The questions people actually ask — answered the way two real defense attorneys would, on the record. Every answer links to the full episode where we talk it through. New answers drop with every episode.
⚖️ 28 answers · updated with every episodeNo. If you're in custody you have the right to stay silent — you don't have to explain, justify, or fill in the blanks. When a cop says “we already know what happened,” that doesn't obligate you to confirm it. Say very little, stay polite, and wait for a lawyer.
Not automatically. If you weren't Mirandized, your statements may be suppressed, but the case isn't automatically dismissed — the police can still prove it with other evidence. Miranda is a rule about whether your statements can be used, not a magic dismissal.
Yes, in most cases. They can lie about what other witnesses said, what the evidence shows, or who else is involved. The exceptions are narrow — they generally can't lie about a legal consequence (“you won't be charged if you tell us”) or invent a false pretense of physical danger to get consent.
There's no bright line, but they can't extend the stop for a dog search unless the officer has an independent reason to keep you. For a simple traffic infraction, the officer should write the ticket (or give a warning) and let you go — they can't hold you indefinitely while the canine is on the way.
It can, but it's the totality of the circumstances. A cop can follow you for almost any reason — even “I'll follow the third blue car today.” The real issue is when the stop turns into a search: furtive movements, drifting across the fog line, or a stop that drags on can all add up.
Even so, you should deny consent. “I have nothing to hide” is not a legal right — consent is. Say “you may search, but do I have to let you?” If you refuse, the police still need probable cause, so you've preserved an argument for later.
Yes. “It wasn't mine” does not beat possession. Possession means you had control — actual or constructive. If it's in your car, on you, or within your reach, you can be charged even if a friend “really” owned it.
Mostly yes. It's a myth that cases — even traffic tickets — fall off your record. The entry stays unless you expunge it, and expungement only seals it, it doesn't erase it. Most employers never see a sealed case, but it's still there.
No — not even by court order. You can't be compelled to provide your passcode. If there's a search warrant, hand over the phone (not the passcode); giving the passcode counts as consent. Argue the warrant in court, not on the street.
Not exactly. Indiana didn't create a standalone “doxing” offense — it folded doxxing behavior into the existing intimidation statute. To qualify you generally have to publish two or more pieces of someone's personal information with the intent to intimidate.
Things like a name, home address, phone number, employer, and employer address — and the statute requires two or more pieces to be published. One piece on its own (like just a name) usually isn't enough to qualify.
By circumstantial evidence — the platform's records, the post itself, phone records, and messages about why you posted it. The state can prove intent any admissible way, and it has to do so beyond a reasonable doubt.
Yes. If the threat was communicated and the information was posted with intent, deleting it later doesn't erase it — and a follow-up post like “sorry, I lost it for a second” is even worse. Deleting is not a defense.
You can be. Sharing is a form of publishing, so you can be equally guilty. Whether you “led the charge” or “got caught up in the moment” may matter for sentencing, but not for guilt.
It depends on the underlying intimidation charge. It typically starts as a Class A misdemeanor and can climb to a level 6 or level 5 felony if the threat involves a serious or forcible felony — so it can carry jail or prison time.
Tell them and hand it over. If you were unconscious or incoherent when booked, there's a loophole for involuntary possession — but the moment you use it as a bargaining chip or refuse to turn it in, you've voluntarily possessed it. That's exactly how a pepper-spray case became a felony.
Generally no. Passive non-cooperation — going limp and making the officers carry you — is not resisting. Resisting comes when you tense up, fight, or run. (It does make the cops' day a lot harder.)
Potentially, yes — if the state can prove the reliability of the recording system and identify who's in it. But Flock usually captures still photos, not video, and proving a whole crime from stills is hard. You usually still need an eyewitness to explain what the photos show.
The courts probably won't stop them — if the camera is in public and can see what your own eyes could, it's likely not a search. The real fix is political: get your city to stop paying for the cameras. Fort Wayne has already canceled its Flock contract.
Comply physically and say very little verbally. You have to identify yourself, but don't argue on the street — you're not going to win that argument with a badged officer. Fight it later, in court.
Decide what your goal is. You can record from a safe distance on public property (but don't get in between them), or you can just keep driving. Don't assume the Constitution protects you in that moment — it might protect you in court months later.
Because the feds changed how they work. The Marion County Sheriff's Office has rented jail beds to ICE for years, but now ICE is placing a detainer (hold) on nearly everyone arrested — even for minor stuff like driving with a suspended license — which is why the backlog has spiked.
Almost never. Ignorance of the law is not a defense in Indiana (or pretty much anywhere). The state has to prove you committed the act; it generally doesn't have to prove you knew it was against the law.
Yes — it's battery by bodily waste, a level 5 felony, punishable by up to six years in prison. It came up in a Florida Man domestic fight, but the law is real.
Usually the state picks one (often the person who committed the first crime — and in domestic cases, usually the man). If they charge both and there are no other witnesses, both can stay silent and the case is hard to prove.
It's a stretch. You generally have to be charged in the county where the crime happened, and you have to prove bad faith beyond a reasonable doubt. If the person didn't actually do anything in Indiana, the path forward is murky.
It's an appeal to the Court of Appeals on a single, important issue — like a suppression ruling — before the trial is finished. You have to get both the trial court and the Court of Appeals to agree to let you do it. If you win, the trial court has to change its ruling.
Because those early statements can contain inconsistencies you can use to impeach the witness on the stand. If the state fails to turn them over, the defense loses the chance to use them — which is why judges can sanction the state (though excluding the entire witness is an extreme remedy).
Send it in and it might get read on air — the stuff people are too embarrassed to ask, answered with the comebacks you expect. Or grab the 60-second versions on the clips page.