Originally Posted by
Blogndog
Wow -- this beggars belief. The CBP internally acknowledges that there is a right to silence, but they have policies that explicitly forbid their agents from informing travellers of this right, because it might disuade them from making a self-incriminating statement. Disgusting.
Can you tell me where they acknowledge this and where they have a policy forbidding agents from informing passengers? I believe you, but those links contain and awful lot of sub links and it would be great if you could direct us to the right ones. Thanks.
I once sent questions through the CBP website about the right to remain silent at ports of entry, hereare the questions and the response I got:
After submitting a truthful customs declaration (blue) form, may U.S. citizens choose not to answer further questions from CBP officers at ports of entry?
ANSWER: Travelers, no matter their nationality, must answer all questions truthfully and fully at Primary Inspection. Failure to answer questions asked by the CBP Officer can result in the traveler being sent to Secondary Inspection. The reason is that the traveler appears to have something to hide and warrants further scrutiny.
What treatment should a U.S. citizen expect to receive if he or she declines to answer questions from a CBP officer?
ANSWER: A traveler who refuses to answer the questions of a CBP Officer at Primary Inspection can expect to be sent to Secondary Inspection for further scrutiny.
Can U.S. citizens be arrested, deported or denied entry into the United States by CBP simply for declining to answer questions from CBP officers?
ANSWER: A USC cannot be denied entry to the United States or deported for refusing to answer questions. However, the refusal can result in being sent to Secondary Inspection for further scrutiny. A person may be held and their person and luggage searched and the person questioned until it is determined that they are not involved in illegal activity. This type of hostile action on the part of the traveler will likely result in being sent to Secondary every subsequent time they return to the U.S.
An additional problem with refusing to answer the basic Primary Inspection questions is that this type of person wastes precious time, money, and adversely affects security by taking the CBP Officers away from their duties to deal with a USC who may have nothing to hide, but chooses to be obstinate. Again, questioning travelers is how we detect people who are involved in illegal activity and the Supreme Court has upheld that the doctrine of CBP's search authority is unique and does not violate the Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.
Travelers are highly advised to comply by answering the CBP Officer's questions. If a traveler is uncomfortable with a question, he/she can always ask to speak with the Chief Officer on duty or a CBP Passenger Service Manager (PSM) on-site. A supervisor is always available to address the concerns of travelers during their CBP processing.
I have, on three occasions, refused to answer questions at ports of entry. The incidents went like this:
1. 2012. Returning from Cuba to Las Vegas via Mexico. I truthfully listed Cuba on the form. They asked why I went to Cuba. I refused to answer. A sh*tstorm ensues. Supervisor tells me "You have no rights the border, you relinquish them when you leave and you reapply for them when you return." As I had never refused before, and I hadn't full researched the issue, I said something like "Don't I have the right to remain silent?" which I now know is never how to address these guys. you need to be totally sure of yourself.
Anyway, the Officer tells me he's seizing my phone and computer. Since I needed my phone and computer, I told them "Fine, I went to Cuba to drink beer and talk to pretty Cuban girls in mangled Spanish." They kept me about 2-3 hours, let me go.
2. Returning from Cambodia, Thailand, Australia, and Tonga. Philadelphia airport. Iwas a bit curt with the primary inspection officer giving monotone, one word answers. Referred to secondary. Officer asks me how long I've been gone. I say "two and half months." He then asks when I left the US. I say "Two and half months ago." He tells me to wait in timeout. He calls me back up, asks more questions, at first I answered some, that's a mistake too.
If you're going to refuse to answer, refuse to answer everything (except any questions about your citizenship). don't for example, tell them what you were doing in Thailand but refuse to say what you were doing in Tonga, because even though it's your right, it makes you look guilty, and if you answer some questions it emboldens them and makes them keep asking questions. Anyway, it was come here, refuse, sit in timeout, repeat a few times, they let me go after an hour.
3. A week ago, flying back from Algeria, Uzbekistan, Tunisia, and Iraq to Las Vegas via Frankfurt. Primary officer asks what I do for work. I could have said "lawyer," I would have sailed through probably. However, I said "unemployed" (also true), knowing this would get his attention. He then asks how I pay for my trips I say "I have money." He asks how I have money, I remind him I'm a US citizen and I'm admissible regardless of how I have money. He says "Yes, but I can ask you anything I want."
I'm referred to secondary, where the officer starts to ask what I was doing in these countries, and I inform him that I'm a US citizen, I'm happy to answer any questions about my citizenship, but I won't answer questions about what I was doing outside the country.
He tells me to sit in the time out chair. I sit there for 90 minutes while they look up information about me, He then calls me back up, searches my bag, I leave.