusing to consent to a search.

• In DUI cases, if the police officer advises you that he is going to subject you to a preliminary alcohol screening device, you should immediately ask the officer whether you have a right to refuse such a preliminary alcohol screening test. If the officer is honest, he will advise you that you have a right to refuse the preliminary alcohol screening test; however, if you do submit to a preliminary alcohol screening test, it does not satisfy your requirement under the Implied Consent Laws to provide an additional breath or blood test after you are arrested.

If you are confronted with a preliminary alcohol screening test, then simply ask the officer whether you have a right to refuse it. Upon being read the advisement by the officer, you may respectfully advise the officer that you choose to invoke your right to refuse the test and do not submit to the preliminary alcohol screening test. Do not make the mistake of refusing to submit to the implied consent test of either blood or breath once you have been arrested. If you refuse to submit to an implied consent breath or blood test, you will be subjecting yourself to a possible one-to-three year driver’s license suspension in the event that the allegation of a refusal is proved in Court and/or before the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

• If you are given a ticket or traffic citation, you should sign it, otherwise you can be arrested. You can always fight the case in Court once you have sought the advice of counsel.

IF YOU ARE ARRESTED OR TAKEN TO A POLICE STATION

• You have the right to remain silent and to speak with an attorney before talking to the police; however, you cannot speak to an attorney prior to deciding whether to submit to a chemical test or choosing which chemical test to submit to if you are arrested for DUI. Tell the police nothing except your name, address and telephone number. Do not give the police any explanations, excuses or stories. You can present your defense later in Court after consultation with an attorney based on what you and your attorney decide is best for you. In the meantime, do not try to be your own defense attorney—remain silent. Many people make the mistake of trying to talk out of a problem and end up creating a bigger problem based on the admissions and statements they make regarding the incident. Remember, if you were a doctor and needed surgery, you would be the last person to perform that surgery on yourself. It is the same situation in a legal matter. Remember, a person who represents himself has a fool for a client.

• Ask to speak with an attorney immediately. If you cannot afford one, you have the right to have one appointed for you free of charge. You should always ask the police how you can contact an attorney and remain silent.

• Within a reasonable time after your arrest and/or booking at the jail, you have the right to make a local phone call to an attorney, bail bondsman and/or any relative or other person. The police may not listen to the call to the lawyer and any such communications made to your lawyer should be discrete and made in such a way that they cannot be overheard by any third parties; even if you believe they are not listening.

IF YOU ARE QUESTIONED IN YOUR HOME

• If the police knock and ask you to enter your home, you do not have to allow them into your residence unless they have a search warrant that is signed by a Judge. The search warrant will describe in specific terms the location which the officers intend to search and generally will describe what items they are looking for. Upon being provided with a copy of the search warrant, allow the officers to conduct the search pursuant to the search warrant after you have verified that the location on the search warrant matches the address of your particular residence. Do not make any attempts to interfere or delay the officers in the performance of their duties regarding the search warrant. If the police knock and ask to enter your home, you should ask them to identify themselves with ID numbers prior to entering the residence. If they do not have a warrant and it is not an emergency situation, you should direct the officers to contact their local watch commander and have the watch commander contact your residence before allowing the officers to enter. If they do not have a search warrant or there are no exigent circumstances, you should not under any circumstances allow police officers to search your residence without your consent. If you fail to register your objection or remain silent during the officer's questioning, you may be deemed to have engaged in an implicit or silent admission which will constitute consent.

Generally speaking, you should not allow anyone to search your residence and be emphatic in doing so without interfering with the officers during the performance of their duties. If a search warrant is presented and it clearly identifies your residence as the place to be searched and has been signed by a Judge, then you should allow the search to take place while at the same time indicating your objection for the record.

• In some emergency situations or what is deemed to be exigent circumstances (for example, when a person is screaming for help inside or when the police are chasing someone towards and in or through your residence) officers may be allowed situations to enter and search your home in such situations without a warrant to effectuate an arrest or investigate an emergency situation.

• If you are arrested, the police can search you and your area close by or any area within close proximity of where you are arrested. Under the law, this is deemed to be a search incident to arrest.

If you are in a building or dwelling, "close by" usually means just the room you are in; however, depending on the circumstances and nature of the case, officers will be allowed to search areas adjacent to the room you are in if it is reasonably related to the exigent circumstances and/or emergency situation.