How to handle a "knock and talk"

**bmf2** · 07-14-2004, 10:59 PM

Interesting indeed!

Here's some info on how to handle a "knock and talk."

The way to not seem suspicious on a "knock, and talk" is to seem perfectly
reasonable. Step outside, close the door behind you. If the police ask to
step inside, for "privacy" turn the tables on them. For example say:

- "my wife/girlfriend/roommate is sleeping on the couch"
- "lets go sit in your car"
- "i need to go get shoes,I'll meet you at your car"
- "the house is wreck, my wife would kill me if i let someone see it like this"
- "this is a bad time for me, can we meet at _______ in 10 mins or so"

Make an appointment to talk to them later. Be sure to make it clear that
you are happy to talk to them, but on your terms, if they truely are fishing
for illicit activity related info, they will expect you to be somewhat
"sketchy". You should have a good story, that is reasonable and plausable,
one that fits your facts and circumstances. If you have a big dog, most
police wont want to tangle with it. So, stepping outside for "officer
saftey", so your dog wont have a bite of their ass would be reasonable.

This was written by an ex cop gone spook....

__________________
Good Enough Never Is....

~*~ muj aniolek ~*~

**KeyMastur** · 07-14-2004, 11:00 PM

Originally Posted by bmf2

- "lets go sit in your car"
- "i need to go get shoes,I'll meet you at your car"

c'mon now. thesesounds the opening scene to a cheap porn.

**bermich** · 07-14-2004, 11:49 PM

I say dont even talk to them at all. The problem wont go away by having lunch with them. They arent the DA and they arent the judge. The polite talk you give them wont mean a **** thing except you wasted your time.
Thats why lawyers were created. They do all the talking and they are the ONLY ONES who can stop the problem. Talking nicely to cops wont.

**abstrack** · 07-15-2004, 12:18 AM

Originally Posted by bermich

I say dont even talk to them at all. The problem wont go away by having lunch with them. They arent the DA and they arent the judge. The polite talk you give them wont mean a **** thing except you wasted your time.
Thats why lawyers were created. They do all the talking and they are the ONLY ONES who can stop the problem. Talking nicely to cops wont.

exacty, say no and tell them you will meet them at the police station with your lawyer-case closed. If they have a search warrant then they need to present it to you and even then I wouldnt say jack but let me call my lawyer.

**sooners04** · 07-15-2004, 01:01 AM

You can try to bulls*** the cops all day with those but they will still pursue their goal no matter what you say. We have heard all the stories and all the crap.

**MrDezel** · 07-15-2004, 08:35 AM

cops could care less if you were the **** Pope if they suspect somthing. Get your lawyer on the phone and then sit there like a little kid with your mouth shut.

**IronPumper80** · 09-10-2004, 10:47 AM

[QUOTE=bmf2]Interesting indeed!
- "i need to go get shoes,I'll meet you at your car"
QUOTE]

A cop who is at your door would never let you walk back into your house and wait at the door for you then wanna meet at his car.... I dont think a cop wrote that!

**ticboy** · 09-11-2004, 03:21 AM

In australia if a cop has any reason to suspect you have illegal drugs on the premises they can just come in and search, no lawyers.
it sucks

**ticboy** · 09-11-2004, 03:22 AM

In australia if a cop has any reason to suspect you have illegal drugs on the premises they can just come in and search, no lawyers.
it sucks

**hands** · 09-13-2004, 08:40 PM

the less you say the better off you will be in general. Most of the time they only have circumstantial evidence to begin with and talking just gives them the ability to fish more, and get more evidence. It dosen't matter if you look like the hulk -don't talk.

**hands** · 09-13-2004, 08:41 PM

the less you say the better off you will be in general. Most of the time they only have circumstantial evidence to begin with and talking just gives them the ability to fish more, and get more evidence. It dosen't matter if you look like the hulk -don't talk.

**abstrack** · 09-14-2004, 07:42 AM

alright, time to let this thread die. It is over 2 months old now...

