MEDIA PERPETUATE MYTHS IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE SCENARIOS

If we had a dollar for every time we've heard the following, early
retirement would be a reality for both of us. We are also certain that
criminal justice practitioners would agree, as they experience the
following misconceptions daily.

Myth: "Hey, I have a right to a phone call!"

Reality: Check your American history. The phone was not invented until the
century following the passage of the Bill of Rights. There is no such
"right" in our Constitution. What you do have is the right to an attorney
(Sixth Amendment), and to contact that person, you now use the telephone.

There is also no "right" to bail. Rather, there is a prohibition of
excessive bail (Eighth Amendment). In most arrests, the accused is neither
a serious danger to the community nor a risk of flight. Couple these facts
with the reality of jail overcrowding, secured bonds, electronic
monitoring, etc., and the accused is released (sometimes supervised,
sometimes not). There is just no room in the Public Inn.

Myth: "False arrest, false arrest. That (blank) didn't read me my rights!"

Reality: Being "read your rights," the result of the landmark Supreme Court
case Miranda vs. Arizona, is only required of police before custodial
interrogation begins. The police can ask you for identification, ask what
you're doing, etc. but none of this is considered "interrogation" that
warrants being advised of your rights. Police officers typically have
neither the time nor the need for questioning of the "interrogation" sort;
"custodial interrogation" is usually left to the detective who follows up
on the case once an arrest has been made.

Hollywood has almost completely adulterated Miranda vs. Arizona, resulting
in confusion about when and under what circumstances being advised of one's
constitutional rights is necessary.

Entrapment:

Myth: "You can't arrest me ... I was entrapped ... I asked that prostitute
if she was a cop, and she said 'no.'"

Reality: How much undercover vice and narcotics work could ever be
accomplished if the undercover officers were obliged to tell perpetrators
who they really were? Can you just picture the scenario if this myth were
true: "Yes, I am a police officer, but would you sell me that ounce of
cocaine anyway?"

Entrapment occurs when law enforcement officers induce an otherwise
innocent person into committing an act in which he or she would not
ordinarily engage. Entrapment is not merely providing the opportunity; the
key is whether the individual is an "otherwise innocent person." If a
suspect has a long record of similar offending, how could he or she have
been "entrapped" by the police?

Myth: "Undercover officers have to consume the dope to be believed."

Reality: This may have been the case in the "good ole days" when druglords
were few and far between. Today, dopers are a dime a dozen and the serious
dealers are about the business and the money, not getting high. Undercover
narcotics work has changed as the nature and complexity of the drug problem
has changed. Officers who are tempted to try the dope to be believed are
only fooling themselves, looking for an excuse, or living in a
Hollywood-induced dreamland. Such behavior compromises the very core of law
enforcement: integrity.

This is not just academic "know-it-all" speculation. I've lived with one of
the best narcotics officers in this state for 13 years, and he never had to
do dope to either buy it or sell it.

FBI profiler:

Myths: "I want to be an FBI profiler; I would make a good forensic
psychologist because I really 'know' people; "I want to be a homicide
investigator but not a regular cop."

Realities: Profilers and criminal psychologists are rare; they are experts
because of their years of work in the field and advanced education. Their
days are frequently spent in front of computers researching data bases.
It's not as exciting as Dana Scully's work on the "X-Files." Furthermore,
detectives were patrol officers first. That's where they learned about
crime, criminal behavior, investigation and paying dues.

Our advice: Stop watching so much television and talk to someone who really
works as a profiler or detective.

Movies and television shows are for entertainment. While the moguls and
stars may believe they are engaging in philanthropy, they could do so much
more by keeping it "real." Local TV news could also spend more time
educating the public on such important matters and less time promoting
their next broadcast. But that's a whole different issue.