DENIED AN ATTORNEY AND PHONE CALL
HELD FOR 3 DAYS IN ILLINOIS; DENIED AN ATTORNEY AND PHONE CALL, DESPITE REPEATED REQUESTS FOR BOTH
Larsen was arrested in Illinois and held there for three (3) days. From the very beginning Larsen requested an attorney and requested to make a phone call; Larsen was denied both the attorney and the phone call. Larsen thereafter made repeated requests for an attorney and a phone call. Yet, despite those numerous repeated requests Larsen was still not allowed either. When the officer first took Larsen's wallet, keys, cell phone, comb and essentially everything he had in his pockets, Larsen asked for an attorney. Larsen even had a small gold card inside his wallet that a local attorney had given him years earlier. That attorney card contained "asserting your rights" information.³ So, before he took Larsen's wallet away, Larsen opened it up and began to read out loud from the card. The officer said something to the effect that he was just supposed to inventory Larsen's personal items and didn't need to hear all that. He said Larsen could tell the other officer, so Larsen started to remove the small gold attorney card from the wallet, at which point he then said Larsen could not take anything- it all had to stay there with him. There were then two main Wisconsin detectives who interrogated Larsen for hours on end. At the very beginning Larsen asked for an attorney and the less senior of the two, whom had already sat down, began to get back up out of his chair and said, "We're done here then". The more senior of the two put his hand on the other officer's shoulder and said, "Sit down," as he pushed him back towards the chair. The less senior then said, "He lawyered-up, we're done". Larsen had never heard that terminology before, but the more senior officer then insisted that we were going to continue, commenting further that they had not driven all that way just to turn around and drive back, and also that there was no time to obtain an attorney since it was late on a Saturday evening and since they had more pressing things to deal with. (Their drive would have been 1 1/2 -2 hours- one way.) The more senior of the two then asked why Larsen wanted an attorney since they only wanted to talk with him. And Larsen replied, "Just so that there is a witness as to what is actually being said". The less senior of the two even put Larsen's comment about wanting that witness present for the interview in his written report, but the two would both then thereafter deny that Larsen had repeatedly requested an attorney. Before the Wisconsin detectives even showed up for the interrogation, there were officers there who went back and forth to the cell which Larsen was being held in, and Larsen told several of them that he wanted an attorney and that he wanted to make a phone call (about every 15 to 20 minutes). Each of them responded that they weren't the one to talk to, they were just checking on Larsen. At minimum Larsen expressed wanting an attorney and wanting to make a phone call to no less than 5 or 6 different officers! With the detectives Larsen actually even made a point of saying, "This is the third time I've asked for an attorney", "this is the fourth time", "fifth time", "sixth time", "seventh time", etc. After Larsen got past number 11 or 12 he stopped using numbers, but continued all along asking for an attorney. They just didn't care as that wasn't convenient for what they wanted to accomplish. What more could Larsen have done when he's being held against his will and has already asked for an attorney over and over and over again? This is a clear Fifth Amendment violation!
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³ Content on small gold attorney card: OFFICER PLEASE UNDERSTAND I refuse to talk to you until I consult with my attorney. I also refuse to consent to any search of these premises or any premises under my control, or in which I have a possessory, proprietary, or privacy interest, including my car, body, or effects. I hereby demand to immediately be allowed reasonable opportunity to obtain the advice of my attorney by telephone. I desire to exercise all my rights guaranteed by the constitution of the United States and the constitution of Wisconsin, to be free from interference with my person or affairs. If you attempt to question me, I want my lawyer present, I refuse to participate in any line-up or to perform any physical acts, or to speak or display my person or property at your direction, without, first conferring with my lawyer. If I am under arrest, I wish to invoke my Miranda Right. If you ignore my exercise of these rights and attempt to procure a waiver, I want to confer with my lawyer prior to my conversations with you. If I am to be taken into custody, removed from my present location, or separated from my property, I request a reasonable opportunity to make arrangements to secure my own property. I do not consent to any impoundment or inventory of my property. I do, hereby waive any claim of liability for loss, theft, or damage against you, your superiors, or any other authority, and agree to hold all harmless therefrom, if I am afforded the reasonable opportunity to arrange for the safekeeping of my own property, if this reasonable opportunity is denied or is unavailable, I demand that only such intrusion occur as is minimally necessary to secure such property, hereby waiving any claim of liability for your failure to scrutinize the property or its contents prior to being secure, if I an not under arrest, I want to leave. If I am free to leave please tell me immediately so that I may go about my business. Rule #1 Keep your mouth shut, even if it means spending the night in jail. John Miller Carroll Attorney 414-291-9495 OR 800-427-6988