**Joey2ness** · 05-23-2005, 10:27 PM

Originally Posted by abstrack

alright, time to let this thread die. It is over 2 months old now...

kOoooooooooooOoOOo0l

**Nelstar** · 06-08-2005, 07:40 PM

just light yourself on fire and come running out. theyll forget about the gear

**keithquig** · 06-08-2005, 08:30 PM

just tell them ur in the middle of a wack session with ur life partner charlie

**thejuiceisloose** · 06-09-2005, 12:10 AM

Originally Posted by bmf2

Interesting indeed!

Here's some info on how to handle a "knock and talk."

The way to not seem suspicious on a "knock, and talk" is to seem perfectly
reasonable. Step outside, close the door behind you. If the police ask to
step inside, for "privacy" turn the tables on them. For example say:

- "my wife/girlfriend/roommate is sleeping on the couch"
- "lets go sit in your car"
- "i need to go get shoes,I'll meet you at your car"
- "the house is wreck, my wife would kill me if i let someone see it like this"
- "this is a bad time for me, can we meet at _______ in 10 mins or so"

Make an appointment to talk to them later. Be sure to make it clear that
you are happy to talk to them, but on your terms, if they truely are fishing
for illicit activity related info, they will expect you to be somewhat
"sketchy". You should have a good story, that is reasonable and plausable,
one that fits your facts and circumstances. If you have a big dog, most
police wont want to tangle with it. So, stepping outside for "officer
saftey", so your dog wont have a bite of their ass would be reasonable.

This was written by an ex cop gone spook....

__________________
Good Enough Never Is....

~*~ muj aniolek ~*~

gonna have to call

on this one

**ppkk** · 06-09-2005, 12:12 AM

guess the thread didn't die, but I think it's got some useful information. the guys who posted above about not saying zilch are 120% correct. le doesn't care what you have to say, and what plausible explanations you have. they have a mindset; a perception and an assumtion.

what you say and how you behave, no matter how non-chalant you act with reasonable explanations and all, will have no bearing on the le's perception of what is going on. in fact, each action, each anwser and each reaction is twisted inside their thought process and reasoning, and they twist it to mean what THEY want it to mean...as in, whatever benefits and furthers their personal beliefs and assumptions about you/your situation. ego is a big part of this as well, don't forget. tell a member of law enforcement he's wrong? try to outsmart or outwit a member of law enforcement? wheter you succeed or not, he'll still twist the facts inside his mind to meet his needs.

shiot, you'd have a better chance of beating Forest Gump in ping pong.

sorry, not ranting, just thrown down some psychology on da fuzz...goes both ways if you play ball

-ppkk

**ppkk** · 07-07-2005, 10:55 PM

no self promotion here....just reiteration! silence is golden!

**Two4the$$** · 07-08-2005, 12:44 AM

I'm not even going to read this. If they are making contact WITHOUT a warrant, tell them to go get one, then clean house, and make sure it's clean. If they have a warrant, exercise your fifth amendment. If they don't, tell them to piss off. You pay rent where you live, and you aren't under obligation to open the door, talk to them, and least of all violate your 4th amendment (unlawful search and seizure.) Know your rights, and be realistic. If they're talking to you... protect yourself. They're NOT there to prove you're innocent. The end.

**Two4the$$** · 07-08-2005, 12:46 AM

Originally Posted by ppkk

guess the thread didn't die, but I think it's got some useful information. the guys who posted above about not saying zilch are 120% correct. le doesn't care what you have to say, and what plausible explanations you have. they have a mindset; a perception and an assumtion.

what you say and how you behave, no matter how non-chalant you act with reasonable explanations and all, will have no bearing on the le's perception of what is going on. in fact, each action, each anwser and each reaction is twisted inside their thought process and reasoning, and they twist it to mean what THEY want it to mean...as in, whatever benefits and furthers their personal beliefs and assumptions about you/your situation. ego is a big part of this as well, don't forget. tell a member of law enforcement he's wrong? try to outsmart or outwit a member of law enforcement? wheter you succeed or not, he'll still twist the facts inside his mind to meet his needs.

shiot, you'd have a better chance of beating Forest Gump in ping pong.

sorry, not ranting, just thrown down some psychology on da fuzz...goes both ways if you play ball

-ppkk

PPKK, you're the man. Absolutely valid points. Take head people... these are the risks we take.

