This Know Your Rights Q+A was created by the ACLU to help individuals understand their rights in response to police searches and arrests. The guidance below includes Kansas-specific law in order to help Kansans better understand their rights and to serve as a specific reference guide in the event of a police encounter in our state.
Q: Do I have to answer questions asked by law enforcement officers?
Q: Are there any exceptions to the general rule that I do not have to answer questions?
Q: What if I speak to law enforcement officers anyway?
Q: What if law enforcement officers stop me on the street?
Q: What if law enforcement officers stop me in my car?
Q: Can law enforcement officers search my home?
Q: What if I am arrested?
Q: What do I do if I have been the victim of racial profiling?
Q: What if the officer claims to detect an illegal substance?
1 State v. Scott, 183 P.3d 801, 816-17 (Kan. 2008).
3 State v. Hubbard, 309 Kan. 22 (2018). (But see from State v. McDonald citing Ellis, 311 Kan. at 929-30, “We have previously said "[d]espite repeated admonitions to the State that police may not use public welfare checks as a basis for conducting background investigations and warrant checks . . . such conduct persists." Ellis, 311 Kan. at 942; see also State v. Gonzales, 36 Kan. App. 2d 446, 453, 141 P.3d 501 (2006) ("Once safety stops are permitted, then there must be limits placed upon them; otherwise, any pretext could serve as a reason to stop."). A valid public-safety stop therefore requires an officer to believe such a stop is necessary to protect the individual or the public based on the specific and articulable facts of the particular situation.”
4 State v. Daley, No. 109,036, 2014 WL 1096631, at *5 (Kan. Ct. App. Mar. 14, 2014)
5 State v. Overman, 348 P.3d 516, 522 (Kan. 2015).
6 State v. Stevenson, 321 P.3d 754, 763 (Kan. 2014).
7 State v. Murphy, 293 P.3d 703, 705 (Kan. 2013).
9 United States v. Esser, 451 F.3d 1109, 1112 (10th Cir. 2006).
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