Navigate Law Enforcement Interactions with Confidence
When I originally started this website I did it with the intent of doing everything I could in my power to resist this authoritarian government led by Donald Trump and his cronies. I knew that Trump would misuse the federal police force and military, because he said he would.
We now are at a point where United States citizens are simply being disappeared by ICE and other police authorities. Spurious charges are brought up against people for expressing their First Amendment rights.
While the rule of law may come into question in the coming days, we still should operate like it exists, because they will use it against us in every situation they can before they start using illegal methods.
Disclaimer (This is not legal advice)
I have over a decade of experience in public safety and law enforcement. I’m here to arm you with the most powerful things you can have: knowledge of how these legal systems work.
I am, by no means, an expert. None of this is legal advice and you should not treat it as such.
If you do get into a legal situation you should get a lawyer immediately.
As a former member of the LEO community, we see plenty of oddities and scenarios that the average person wouldn’t know about. I’m here to bring this awareness to you.
What to Expect
This will be a long and living document because these situations are very new and fluid for the United States.
- how to avoid contact with law enforcement
- how to interact with law enforcement if you are contacted by them
- what do you if you are detained or arrested
- if you see someone being detained
- what to expect if you are arrested or jailed
Before we truly begin there are a couple general rules you should always follow.
Please keep it in mind:
Stay Calm and Composed
Know Your Rights
Document and Record
Every Interaction with LEOs
Fight in the Courts
Never on the Streets
How to Avoid Contact with Law Enforcement
- Don’t do anything Illegal
Do I have to explain this one? If you’re doing illegal things you have a much higher chance of coming in contact with law enforcement. Obviously, the more out in the open your crimes are, the larger likelihood that you will come into contact with LEOs.
It’s not a crime until you’re caught? Nah it’s still a crime. - Don’t commit traffic infractions
I used traffic stops as a way to investigate if there were other crimes going on. You can find drug and human trafficking from “routine” traffic stops and many pro-active law enforcement officers will make as many traffic stops as they can.
Go the speed limit or at least don’t be the fastest person in the pack and keep your speed safe. When I was a kid they would say, “Obey the rules of the road.” - Keep your vehicle in good working order and keep it current
If your registration, insurance, or license is expired or wrong, an LEO can pull you over.
If your headlights or brake lights don’t work, an LEO can pull you over.
If your window tint is too dark, an LEO be pull you over. Know what the legal limit of window tint is in your area.
If you don’t have current insurance you can actually be arrested in many states.
If your state requires you to have both a front and back license plate, make sure you do, because if not, an LEO can pull you over. People with busted up vehicles often do get singled out by LEOs so make sure your driving makes up for it.
Driving is a privilege, not a right. - Avoid areas where law enforcement officers tend to be
I don’t want to just be like, “It’s where the poor are,” but that’s usually it.
You’re gonna have to know your community a bit for this one, that’s a good thing. - If they show up to your house and knock on your door, Just ignore them
Once you go outside or let them in, a whole lot else can happen based on why they’re there.
If they’re knocking they’re asking permission and you don’t have to give it to them.
If you go outside or let them come inside: See the next section. - Keep a low profile. Dress in generic clothing.
Don’t make a lot of noise and be aware of public gathering laws in your area.
Dress like a clown, you’ll be clowned on. Especially if you’re doing something you shouldn’t be, or if you’re someplace you shouldn’t be. - Keep your ID on you and keep it current.
Most states have stop and ID laws. Keep your ID current. It will simplify the process if you’re contacted. - You really do need to know your rights.
There are way better in depth guides out there for this. You can probably Google it.
If You Are Contacted by Law Enforcement Officers
- Don’t panic and keep calm.
Take deep breaths through your nose if you’re getting anxious. Don’t get mad or upset, cops will see that as an escalation. Keep cool. - Be prepared to be detained or arrested. See the section on being detained or arrested.
The likelihood of this has risen dramatically in this country. Especially if you’re non-white. - Keep your hands out of your pockets and where the cops can see them.
If you’re in the car, keep your hands on the wheel.
If they ask you to get an ID or paperwork, tell them where it’s at and that you’re going to get that. Move slowly and deliberately. “Officer, my ID and paper work are in the glove compartment, can I go ahead and get it?” - If you’re carrying a weapon you need to know your local laws on that.
If you don’t know the laws, either don’t do it or get educated on it. I don’t have time to cover this. - You are technically being detained if they have asked for your ID, keep that in mind.
Don’t say anything incriminating. - Cops are going to ask you a lot of questions.