**Jsik98** · 07-11-2005, 11:14 PM

Originally Posted by KeyMastur

c'mon now. thesesounds the opening scene to a cheap porn.

LOL!!!!Very funny indeed!

**Death** · 07-20-2005, 03:51 AM

never let them in, never offer them your opinion, if you have to answer their questions do it there and then, never assist them and let them do the work to pursue whatever they want, thats what they are paid for....... oh yeah, and if you are charged, never plea for a reduction of penalty, you have to be proven to be in the wrong......
Ofcourse this advice could vary, dependant on your circumstances.......

**lfrisbee** · 07-27-2005, 12:12 PM

You guys are forgetting one thing about these cops that come in with assumptions about gear you may be hiding etc... They're right. So just don't say anything because they WILL twist it to satisfy their suspicions... and then AGAIN they'll be right.

It's lose lose for you, so get your lawyer and don't speak.

**sheb737** · 10-15-2006, 02:22 PM

You cant be misquoted if you dont say anything at all. Be respectful, know your rights and keep your mouth shut. They are not there to help you.

**cj1capp** · 10-16-2006, 04:46 PM

THIS IS TAKING FROM A DIFFERENT BOARD BUT IT A GOOD READ WRITTEN BY LONGHORN71

Hey Bro's

I am a newbie but an attorney and although I am not offering what I am writing as legal counsel, it is some good things to remember if you get yourself into a bad situation. Most of this is going to be 4th Amendment stuff in case you want to do further readings.

Situation: You get pulled over for a minor traffic violation. What should you do if you are transporting something you shouldn't be?

Ok, first of all, don't be stupid. If you have something in your car that you shouldn't this is not the time to be speeding, driving with a busted tail light, or expired tags. Use your head.

Be polite to the police officer. Showing some respect will get you a long way instead of acting like a total punk to the cop.

Now if during the brief chat with you the police officer has a 'reasonable' belief that something's up he can remove you from the car and search you and it. What might give him this belief? Smell of alcohol or marijauna, you acting really nervous, glazed over eyes, etc.

Now if he pulls you out of the car, he can do what is called a 'safety search' of your body. This is just to make sure you're not carrying any weapons, i.e., guns, knives, or needles. The level of his search of you is going to depend on the reason he pulled you out of the car. If he thinks you're carrying drugs he can thoroughly check you over, including looking in any containers found on your body, like a pack of cigarettes, but if the reason for the search is simply a safety search and he's looking for weapons so that he can protect himself, then he can't look in a pack of smokes.

What about the car? Again, this depends on the reason for the search. Normally glove boxes (especially locked glove boxes) cannot be searched. This is not true, however, if he's really looking for drugs. What about the trunk? This is a tricky area and it's really case dependant. Most of the time, unless you consent they can't search the trunk, but they can arrest you (with probable cause of course) impound the vehicle, get a warrant from a judge or magistrate, and then search your trunk.

If, however, you gave consent to search the truck and let's say you had a locked briefcase in the trunk, they could not search that (unless you also consent to that, but why would you?). So if they search your trunk and it's an unconsented search they cannot probably search a locked briefcase that's in your trunk.

Lessons to take from this: 1. Don't do stupid things when transporting things you shouldn't be. 2. If you're going to be transporting illegal items, place them in the trunk and preferably in something that locks.

Situation: You're at a loud ass house party where there are illegal actions taking place and it's either your house, a bro's house, or your on probation. The cops are called because of the noise or they just drive by, see all the cars, and come and knock. What do you do?

The anwer: turn all that shit down and do nothing. DO NOT ANSWER THE DOOR! The police can enter only if they have: 1. An arrest warrant for someone there, 2. A search warrant for the premises, or 3. A reasonable belief a serious crime is being committed, i.e., murder, rape, and other serious bodily crimes.

