Another possible tactic to think about
[QUOTE=RoaminRoman;2597435]Since you posted a report about this gal, it's probably a good opportunity for me to say that she's now removed her posts from BP. Anyone who didn't strike while the iron was hot has probably missed his chance now. She has informed me, in a message this afternoon, that she has deleted her BP ads and is going to restrict her associations with her prior regulars and any new folks she met via her latest ads (now removed).
Here's what transpired:
I received a message from her last night. Apparently, LEO was stopping guys on the service road as they were coming to or leaving the hotel. LEO was "interviewing" the guys as to whether they were staying at the hotel and, if not, why they were visiting, whom they had seen, etc. Basically, typical LEO intimidation tactics, trying to get some unfortunate monger to self-incriminate or to spill the beans about a provider. (She also said, in her message, that when she was checking-in earlier that day, there were a couple of "working girls" who were checking-in ahead of her. It would seem that this hotel is a base of operations, so to speak, for the local 'entrepreneurial set' in Manassas.).
Anyway, one of the guys who visited her yesterday said that he was stopped and, when asked as to his reasons for being at the hotel, told LEO that "[I]his back was hurting and he had met a girl who invited him to her room for a massage[/I]. " This scenario is a teachable moment, from a couple perspectives.
First, a monger who is stopped by LEO when arriving at or, more likely, departing from a provider's motel needs to be on the alert. That can be difficulty when the red lights appear in your rear view mirror. Whether you want to admit it or not, you've got a guilty conscience, and the LEO is not likely to give you time to deal with it or sort it out. LEO will probably ask you why you were at the motel (likely at a late hour when most people are sound asleep in their beds). Unfortunately, many will answer that they were visiting a friend (or something similar).
[B][red]This question is a trap in the "interview" process.[/red][/B] If you answer with something like, "[I]I was visiting a friend[/I], " the LEO will follow that up with "[I]What is your friend's name?[/I]" or "[I]Which room is your friend staying in?[/I]" LEO can easily verify your answers with the hotel front desk and, if you've given false info to LEO, they have grounds to detain you for lying to a police officer. And, if you can't provide the name of the "friend" that you ostensibly visited, they may have grounds to detain you for suspicious activity, perhaps in an area "known for prostitution" or some such. And, if you actually provide the room number of the provider that you just visited, LEO might pay a visit to the provider and, if the visit goes badly, both of you might find yourselves in deeper hot water. It can all get very ugly, very quickly. So, what to do?
If you ever get stopped by LEO upon arriving at, or departing from, a motel visit with a service provider, and they ask you "[I]Why are you at this motel?[/I], " [U][b][red]you should NOT answer the question the way they want you to answer it.[/red][/b][/U] Instead of answering their question, you should ask them a question, something like "[I]What's going on, officer? Why have you stopped me?[/I]" They won't like that sort of reply, but they may respond by saying that they are investigating reports of illegal activity at that location, etc.
Regardless, they will likely follow up their first question by asking (again) what you are doing there (at that time of night or whenever). [U][b][red]Again, instead of answering the question that they pose, you should instead respond by asking them if you are being detained[/red][/b][/U].
If they say "[I]No[/I], then [U][b][red]you should ask them if you are free to leave[/red][/b][/U]. Since they have already stated that you aren't being detained, there is no reason for them to prevent you from leaving.
However, [RED][u][b]if they do prevent you from leaving[/b][/u][/RED], you then should ask why they told you weren't being detained and you are now actually being detained. They will definitely not like this sort of pushback, and they might even suggest that you could be taken to the police station for suspicion of whatever crime they suggest you might have been involved in. This can be a very unnerving situation to be in, but since they have no proof of you having done anything illegal and (hopefully) you have not admitted to anything or, for that matter, even answered their questions as to why you were even at that motel, they will most likely keep you there for a few minutes and then, after perhaps having taken your drivers license information, allow you to depart.
On the outside chance that they actually DO take you down to the local police station (and assuming that you've not given them any false information or, for that matter, even given an answer to their questions), they will have to provide an [U]articulable reason[/U] for having done so. Regardless, it is incumbent on you to [B][red]SAY NOTHING[/red][/B] in response to their questions. The onus is on them to support their allegations.
They may try to say that, since you had no business being at the motel (I. E. , you weren't a registered guest), you *could* be cited for trespassing. However, the hotel management is the entity that needs to request that. The police cannot simply charge you with trespassing without a valid basis. And, unless the motel management can be induced into pressing such charges against you, it's unlikely that LEO will be able, or willing, to actually charge you with such an offense.
They key is this: If and when you ever get stopped by LEO after (or prior to) visiting a provider who is staying at a local motel, [B][red]NEVER[/red][/B] answer the questions that they put to you (aside from providing you license, if you are driving). Instead, ask why you have been stopped, are you being detained, and if you are free to leave.
