**I am not a layer and nothing written hear should be taken as a substitute for legal counsel by a licenced attorney in your state**
Thanks a lot for the quick reply! Helped a lot. I am only 18 years old so when the Police see me with a gun holstered to my hip they think I am up to no good (sadly). So I am trying to avoid any trouble with LEO's. Once again thank you!
You're young and hopefully, you haven't had much experience with the police, but you need to know how they behave and what to expect when you do, because you will. it's not a matter of if you encounter police, but when. Be prepared for police who mistakenly believe you must be 21 to posses a firearm. This is not so, but many believe it to be the case.
You age is what police will attempt to exploit when they question you. Their goal is to get you to incriminate yourself, even if you haven't committed a crime. You guilt or Innocence matters not to them, only that they make an arrest and be the guy who gets a gold star for getting the evidence they can hand over that will get a prosecutor a conviction.
If you are stopped by law enforcement, Respond to every question with "I respectfully decline to answer your questions." Respond to every request for search of your person or property with "I do not consent to being searched." after saying each one of these things, ask "am I now free to go?" You will sound like a broken record, and you will aggravate them to no end. Expect and be prepared to be handcuffed, intimidated with threats of arrest, and prison time. Also expect them to constantly offer to be your savior. They can make all these bad things go away if you just cooperate and tell them what they want to hear. Have a strong mind, constantly say to yourself, "shut up." What they want is evidence, they do not want to be your friend or help you out of a jam.
Nevada is a one party consent state. this means that to record an encounter with anyone, only one of the parties to the encounter must consent to the recording for it to be admitted into evidence in court. Carry a recorder with you at all times.
Knowing what your weaknesses and vulnerabilities are actually make you a stronger person. Their weakness is that they will not expect you to know these things and be able to think on your feet, stay cool and collected. they will expect you to be just another street punk with an attitude, and when they don't get what they expect or want, they will probably respond as any childish mind responds when they don't get what they want; with anger and frustration. Bad cops are one thing, but angry and frustrated bad cops are a recipe for danger. be mindful of where you put your hands, do not make sudden movements. From my own experience I can tell you that even if you know you are not guilty of breaking any law, you will be nervous, you may even shake and sweat. You body will instinctively put up defense mechanisms. You will want to fold your arms, scratch your head and face, your eyes will wander and your fidget. You must make a conscious effort to attempt to control these things as much as possible because these things will make them nervous, so now you will have an angry, frustrated and nervous cop. This is a lethal combination.
Expect the drama team, they will get backup and supervisors if they are not effectively getting what they want from you, they will over inflate the situation, and they will lie to you to get what they want. The Law doesn't require that the police tell the truth to elicit information or evidence from a suspect. remember, You have nothing to fear because you haven't broken any laws, they won't have any evidence against you, answering questions only serves to manufacture evidence that may be fallacious, or circumstantial, but if you don't give it to them, it's one less thing your lawyer has to argue in court if it comes to that.
Do not argue with police! It solves nothing. Court rooms are for arguments to be heard, and lawyers are for making arguments. I suggest that you save about $2500 and put a lawyer on retainer. After you have done that, Save another $2500 for a rainy day fund. It's good to have money for when the sky falls, and when you have to front 10% of a $25,000 bond, it will be worth it. An okay attorney will charge you about $150 an hour so your retainer gets you a little over 16 hours of service, this will not cover a trail, it will likely get you no farther than a motion to suppress hearing. That's about what my legal fees added up to at the point of a motion to suppress hearing. So expect that if you go all the way to a jury verdict to be about $10,000 in legal fees.
Sometimes it is more cost effective to take a plea agreement, this is where prosecutors try to get something else from you that may haunt you for the rest of your life, your RKBA. Never plea guilty to any lesser included offense that will require that you surrender your right to bear arms. That right must be taken by a guilty verdict handed down from a jury. Prosecutors often attempt to offer you very lenient plea offers if their is a case where they know your arrest was so libelous that it could result in civil damages. Usually by accepting a deal, you forfeit your right to bring civil charges. so if the crime you are charged with carries a penalty of 10 years in prison and they come at you with an offer for a disorderly conduct that only requires you pay something like a $250 fine, think long and hard before you take it.
I know I just strayed way beyond the scope of the OT, but I thought these insights may be of some value to someone of your youth, I know I would have liked to have known then what I know now.
**I am not a layer and nothing written hear should be taken as a substitute for legal counsel by a licenced attorney in your state**