Now, as soon as you open the door the cops always ask "can I come in?" And most people say "sure." WRONG ANSWER!! Once he's inside the door, it's fair game. Anything he smells, sees, or hears can give rise to probable cause and then everyone's night is ****ed for good.

Trust me, if you don't answer the door and stop making all the noise they will leave eventually.

Situation: You are pulled over for a possible DUI and asked to take the breath test. Do you blow or not? Well the answer depends. If you're pretty sure you can pass the test, then blow. If you're unsure, then don't do it. Here is why:

In the state I practice in we have what's called summary suspensions and they work like this: if you blow and fail your license is gone 3 months automatically. This is separtate punishment than the sentence that's going to come if you get convicted, although this is dependant on the state and your record. If you don't blow, however, it's a 6 month suspension. But without you blowing the only evidence the state has is the testimony of the police officer and any good DUI lawyer can get that knocked out pretty easily. This is assuming they don't have you on video driving all over the road and barely being able to walk during field tests. That type of evidence is almost impossible to get around.

So, to summarize if you are probably legally drunk, you don't blow, and you have a good lawyer the most you're going to lose your license for is 6 months. But if you blow, flunk it, and then get convicted it's going to be the 3 month summary suspension plus whatever your conviction gets you which in my state is a 1 year for a first timer. Granted an attorney is going to cost you some money but it's going to be worth not having a DUI conviction on your record. Just think of your car insurance costs alone over the next 5 years. DUI Lawyer=Money Well Spent.

Situation: You're arrested and questioned, do you talk? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER. I cannot stress this enough. Even if you're innocent. If they are placing you under arrest you're in trouble. Even if you have to spend a night in the slam do not answer any questions. Simply say "I do not want to answer any and all questions without a lawyer being present." At that point, they have to stop. They cannot ask you crap after that point unless of course they read you your rights again, but just give them the same answer.

Also, be careful of trickery. You have all seen this on tv and in the movies where the cop says "your buddy in the next room said you did it!" Ok, they cops can legally lie and this is what's called trickery. More people get their ass in a sling by this technique over anything else. The cops can say "dude, we got your computer, we know who you were emailing. If you come clean with us we will talk to the judge." BULLSHIT. THE POLICE ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS. Keep this in mind. It's LE's job to collect enough evidence for the state to prosecute you. They are not there to talk to anyone on your behalf, but they try to befriend you and make you comfortable so you trust them and then they will f*** you. Never forget this simple fact because it just may save your sorry ass.

So, I advise all of you to: not drive after drinking anything, not to transport illegal goods in your cars, never talk to the Po Po, and never believe what they say!

**sheb737** · 10-18-2006, 06:10 PM

great post bro!

**Z12** · 12-02-2006, 10:27 AM

Originally Posted by keithquig

just tell them ur in the middle of a wack session with ur life partner charlie

This is definitely the best approach.....

**talus29** · 12-03-2006, 08:53 PM

Best advice is to keep ur mouth shut at all times never ever say a word.. I've dealt with cops very often and have spent 6 figures on lawyers for various charges.. So here's something my lawyer told me and I'm passing it on to you all for free (lucky you) Get yourself on of those big ups boxes with enough bubble wrap (bubble wrap is if they ever shake it they cant tell what it is)dump all ur gear in there at all times.. On the mailing adress you include your lawyers adress and specify its ur lawyer and write confidential material always seal it with scotch tape and fianly place a stamp on it...
Now even with a warrant and or cop sniffing dog that box is off limits for two reasons..1. All discussion with ur lawyer are privileged (that includes mail as well folks) and 2. warrants rarely include posted mail (its a felony to open someone else posted mail)
For those of you who will attempt to critisize let me say first off that last year I was charged with 14 counts of possesion (various narcotics) all due to seizures from a warrant on my home.. Spent several days in jail waiting bail and once i got out I stayed out because those dummies opened that Ups box headed to my lawyer ...All charges were dropped and the police had to repair all damages that they caused during the raid...They claimed there were no damages but my lawyer showed the court that they caused 30000$ in property destruction... Imagine that they try to bust me and I wind up getting my home remodeled

