When is a suspect not a suspect?

[foggedinn]

Years ago, when something like the missing Utah woman Susan powell happened, everyone was a suspect; with the husband being at the top of the list. No one is a suspect anymore, they are "persons of interest".

I suspect being named a suspect attaches certain legal protections that police and prosecutors don't want them to have.

How about it legal eagles? Why is no one a suspect until the prosecutor is ready to seek an indictment from the grand jury?

 

[JD_2B]

Years ago, when something like the missing Utah woman Susan powell happened, everyone was a suspect; with the husband being at the top of the list. No one is a suspect anymore, they are "persons of interest".

I suspect being named a suspect attaches certain legal protections that police and prosecutors don't want them to have.

How about it legal eagles? Why is no one a suspect until the prosecutor is ready to seek an indictment from the grand jury?

Oh nooo- People can be suspects- It's just that a "person of interest" is someone they saw on a video tape, or whatever, and have no idea whether that person had any connection, or knowledge of the crime. They are interesting, because they MIGHT be able to provide investigators some useful information.. they are not suspected of anything- how can they be?

Nobody is ever called a suspect until investigators find some kind of motive or involvement by the person in committing the crime itself. Everyone before that is just someone they are interested in interviewing, to get more info about the case. The interviews are a discovery process, so if someone THEN acts like they are holding something back, or they say anything incriminating, then the investigators can look at that person as a possible suspect- or another person, if the person of interest gave them a good tip, etc.

 

[foggedinn]

Sounds like fog to me.

 

[JD_2B]

Huh???

Fog?

 

[xotoxi]

Sounds like fog to me.

Allegedly.

 

[Granny]

America has become a very litigeous society. If someone were immediately arrested for something that he really did not do, he could turn around and sue for false arrest and probably include a lot of other stuff like mental distress, etc. just to up the ante.