[B][red]You are not required to answer LEO's questions or provide any information to them except perhaps giving them your identification.[/red][/B] They may, and most likely will, try to intimidate you into giving them the information they want (such as "[I]Why are you here?[/I]" and "[I]Who were you visiting?[/I]" but you do not have to provide that information or even say that you prefer not to answer those questions. Instead, [U]ask them questions[/U] and [U]let them provide answers to yours[/U]. If they accuse you of anything, let them prove it. But don't give them ammunition to use against you, even if both of you know what you were there for.
[RED][B]DO NOT[/B][/RED] get into long diatribes about your rights, the Constitution, etc. , etc. Instead, keep it simple and direct:
[INDENT][list]"[red][b][I]Why have you stopped me?[/I][/b][/red][/list][list]"[red][b][I]Am I being detained?[/I][/b][/red]"[/list][list]"[red][b][I]Am I free to leave?[/I][/b][/red]"[/list][/INDENT]
Saying much more than this can often get you tangled up in a web of your own making, one which you might not be able to extricate yourself from.[/QUOTE]Absolutely agree with everything RR says but just wanted to throw out another possible tactic. One of the key points in RR's analysis is that any factual info which can be checked with a 3rd party, and shown to be false, has the potential to get you in trouble or at least keep you in the thick of LEO's unwanted attention.
With all that in mind, one tactic which might work well is to have a simple story that gives LE no verification avenues to pursue. Here are a couple of examples:
I'm planning to have some work done at my home (apt / condo / house) and I'm checking out places to stay.
I'm looking for cheap places to stay for when friends / family come to visit.
And you can come up with others but the two most important points are 1) The story needs to explain in a legitimate way why you are inside / near a hotel, and 2) No named 3rd parties are involved. LEO may ask follow-up questions (Q: What kind of work? A: renovation, plumbing, carpet, fumigation, etc.) (Q: What family? A: No specific plans yet, just planning for the future.) but those shouldn't last long as they realize there's no one who can contradict you.
One advantage of this tactic is that it's less of a direct challenge and LEO may lose interest quickly when it becomes clear there are no leads to follow and no way to play "gotcha. " But the most important thing is that you have to think about this ahead of time so that it comes out of your mouth with some conviction and without hesitation.
And, even assuming a worst case scenario in which LEO doesn't want to buy your explanation and continues to question you, at that point you can always shift into a higher gear by switching to RR's plan, and challenging them as to whether you're being detained. In fact, it may be even a better set up because you can then say that you've given them a reasonable explanation for your presence and actions and so any further detention is unwarranted and unreasonable.
Invoke your right to counsel
[QUOTE=Ltnric;2598991]This is such a great post and thank you for sharing. I did have one follow up question. I know that LEO will ask several times and in different ways. So my question is:
- Can they arrest you for not answering their question. They are going to ask you 100 times what were you doing at that hotel. If my answer is always another question then.
Can they say I wasn't answering that question.
- Lastely, at some point can you invoice your right to a lawyer to get them to shut up?
W
Just wondering. However, this is a great post!! Thanks.[/QUOTE]The police can't arrest you for not answering the questions. That said, you might have given them other reasons to haul you in, like an empty beer can in the backseat or a roach clip in the ashtray.
Make sure you have a lawyer to call when you invoke right to counsel or ask the court to provide one. However, you might have to prove you are too poor to afford one yourself.
Remember, you can alway take the 5th. You can't testify against yourself. The smartest this as mentioned is to be quiet. Don't give them any guff, but don't give them anythng to work with. What were you doing there? Don't answer. Where do you live? Point to your drivers license. Can we look inside your vehicle SAY NOT WITH OUT A SEARCH WARRANT. If they ask you to get out of the vehicle, roll up th windows, set out, close and lock the door.
The best story is no story
[QUOTE=JmSuttr;2598015]I'm planning to have some work done at my home (apt / condo / house) and I'm checking out places to stay.
I'm looking for cheap places to stay for when friends / family come to visit.
And you can come up with others but the two most important points are 1) The story needs to explain in a legitimate way why you are inside / near a hotel, and 2) No named 3rd parties are involved. LEO may ask follow-up questions (Q: What kind of work? A: renovation, plumbing, carpet, fumigation, etc.) (Q: What family? A: No specific plans yet, just planning for the future.) but those shouldn't last long as they realize there's no one who can contradict you.
