Many people feel anxious when interacting with police officers in public. They may worry that officers could misidentify them as a criminal or misinterpret their behavior. Innocent people sometimes get arrested or even mistreated by police officers due to being in the...
A police officer is conducting a criminal investigation. For some reason, they want to talk to you. Perhaps they believe you were involved in some way, so you’re a person of interest. Even if you’re not a suspect, they’re still conducting interviews and gathering...
For the state to successfully prosecute charges against an individual, there needs to be adequate evidence of misconduct. Prosecutors largely rely on investigative agencies and police departments to gather adequate evidence to bring charges against someone and secure...
Action by law enforcement is considered unlawful if the approach taken violates your Fourth Amendment rights that protect against unreasonable searches and seizures by the state. This can happen when a government official conducts a search or seizure: Without a...
Drivers who get pulled over by the police will often do whatever the officers asked of them. They don't want to seem unnecessarily difficult and hope that their cooperation with the officer who stopped them will lead to a better outcome. Unfortunately, many people...
Getting stopped by police can be terrifying. While you may know why they pulled you over, you may worry about what will happen during a traffic stop. There are certain circumstances when police can conduct an investigation that includes searching a vehicle. However,...
Police departments in Texas and around the country routinely use trained dogs to sniff the air around vehicles during traffic stops, and the courts have ruled that this does not violate rights protected by the Fourth Amendment. One of the most important rulings...