What are my rights in federal case
What are my rights in federal case
FBI agents knocked on your door this morning. Or you got a call from a federal investigator asking you to “come in and talk.” You’re scared, everyone keeps saying “you have rights” – but nobody’s explaining which rights matter, when they apply, and what happens if you don’t invoke them correctly.
Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group. We’re a second generation law firm managed by Todd Spodek, with over 40 years of combined experience defending federal criminal cases. This article explains what constitutional rights you have at each stage, when those rights actually attach, and where most people unknowingly destroy their defense.
When FBI Knocks – The Right You Don’t Know You Have
Federal agents show up at your home. They’re polite, say they’re “just trying to clear things up.” You’re not under arrest, haven’t been read Miranda rights. You think: “If I have nothing to hide, I should explain.” That thinking is the most dangerous mistake in federal criminal law. You have an absolute Fifth Amendment right to refuse to answer any questions from federal agents, even before you’re arrested, even when you’re not in custody, even when Miranda doesn’t apply. You can say, “I’m invoking my Fifth Amendment right to remain silent and I want to speak to a lawyer,” and shut the door. Statements you make voluntarily – before arrest, before Miranda warnings, before you even know you’re a target – are admissible in court and can’t be taken back. The FBI doesn’t need to read you Miranda rights if you’re not in custody. They use everything you say against you, and federal agents are trained to turn your “innocent explanation” into evidence of guilt. We’ve seen this pattern for decades: client talks to agents thinking they’re clearing things up, makes statements that seem exculpatory, and those same statements become the cornerstone of the prosecution’s case. Once you’ve talked, you can’t untalk. If any detail changes later, that’s “consciousness of guilt.” Your choice is binary: talk to federal agents without a lawyer, or invoke your Fifth Amendment right to silence and get counsel. If you talk, you’re giving the government evidence they might not have been able to obtain any other way. One of these choices is reversible. The other isn’t.
Miranda – What It Actually Protects
Most people think Miranda warnings must be read at arrest, and if police don’t read them, your case gets dismissed. Both beliefs are wrong.
Miranda rights are only required when two conditions are both present: custody AND interrogation. Not arrest alone. Federal agents can arrest you, transport you, book you, and never read Miranda – if they don’t plan to question you, there’s no Miranda violation. What happens if they violate Miranda? Your statements get suppressed. The arrest is still valid, charges still proceed, any physical evidence is still admissible.
Your Fifth Amendment right to remain silent exists before arrest, before custody, before Miranda warnings are required. That’s the right that applies when FBI shows up at your door. Miranda is a procedural protection that comes later – after you’re already in custody.
Even after you’re arrested and Miranda is read, you have to invoke it clearly. Courts have held that “maybe I should talk to a lawyer” isn’t clear enough. The magic words: “I’m invoking my right to remain silent and I want a lawyer.” Anything less direct, agents can keep pushing.
Invoking your rights can’t be used against you at trial. The prosecution can’t tell the jury “the defendant refused to talk to police.” But if you talk to agents before arrest without Miranda warnings, then later testify differently at trial, prosecutors can point to the inconsistency. The system is designed to get you talking before you have Miranda protections, then use those unwarned statements against you.
When You Actually Get a Lawyer
The Sixth Amendment guarantees you the right to counsel – but when does that right attach? Most people think they get one immediately when they’re under investigation. They don’t. The Sixth Amendment right to counsel attaches when you’re formally charged – at your arraignment, your first appearance before a federal magistrate judge. Not before. When federal agents first contact you – knock on your door, call asking you to come in – you don’t have a Sixth Amendment right to appointed counsel yet. That’s why the Fifth Amendment right to remain silent is so critical. You can invoke it yourself and shut down the conversation. Once you’re charged and appear before a magistrate, you get a lawyer – either one you hire or, if you can’t afford counsel, the court appoints a federal public defender. Here’s something that surprises people: federal public defenders are often more experienced in federal court than private attorneys. They handle federal cases exclusively, know the prosecutors, know the judges. An expensive private attorney might have more time for your case, but price doesn’t equal quality in federal criminal defense. By the time you have appointed counsel, the damage is often already done. If you talked to agents before you were charged, those statements are out there. Your lawyer can try to suppress them, but if you gave them voluntarily before Miranda applied, they’re likely coming in as evidence. Once you’ve said “I want a lawyer,” all questioning must stop. Federal agents can’t keep interrogating you. That protection is powerful – but only if you invoke it clearly when they first make contact.
The Trial Penalty
Approximately 97% of federal cases end in guilty pleas, not trials. The system is structured to make going to trial devastating – it’s called the trial penalty. If you exercise your constitutional right to trial and lose, you face a sentence typically 3 to 5 times longer than what you would have received if you’d pled guilty.
The federal Speedy Trial Act requires your trial begin within 70 days of your indictment. Except the Act contains massive exceptions for “excludable delays.” In practice, federal cases routinely take 6 to 12 months from indictment to resolution. The 70-day clock is more theoretical than real. Your right to remain silent at trial is absolute. But if you don’t testify, the jury only hears the government’s version. If you do testify, you open yourself up to cross-examination on prior inconsistent statements you made to agents when you thought you were just “explaining your side.” The statements you give early become weapons against you if you exercise your trial rights later. Federal prosecutors have roughly a 90% conviction rate at trial. You have the right to trial, but exercising that right means betting your freedom on 10-to-1 odds, knowing that losing means a sentence multiple times longer than the plea offer.
We’ve defended federal cases for decades – fraud, drug conspiracies, white collar prosecutions. The pattern repeats: the system depends on people not knowing their rights when those rights would actually protect them. Your rights are only as strong as your willingness to invoke them early, clearly, and unambiguously. When federal agents first make contact – before arrest, before Miranda, before lawyers – that’s the moment that matters most. Invoke your Fifth Amendment right to remain silent, get a lawyer, don’t try to explain. You’re not smarter than trained federal investigators. At Spodek Law Group, we’ve represented clients in your exact situation. We’re available 24/7 at 212-300-5196.
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