- What’s the the name you have on your IDs
- all sorts of other personal information, like your date-of-birth.
- Where you are coming from, where you are going, where you live, why you’re in that area.
- In places where you must ID yourself. you have to give it to them.
- Cops use this information to see if you have any restraining orders against you, warrants, etc.
- They’re also trying to see if your story matches up with who you said you are, if it makes sense for you to be in the area.
- If you’re a group of people and you get contacted, expect the cop or cops to ID and check everyone.
- Wherever there is 1 there is 2.
Wherever there is 2 there is 3. And so on and so forth. That is a mantra a lot of cops use to prevent complacency. For instance if you know there is one criminal, assume there is a second one working as a spotter. If you find two guns, well they already got two, might as well and try to find that third one. The same goes the other way, you might see one state trooper running a speedtrap and you start speeding, but then how many times do you see another state trooper up the road only a little ways? Where there is one there are two. If you see one cop, assume there are two, if you see two cops, assume there are three, if you see three, assume there are four. Got it? - Depending on the circumstances of how law enforcement contacts you, they may draw weapons or immediately place you in handcuffs, see the first tip in this section.
Sometimes that happens because a Karen said some teens were out driving while black.
Know where you’re going, where you’re coming from, and what you’re doing. - If you got warrants you’re probably going to get arrested. See section about getting arrested.
- If you’re on paper, parole, probation, or whatever, contact your PO as soon as possible.
Could you get revoked? Maybe, but probably not. Your PO is going to find out, might as well save yourself the trouble later. - You can record the whole thing if you want.
In fact, you should.
If a cop tells you that you can’t record it, they’re talking shit and hoping you’ll buy it. That being said, be clandestine about it.
You can also state: “For your safety and mine I am recording this conversation.” That is the kind of stuff cops say all the time when they do shit. - If a cop takes your phone or any other personal property from you, follow all the rules here, and immediately talk to a lawyer.
- If an LEO asks to search you or your vehicle, say no.
They are asking, you do not have to give them permission. I don’t know how many late night traffic stops I’ve made and been bored and just asked, “Can I search your vehicle tonight?” and they say yes and they got drugs in the car! Why did you say yes dude, you didn’t have to! - There is still, unfortunately, stop and frisk in the United States. Cops can still, technically, stop you and “check you for weapons.” As stated in the first section, try not to have any contraband on your person as that will increase your likelihood of being contacted by LEOs.
- You do not have to answer any questions.
If you’re just driving along and get pulled over, you have to stop, you’re being detained but you don’t have to say anything.
About all you usually have to do is provide, your driver’s license, proof of insurance and your vehicle’s registration.
If they think you’re under the influence you don’t technically have to take the roadside sobriety tests but that is basically a guarantee that you’ll lose your license. they don’t need criminal charges for that. Same goes for walking or being on any other conveyance. They can ask you questions and you don’t have to answer them, but if they ask for ID you pretty much have to provide them with one. - LEOs technically need Reasonable Suspicion to ask you for your ID but this is an insanely low bar to clear. They can make up any reason they want to ask for it. They also need Reasonable Suspicion to make a traffic stop. Well they’re supposed to need it. They can briefly detain you to ensure you’re not up to criminal activity because they have a “reasonable suspicion” that you may, may have, are about to, or will commit a crime.
- A note on this section. ICE is straight up stopping people based on the color of their skin. This has been ruled unconstitutional before but the Roberts Supreme Court has been unusually cruel to the rights of people. These contacts, or stops, are being referred to as Kavanaugh Stops after the supreme court justice, Brett Kavanaugh
- If a cop is pulling you over in front of your own house you can’t just run inside. you are still being detained.
- It can take several minutes for them to get results back on warrants and licenses. If you’re on foot they shouldn’t stop you for more than ten minutes. If you haven’t been recording yet, you should start. If you’re in a hurry you can ask, “Am I in custody or free to leave? I have places I need to be.” Being in custody does not necessarily mean you are being arrested, you could still be released without incident in a few minutes. If you’re in a vehicle the stops usually take longer.
- Do you have weed on you? Better hope it’s legal in your area or you’re carrying it the most legal way. Yes, it’s decriminalized in a big way and that’s good. LEOs, however, can still use federal laws to arrest you for carrying it. Know your local laws and don’t drive under the influence. I was a cop many years ago and I don’t think I ever actually arrested anyone for weed. This is a whole new police state though.
- If the cops are questioning you about a crime, even if you are not involved, they are trying to figure out how you’re involved.
- If the cops asked to enter your home and you allowed them, you can ask them to leave.
