Detective Wants To Interview Me - What Should I Do

[atuarre]

I got a call Monday from the local sherrifs department on my cell phone. The detective claimed that he had a police report that was filed against me back in February and he had been trying to get in touch with me for some time now. My first thought about this was, if you were really trying to find me, you could have located me.

Moving right along, the detective mentioned that I interviewed someone back in February, which I did (I was working for several different companies at the time, and even volunteering my time) and that the woman I interviewed accused me of acting inappropriately. My first thought was, "Why am I hearing about this now?"

So I pressed the detective and he told me that he needed me to come into the sherrifs office to give a statement, and that after he got my statement, he would then put it along with the other statement he received and decide where it needed to go to the D.A. or not. He told me there were inconsistencies in the story that was told when the report was filed, and that he wanted to get my side of the story.

He then also told me that he needed my social security number and my date of birth to see if I had been accused of this thing before. I didn't think about it until after I hung up, that it could have been an identity thief, but the number he gave me, and the number he called from were both legit.

I asked him what this was about and if I needed to get a lawyer. He told me he could not offer me legal advise but he did not have any intention of arresting me. He told me it would be in my best interest however, to cooperate.

He told me when I come in, he wanted my current address and my current employer but unless I am being charged, I don't feel I need to provide this information. The last thing I need is this detective going to my place of employment and asking questions. This is how scandals start where I work.

Moving right along...
Several people have advised me that this could have been an identity thief, so I took the necessary measures (freezing my credit), etc, however if it is legit, what should I do? My friends advised me that if I do decide to go, to bring someone because in these types of situations, they will put you in a room and try to grill you for hours and hours, and another friend advised me to also bring a tape recorder. She also advised me that if they started to act crazy, to ask if I am being charged, and if I am not, to leave.

What I don't understand is if I was being accused of something, why am I just now hearing about it? Two, if the police want to find you, they come to you, they don't ask you to come to them, but then again, this is the south.

Please advise on what I should do, because this is really bugging me. My friend, Zack, is going to come with me to the sherrifs office on Friday so I do not have to go up there alone.

What should I do?

[Mr. Knowitall]

My advice to anybody who is a suspect in a crime, where the police want an interview, is to "lawyer up".

[usedbranflakes]

Two questions to ask:
Am I under arrest?
Am I free to leave?
Any time you have to ask those questions to a police officer going into their office you want an attorney with you. In fact, your attorney may arrange the meeting at their office.

The ONLY reason a detective interviews someone is to gather evidence against them. If the inaccuracies existed and he told you that, what you say may convict you or convince him that the inaccuracies are correct. If this person has a history of false allegations then they will have a record of it.

If Zack is not an attorney I can guarantee that you will be separated as soon as the detective gets the chance. Zack may be questioned and harassed, too. Attorney client privelege does not exist between friends.

I would call back the detective and politely tell them that you have not clue what or why he needs to talk to you, you don't have a copy of the police report, he noted there are inaccuracies, and you need to arrange counsel for any interview. If he threatens to arrest you then you can simply say that an arrest would be inconvenient but also affords you the right to an attorney.

When I studied Criminal Justice there was usually only one reason that we would "interview" (interrogate is a bad word) a suspect - to gather evidence of their guilt. Sorry, but our job was not to gather evidence of the suspect's innocence. That was their job to prove to the DA and the courts. We were taught "arrest and convict"; that is how we protected and served. I don't agree with it now, but I did agree with it while I was in college.