CAIR-LA has received reports of community members being approached by FBI agents seeking to compel individuals to submit to questioning. CAIR-LA advises that community members should decline to agree to any questioning and should instead inform agents that they are asserting their right to have an attorney be present before agreeing to any questioning.
If you are approached by the FBI for questioning, please take a moment to know your rights:
- Do not speak with FBI agents without a lawyer. Inform any agents that approach you that you are uncomfortable speaking without an attorney present and that you will have an attorney contact them to answer their questions on your behalf. Do not let them inside your home unless they show you a search warrant signed by a judge.
- If they visit you, ask them to give you their business card. If the agents do not have a card, ask them to write down their name, phone number, and email. Take the contact information, and tell them that you will have a lawyer contact them.
- Call the CAIR-LA Civil Rights Department at 714.776.1177, or email us at cairlacivilrights@losangeles.cair.com to speak to an attorney.
- Never provide false information to any law enforcement agency. Lying to law enforcement agents under any circumstance is a federal crime.
CAIR-LA Civil Rights Attorney Patricia Shnell urged community members approached by FBI agents to remain calm.
“FBI Agents often choose to approach individuals for questioning at a time when the individual feels surprised or particularly vulnerable,” she said. “It is important to remember to assert your rights and not panic.”