On TV and in the movies, arrestees are entitled to one phone call upon arrest. In real life, the situation is more complicated. Constitutional considerations. Various courts have considered whether an arrestee has a right to use the phone under the First Amendment (free speech), the Fifth Amendment (due process), and/or the Sixth Amendment (right to counsel). Without exhaustively detailing those opinions, suffice it to say that the existence and scope of any constitutional right is unsettled. Waganfeald v. Gusman, 674 F.3d 475 (5th Cir. 2012) (noting the lack of “particularized, clearly established law” defining scope of an arrestee’s constitutional entitlement to use the phone). Statutory considerations. In North Carolina, G.S. 15A-501(5) requires an arresting officer to, “without unnecessary delay[,] advise the person arrested of his right to communicate with counsel and friends and . . . allow him reasonable time and reasonable opportunity to do so.” Exactly what that means in practice is unclear. Must an officer allow an arrestee to look up a phone number in the arrestee’s cell phone? How many attempts must an officer allow an arrestee to make to contact a person? Must an officer allow the arrestee any level of privacy or confidentiality during a call? We do have one case that provides some information about the time period within which the officer must act. In State v. Daniels, 337 N.C. 243 (1994), the court found no unnecessary delay where an officer did not inform an arrestee of his right to communicate with counsel and [...]
Faculty Coordinators
