Thursday, November 21, 2024
The Weekly: Get top MTSU stories in your inbox by subscribing to The Weekly, a Sidelines newsletter delivered each Wednesday.

Local criminal defense lawyer educates MTSU students on rights during police searches with ‘Can Police Do That?’ lecture

Date:

Share post:

Photo and story by William Green / Contributing Writer

A local criminal defense lawyer instructed a group of students on the ins and outs of police searches and their constitutional rights in those situations Monday in the Student Union Building as a part of a three-week lecture series.

Attorney W. Scott Kimberly gave the talk as a part of a series, entitled “Can Police Do That?,” which is co-sponsored by the MTSU College Republicans, College Democrats and Young Americans for Liberty. The other two lectures in the series will be provided by Hunter Fowler, another local criminal defense lawyer, and Richard Kimberly, a retired lawyer and Kimberly’s father. Kimberly tailored his presentation, which he has been conducting for four years at colleges, churches, businesses, and many other locations, for the student audience. The presentation features several pertinent topics from the law surrounding criminal defense cases and much more.

“If you haven’t already, you’re going to get profiled (as college students),” Kimberly said. “People who are 18 to 22 years old have a disproportionately high number of interactions with police.”

While Kimberly stressed that he was pro-police and that police have a “very, very, very difficult job,” he continually reminded his audience that “asserting your rights is not disrespectful.”

While many people think that police are always required to get warrants to conduct searches, police will often attempt to conduct a search of a person they’ve stopped by simply asking for permission, according to Kimberly

“Ninety-nine percent of the cases I handle probably fall into this category,” Kimberly said. “When police request a search, the answer is easy: no.”

Kimberly said the single biggest misconception he comes across when giving his presentation is that you are required to consent to searches and that you cannot say no when police ask to search you.

“Not only is it a misconception, it’s also the complete opposite of the truth,” Kimberly said. “You do not have to consent to searches.”

For more information on the lecture series, visit here.

To contact News Editor Andrew Wigdor, email newseditor@mtsusidelines.com.

For more news, follow us at www.mtsusidelines.com, on Facebook at MTSU Sidelines and on Twitter at @Sidelines_News.

Sidelines
Sidelineshttps://mtsusidelines.com
MTSU's digital daily news source

Related articles

Are You A Match: Kyelen Arora and Cade Ortego and the Moodswings join Match Records roster

Feature photo by Jaedyn Barnaby Story by Kerstie Wolaver A rainy Tuesday night couldn’t stop a swarming crowd from gathering...

MTSU club hockey earns No. 5 spot in latest rankings

Feature Photo by Caitlyn Hajek Story by Ephraim Rodenbach MTSU club hockey made history this past week by earning its highest ranking in team history. After a series sweep of in-state rival Vanderbilt that included an 8-0 shutout, the Blue Raiders climbed to the No. 5 spot in Division II club hockey rankings.

Mr. Dynamite: The Legacy of James Brown brings the funk to MTSU’s Center for Popular Music

Feature photo by Caitlyn Hajek Story by Shauna Reynolds He was talented. He was complicated. He was influential. But most memorably,...

MTSU friends come together in red and yellow for Deadpool and Wolverine: A BFF Event

Feature photo by Bailey Brantingham Story by Bailey Brantingham On Tuesday night, best friends and superhero lovers alike flocked to...