**evil pepsi** · 12-11-2006, 07:35 PM

Originally Posted by talus29

Best advice is to keep ur mouth shut at all times never ever say a word.. I've dealt with cops very often and have spent 6 figures on lawyers for various charges.. So here's something my lawyer told me and I'm passing it on to you all for free (lucky you) Get yourself on of those big ups boxes with enough bubble wrap (bubble wrap is if they ever shake it they cant tell what it is)dump all ur gear in there at all times.. On the mailing adress you include your lawyers adress and specify its ur lawyer and write confidential material always seal it with scotch tape and fianly place a stamp on it...
Now even with a warrant and or cop sniffing dog that box is off limits for two reasons..1. All discussion with ur lawyer are privileged (that includes mail as well folks) and 2. warrants rarely include posted mail (its a felony to open someone else posted mail)
For those of you who will attempt to critisize let me say first off that last year I was charged with 14 counts of possesion (various narcotics) all due to seizures from a warrant on my home.. Spent several days in jail waiting bail and once i got out I stayed out because those dummies opened that Ups box headed to my lawyer ...All charges were dropped and the police had to repair all damages that they caused during the raid...They claimed there were no damages but my lawyer showed the court that they caused 30000$ in property destruction... Imagine that they try to bust me and I wind up getting my home remodeled

way to stick it to the man, hehe...

**BGIZZLE8629** · 12-11-2006, 11:34 PM

for real though, f*ck the po po. Never talked to one time.

**40plusnewbie** · 05-27-2008, 08:17 PM

I have been interrogated by the police before. I have also been beaten unconscious by them.

IMO the rule of thumb is KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT. I do agree with the OPs advice but the moment a cop starts talking to you he is conducting and investigation. Anything you say will be used to further his investigation. He is a professional at this and also at using intimidation tactics to further his investigation.

If your in a position where you have reason to be concerned that the cops might come-a-knockin it is advisable to have a game plan. The default one is KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT.

If someone were so inclined I would highly recommend attending a HIGH PRESSURE timeshare sales seminar. They will put you through your paces and it can help you to feel comfortable dealing with pro's using psychological ploys to get you to do what they want.

It can also be useful to practice with a friend various scenario's like a cop knocking at your door and trying to intimidate his way in/get info from you/etc, or a traffic stop scenario.

Cops really have NO POWER unless YOU GIVE IT TO THEM. They are nobodys. They don't make the law and they don't try people accused of breaking the law. They act as if they are in control and people GIVE THEM CONTROL. DO NOT DO THIS.

Practice putting them back on the defensive, putting them in the position of needing to justify interfering with your liberty.

It is always correct to be polite, respectful, and talk in a calm tone of voice and maintain a non threatening body posture. But you owe them NOTHING. They have NO RIGHT to interfere with you or to engage you in conversation. NONE.

Questions to keep in mind in response to anything a cop says to you:

"Officer, what is my legal status at the moment?"

"Officer, I would like to leave as soon as I am legally allowed to do so." (and keep your mouth SHUT from this point on no matter what comes out of their mouth)

"Officer, am I free to leave?" He will come back with some bs, IGNORE IT and restate your desire to leave "Officer, I have to do X. Am I free to go now?"

When I was young I was a real smart ass and also knew some dangerous high profile criminals. I learned to be polite and respectful the hard way. But I learned to keep my mouth SHUT at an early age.

My favorite response to a cop's question/statement (not that I recommend anyone else use this lol) is "Officer that converstation does not interest me." It's really fun to see the look on their face after you throw that one at them.

Cop "Bla, bla, bla"
You "Officer, that conversation does not interest me."
Cop "Bla, bla, bla"
You "Officer I am not interested in enaging in that conversation."

You are the citizen. They are there to protect and serve you. Don't let them do anything else unless they arrest or detain you. And if they do either of those things still follow rule #1. KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT.