@DrAco20353@ScottEnlow Cops can ask questions + request ID during a voluntary encounter, where you remain free to decline and leave. Asking “am I being detained?” clarifies whether the cop is requesting cooperation or requiring you to stay.
People ask if they’re being detained to get the cop to clearly state whether they are free to leave or required to stay. Even if it seems obvious, the answer helps establish that they stayed bc the cop required it and matters if a court later examines whether the cop acted lawfully as the court examined the cop’s words + actions together.
Ordinary traffic stops usually fall below Miranda custody bc they’re expected to be brief, occur in public, + need less police control and pressure than an arrest.
3 levels for this:
** Level 1 = consensual encounter where you may leave.
** Level 2 = investigative detention where you must temporarily stay (eg.: ordinary traffic stop) and cop needs specific facts supporting reasonable suspicion of an offense.
** Level 3 = arrest-level custody, begets Mirandizing requirements (right to remain silent… etc).
Also: some guy giving a cop the finger, by itself, is protected expression under the First Amendment, so detaining or arresting someone solely for that gesture is unlawful.
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