Expert: Jack Toomey - 4/28/2007

Question
Jack, I need to know some answers for my sister in law. Recently in Florida, her boyfriend went for an afternoon walk in a public park for his health. he is diabetic. While on his walk, a man approached him and asked if he wanted a sexual act, to which the reply was no thanks. He kept walking and then the other man said he was an officer in a sting operation and that he was under arrest for tresspassing. He was placed in the back of a car, while the officers then took off after another person. Soon he was transported to the jail, never read his rights. My sister in law was called, she went to bail him out for tresspassing and as he was being released was told he was being charged with a lued act. Do they not have to read him his rights at the time of arrest, and can they add charges after his arest, and how can they charge him with tresspassing in a public park? In the meantime the police have been questioning thier neighbors and showing up at thier house at 2am looking for him, telling her that if she had kids they would be taken. Do they have a legal recourse, and can they sue the department? I was told that the department must record the conversations during a sting operation, is this true? Please help

Answer
Melody,

    There is no requirement for the police to "read rights' at the time of arrest.  You are probably getting that from watching tv shows or seeing movies.  The only time that a police officer is required to read someone their rights is when they question a defendant, after he is arrested, and hope to gain a confessin and then use it at the trial.  Any other time you simply arrest the person, process them, and get on with another case.

  Yes the police can add charges after an arrest.  If they think of another crime that he committed why couldn't they?
I'm not getting into what the police can do or can't do about showing up at peoples houses because I don't know both sides of the story.

 If your sister-in-laws boy friend feels that his rights have been violated or that departmental rules have been broken there are legal remidies.  All he has to do is retain an attorney and tell him the whole story but remember when you sue someone the entire story comes out at the trial.