One advantage of this tactic is that it's less of a direct challenge and LEO may lose interest quickly when it becomes clear there are no leads to follow and no way to play "gotcha. "
And, even assuming a worst case scenario in which LEO doesn't want to buy your explanation and continues to question you, at that point you can always shift into a higher gear by switching to RR's plan, and challenging them as to whether you're being detained. In fact, it may be even a better set up because you can then say that you've given them a reasonable explanation for your presence and actions and so any further detention is unwarranted and unreasonable.[/QUOTE]Saying you're looking for a place to stay during home renovations will prompt the question "which contractor are you using?' If you don't already have one, the next question will be "so you're looking for hotels before looking at contractors? And you're doing it at 1:00 am?
"I'm looking for cheap places for family to stay" will prompt the follow-up: "Really? Why are you looking at a motel on Richmond Highway if you live in Arlington?
Unless you have law, debate, improv, or police training, or are a glib sociopath who can fabricate lies and stay consistent, you are NOT good enough to out-bullshit cops who are interrogating you, and will only dig the hole for yourself. When you start answering questions then clam up, your change in behavior gives them reasonable suspicion to keep working you over and ramp up their threat / intimidation protocol.
The better course is to follow Roman's advice of not answering the question they've asked. If they press you for specific answers, you can say something about your mother not letting you answer questions without a lawyer present.
The ONE exception is if the hotel has a restaurant you already know the name of, and you're there during business hours. The Days Inn on Columbia Pink has a respectable Thai place, and when I used to see Latinas there (became too hot 2 years ago) I'd regularly stop in and order takeout before going to an appointment, then go home and eat afterwards.
"I'm going to the restaurant" or "I'm waiting for my order" is an excellent reason to be there.
Piling on the LEO / Entrapment discussion. . .
This is a great discussion and really merits its own thread. In the meantime, great advice by many, especially Roman.
With all due respect JmSuttr, absolutely not. You do NOT want to talk AT ALL. You definitely DO NOT want to offer an alternative, seemingly plausible story. SAY NOTHING.
If you have not been through the process before, what you need to know is that cops do this every day, multiple times a day, for years in most cases. They know you're lying, or simply assume it. They know why you're there, or suspect it, and all know that you could be the next Ted Bundy with a dead hooker in your trunk. Lying will get you jammed up every time.
To Ltnric's point (but a slight tweak on it), cops *CAN* arrest you for not answering questions. Not legally, and they probably won't, but they can arrested you for whatever they want. And they will tell you that, and will do everything in their bag of tricks to manipulate you into answering. Trying to reason with them or trying to be a nice guy will not help in any way. They are not there looking to make friends.
If you walk into an actual sting, there is not much you can do. But you can prepare yourself. If you are arrested, you do need counsel and should ask for it immediately. If have not given anything up, however, your chances of getting arrested are low. The only time is when you walk into a room that is an actual trap, or if you have a hooker in your car. It will NOT happen when you are alone in your car on the way to a hotel.
I have had many close calls. In only a couple cases did I ever give anything up and compromise myself. But never did I give up I'd. I did learn quickly, however, not to bullshit and just to shutup.
ALSO KEEP IN MIND that DC and VA are "one-party consent" states, where YOU do not have to consent to have your conversation recorded. MD is under "all-party consent" law where cops can't record your phone call or conversation and use it against you.
A friend of mine was not so lucky. Walked into a sting in MoCo MD about 6 months ago. I didn't post about it at the time because it was really close to home, and except for in a thread like this there not much to discuss.
Again, this was in MD where it "all-party consent" so there was no transcript. He did everything wrong. He was arrested and plead according to the instructions of his lawyer, the case was continued indefinitely. Which is what usually happens. But his life was already ruined because his wife, his employer, his friends new all about it. In the Internet age, that's what happens. The actual legal consequences are immaterial compared to the life-changing social / relationship / career impact.
Here is what he didn't do that you should learn from:
- Use a burner app (not just a TracFone -- but a burner app on a TracFone) and clear it all out before walking in.
- SAY NOTHING; no matter what they say to you just repeat the lines that Roman provided; if they persist and say "You ARE in BIG trouble" then tell them you have nothing more to say until your attorney is present.
- Being arrested and arraigned is not as bad as being prosecuted (which almost never happens); if its a sting where you've walked in a room full of cops, you're going to be arrested, but surviving it depends on keeping your mouth shut.
- Outside of your car, keep nothing in your pocket but car keys; when asked for I'd, you repeat Roman's lines; if you are actually arrested it is "I'm going to remain silent and would like to see a lawyer. ".
- Inside your car, don't hesitate to show your license as long as you SHUT UP about everything else and have cleared your burner app and have nothing to incriminate you; you cannot be arrested for driving to a hotel where the may be hookers and that is not how they will setup a sting.
AND AS ARAGORN SAYS BELOW: KNOW WHO YOU'RE GOING TO CALL