If they asked to search the house and you said, “You can search the whole house except my bedroom.” They must abide by that. I just wouldn’t let them in at all. - Does being nice help? I think so. If you’re friendly and positive it’s hard for someone to act shitty to you.
- If they yell at you, do not yell back, if they are yelling at you and you are just talking, everyone is going to know that cop is an asshole.
If you are detained or arrested
- It might be for a while. Again, don’t panic. Keep calm.
Larry Bushart was held in jail for over a month for posting a meme. He got released and he is definitely going to get a huge pay day. You might end up being in a cell for some time. - Handcuffs are very uncomfortable. That is normal, it sucks. If they are cutting off the circulation or cutting your wrists, let the cops know immediately because that is still an 8th Amendment violation. Well, if we still have a US Constitution when you are reading this.
- You can be detained for up to 48 hours without charge.
Cops due this when they are sure they have the perpetrator and they want to hold them in hopes of them not being able to tamper with evidence or flee. It also means you could just be put in a shitty holding cell for two days with basically no due process.
LEO agencies do this as a form of intimidation. If they don’t tell you you’re seeing a judge, you’re going home after 48 hours. - You might spend hours in a cop car or in prison-style transports.
- At this point you probably can’t record anything so hopefully someone else can record for you.
Tell the person recording who you are and what’s happening. Don’t give out too much personal information, especially if you don’t know who they are. If no one else is around, do your best to remember the details about where you are and what happened. - You will probably get searched if you’re arrested.
- Do not Panic.
Being arrested is not the end of the world. If a cop says something like, “You’re under arrest” or “At this time I’m placing you under arrest for” or a variation thereof, you are going into handcuffs, assuredly, and at the very least a brief holding area. Also a cop doesn’t have to say this for you to be “under arrest”. Just don’t say anything. - Many crimes are, “cite and release.” Meaning that they arrest you, process you, and then send you home with a court date. Especially non-violent crimes. Do not ever count on this though.
- It is possible, even likely, especially if you are taken to a holding facility that you will be strip searched. It is humiliating, but it’s how they make sure you don’t have a Glock in your asscrack. Yes, it’s happened. There is no legal precedent to say that if you are female you must be strip searched by a female officer or vice versa.
- Cops may use facial recognition on you. This should be illegal but isn’t. Probably won’t be able to do anything about this until we get some political wins.
- Don’t say anything. Period.
You can say, “I need a lawyer” or “I want a phone call.” Don’t say anything else. They’re going to try every single trick in the book to get you to talk to them. Just say nothing. If you have to say anything you say, “I want a lawyer, I want a phone call”
So You’re in Jail, Now What?
- Lawyer. Lawyer, lawyer, lawyer.
Get a lawyer. If you can’t afford one, one will be appointed to you. - If you can’t afford a lawyer you might have to make a few court appearances without one, that’s normal, but you’re probably going to sit in jail until you have a bail/bond hearing.
- Believe it or not, you do have a ton of rights as an inmate, See this from the ACLU. Try to be familiar with some inmate rights, check out the court case Bounds v. Smith, that’s an important one about access to legal materials.
- Incarceration is soul crushing. Be resolute. Don’t let them break you.
- Incarceration is incredibly boring. Get swole, learn to meditate, read every book you can get your hands on. You’re on their schedule now. If you want breakfast, you’re probably going to have to get up at 5:30 AM to get it. Use your recreation time wisely.
- Be on guard, make friends, but keep your head on a swivel.
I spent almost a decade working at a state prison and people will do wild stuff for absolutely no reason. - Jail is not just full of hardened criminals.
It’s mostly a lot of regular people who screwed up. Of course there are some monsters too, trust your gut. Matthew 25:35, I was a stranger and you welcomed me. - Listen to your council/lawyers.
Most of the time they’re doing the best they can. Some lawyers are terrible though. If you’re in jail, you can ask around about public defenders. - No one will advocate for you or your rights except you.
We have a lot of reports and evidence about inhumane conditions at places like “Alligator Alcatraz” and the Broadview facility. They don’t want that information getting out but you need to get it out to anyone who will listen. The media needs to hear it, hell if no one wants to hear it you can tell us on this website, we’ll find someone to tell. - I think you should write long letters, think long thoughts, and pray long prayers.
Just as Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. in his Letter from Birmingham Jail which I highly recommend you read. Along with all his other works.
Additional Help
I want to encourage people to use the help form to ask questions. If you have questions about law enforcement, cops, or jail, or the legal system I can probably answer them or at least point you in the direction of the right answer.
Frequently Asked Questions
To be written.