When a police officer starts to question you, your first instinct may be to cooperate. For example, they might tell you that you could have information that could help them solve a crime or protect the local community. They might also tell you that you won’t face charges if you just cooperate and tell the truth.
You may want to take the police officer at their word, but doing so could be a major mistake because they could lie to you without it damaging the case against you. One of the reasons you need to know your rights is so you can assert them instead of falling victim to manipulative questioning and investigation tactics.
Police can legally lie to you in many situations
Police officers questioning someone can lie to them about what evidence they have or even their personal history, even though such lies have a known association with false or retracted confessions. Some officers try to create an artificial sense of pressure on a defendant. Others make them think that confessing before the police have certain evidence will reduce what penalties they face.
Simply proving that the police lied to you during the investigation or while questioning you after your arrest won’t be enough to eliminate any statements you made to the police under those circumstances. Although there may still be opportunities to challenge the admission of that evidence, the lies on their own don’t make your statements inadmissible.
Waiving your right to remain silent can be a mistake that drastically affects the case against you. Knowing and asserting your rights can protect you when you could potentially face criminal charges.