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Confessions in Federal Court
When you’re approached by the FBI and asked about details related to your charges, then you might think that you have to answer their questions. If you answer any questions or give any kind of information to the FBI voluntarily, then these details could be used against you when you go to court. The best thing for you to do would be to contact an attorney who can have this information suppressed so that it’s not used against you. Your attorney can usually get all of the information that you confessed to the officer suppressed until you are able to answer questions with your attorney present.
Keep in mind that getting your confession suppressed in court might not be an easy task to complete. Fortunately, there are a few basic details that you can keep in mind and that you can talk to your attorney about so that you have a better chance of getting your confession suppressed, preventing the details from being submitted in court until you are ready to talk. One of the things that you need to remember about the government is that no one can force you to talk when you don’t want to say anything. You have the right to stay quiet at all times. You also have the right to talk to your attorney before you speak to the prosecution and have your attorney by your side when you’re talking to the prosecution. These details are a part of the Fifth Amendment. You’ll usually be told about these details if you’re arrested or when you are taken before the prosecution. If you are not read this right, then you could have a defense that the confession that you gave was given illegally because you weren’t told that you could remain quiet.
When you go to court, you don’t have to say a word to the judge. You can sit there quietly while your attorney handles the entire hearing. Even if you don’t have an attorney, you still have the right to remain quiet and not offer any kind of confession at all. It’s sometimes better not to say anything in court instead of giving details that could further be used against you if the prosecution has other information that you could be charged with. If an FBI agent comes to your home or your place of employment, you don’t have to confess anything no matter what time the officer arrives or what kind of information the officer has in hand. Remember that the government wants to try to do everything possible to get you to talk and incriminate yourself to make the prosecution’s job as easy as possible. The prosecution only cares about getting a guilty verdict and trying to get you to confess to a crime so that the case can be pushed out of court.
You should never have to make a decision between incriminating yourself by saying something that you want to keep quiet or lying to the officer and committing another crime. You should not have to fear being arrested simply because you choose not to say anything while you’re in front of an officer. There should never be a time when you’re threatened with going to jail simply because you don’t want to talk. When you’re in the presence of an officer or a prosecuting attorney, you might feel like you have no other option than to say something that could result in being arrested. You might feel intimidated and made to think that if you don’t talk, then bad things could happen. Your confession in federal court should be done in a professional manner and should be done with an attorney by your side.