Does My Child Have Constitutional Rights?

We see it all the time. A parent takes their child to a police station law enforcement’s request and basically offers that child up to police with no constitutional right protection. And every time the parent explains that they didn’t know that their child has the right to remain silent.

If there’s one thing that we are passionate about as experts in juvenile law it is educating parents about their child’s rights. Your child has every right that you have except they don’t share the right to a jury trial.

I know it sounds crazy to tell your kid that if the police want to talk to them they should not cooperate and they should invoke their right or remain silent.

We are all doing our best to teach our kids right and wrong and it seems “wrong” to tell your child to be uncooperative. But it’s not wrong to exercise your constitutional rights and we need to destigmatize the notion that if you don’t cooperate with the police you’re doing something “wrong.”

If nothing else you should tell your child not to speak to the police without an attorney present. If it seems like a luxury to hire an attorney, don’t let your child talk to the police.

Law-enforcement officers mostly do good work, but they can get things wrong and they can pre-judge a situation. If you have the full weight of a law enforcement officer and a prosecutor’s office coming down on your child because of a miscommunication, you do not want someone like us to tell you that this could’ve all been prevented by not letting your child speak to law-enforcement.

So talk to your child. Educate them about their constitutional rights. If you have any questions, you can always call us.

If you need legal help, call Plata Schott Law today at 904-619-5244 or email us at contact@plataschott.com.   We will work with you to make a consultation convenient for you.