Aggressive Interrogation In New York Sex Crime Cases
It is often said that rape charges are easy to bring and hard to defend. Experienced New York criminal defense lawyers know this all to well.
Often, after a consensual sexual encounter, a man is shocked by either getting a call from the police that they “just want to talk” or their partner calls them to a meeting and the guy is arrested. This often happens with young people who are accused because the police want to interrogate them in a coercive atmosphere. For anyone facing a sex crime, going to a police precinct is like going into a lion’s den. Usually when you go in, you are leaving in handcuffs.
Our New York and Westchester sex crime lawyers have viewed numerous interrogation tapes of suspects in which the police use unfair, misleading and deceptive practices to coerce false confessions. We have viewed numerous tapes where our clients explain what happened, that it was consensual to which the police imply they will not be going home, unless they tell the truth. Then the police feed them details to which they agree, just to avoid being arrested, and then of course they are arrested. We have seen the police tell our clients, that they will be asked the same questions until they say the version that the police want to hear. They often also prey upon our client’s feelings for their sexual partner by saying things like don’t make her out to be a liar, there is only one story, and that the stories have to match. The police often tell our clients that they are lying and they will not go home until they tell the police “the truth”, which is of course the version of the events which the police want to hear.
Our New York and Westchester criminal defense lawyers recommend that anyone who is contacted by the police or arrested immediately ask for a lawyer and refuse to answer any questions. No matter what is said, even if true, it will never be right, until the suspect says what they want to hear. The questioning can last hours, even days to wear out a suspect into often falsely confessing just to end the interrogation. These dangers are heightened where the suspect is young or mentally slow.
A phone call from a lawyer can avoid this interrogation and stop it midstream once in progress. Unfortunately, these coerced confessions result in signed statements which are damning and hard to disprove.
In cases where our clients insist on speaking with the police, our attorneys can be present and make sure that the process occurs in a fair manner.
If you have been contacted by the police or even think you might be contacted, you need a New York or Westchester criminal defense attorney with experience defending sex crimes.