How can Tiger Woods get away without being questioned by the police for days?
December 1st, 2009 | by admin |Tiger Woods hit a fire hydrant and a tree, went to the hospital, was released and State Troopers are turned away from his house when they try to question him. If a common man did this he would have a warrant issued for his arrest for not cooperating with law enforcement. Please explain.
Same reason that Dick Cheney wasn’t charged for not reporting shooting a man in the face. There are special rules in this country if you are rich.
Of course, technically, he doesn’t have to talk to the police under the 5th amendment, but it seems they are jerking the police around and trying to come up with a story.
To the folks who insist that it isn’t a police matter, it is. It could be reckless driving, it could be a domestic abuse case, it could be driving impaired (Sleepy, angry, etc.) The accident and the circumstances make it probable cause and anyone else would have been escorted to the police station for questioning, probably when they were released from the hospital.
14 Responses to “How can Tiger Woods get away without being questioned by the police for days?”
By lindaorion on Dec 1, 2009 | Reply
Tiger hitting a fire plug is none of the police’s business.
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By Em on Dec 1, 2009 | Reply
He’s rich and famous.
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By xamayca.com on Dec 1, 2009 | Reply
why would they? You need to read further and gather the facts. He need only provide them with his license, registration and proof of insurance. It appears that they are trying to question him as they believe he may be the victim in a domestic situation - the same services they would provide to a woman whose story matched his - scratched face, suspicious accident, argument, angry spouse, golf club in hand, etc, etc….
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By Relampago Blanco on Dec 1, 2009 | Reply
It was a single car accident in which he was the only occupant. I would like to hear what happened myself, but he is in no way obligated to be interviewed in this case.
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By nas88car 300 #2 wins#5 is closer on Dec 1, 2009 | Reply
because it not a criminal act he only has to give his name insurance and registration he doesn’t have to say anything at all
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By Killeur Killeur Saw a Goblin on Dec 1, 2009 | Reply
dude…we don’ even know if the guy is still alive …she could have "kurtcobained" him …;-)
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By Murzy on Dec 2, 2009 | Reply
under advice of his lawyer, he doesn’t have to answer questions. his lawyer can legally defer answering Qs for quite a while (until they come up with a good story)
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By Morgan R on Dec 2, 2009 | Reply
You said:
"If a common man did this he would have a warrant issued for his arrest for not cooperating with law enforcement"
Not in the US ( are you in the US?I hope not, and that is the reason you think this silly notion)
You are not obligated to talk to the police. You cannot lie, but you do not have to talk to them.
No warrant can issue without probable cause and the evidence is there to support that you committed a crime.
I was just wondering why everybody seems to just spill their guts ( watch any cops episode, and when I was a cop, you couldn’t shut some people up) when you can invoke you 5th amendment rights.
A local attorney has a commercial on TV in the Midwest; his entire ad consists of "Shut UP nad call me"
Good advice. If police want to question you, they can make an appointment and you will be there with your atty. You can obstruct justice, but you can invoke.
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attorney and former judge
By Libraryanna on Dec 2, 2009 | Reply
Same reason that Dick Cheney wasn’t charged for not reporting shooting a man in the face. There are special rules in this country if you are rich.
Of course, technically, he doesn’t have to talk to the police under the 5th amendment, but it seems they are jerking the police around and trying to come up with a story.
To the folks who insist that it isn’t a police matter, it is. It could be reckless driving, it could be a domestic abuse case, it could be driving impaired (Sleepy, angry, etc.) The accident and the circumstances make it probable cause and anyone else would have been escorted to the police station for questioning, probably when they were released from the hospital.
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By thor on Dec 2, 2009 | Reply
According to the police statement, no one is required to give them a statement after a simple accident in which no crime is at issue. I guess that means he has a right not to talk to them. I guess he may have to pay for any damage to the fire hydrant, though, if his insurance doesn’t cover it.
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By sweet.caroline on Dec 2, 2009 | Reply
there was no death and no other car involved. He was injured and went to hospital and was resting and his wife did not refuse police but merely said it would need to be next day. That is reasonable since he was injured.
Had someone else been hurt or killed it would be a different story. Police know he won’t disappear over this incident.
It would be unreasonable if they risked his health in this situation.
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By fire4511 on Dec 2, 2009 | Reply
Tiger Woods lost control of his vehicle, and hit a fire hydrant and then a tree that was on private property. There were no witnesses to the accident as far as has been reported. He will be liable for the damage he caused to the fire hydrant, and for any damage he causes to the neighbor’s property.
He is not required to do any more than provide his driver’s license, vehicle registration card, and insurance information to the police. In cases without injury, the police are given this at the accident scene. In cases where the driver is injured and taken for emergency medical care, the police usually ask for this at a later date.
If the police call you and ask you to come in for questioning, you are not required to do so. In the US we are free to say no. If you are a suspect in a major crime, you can be arrested, but even then you are not required to say anything.
Tiger Woods is not required to speak to the police. It is not because he is rich, in fact the only reason this accident is news is because he is famous. If you or I did the same thing, there would be no news coverage.
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30 years in business
35+ yearss volunteer fire rescue EMS
I have seen 100’s if not 1000’s of one car crashes.
By laughter_every_day on Dec 2, 2009 | Reply
You are incorrect. Failure to cooperate with cops is not an offense and no warrant would issue. If some cops comes to your house to ask you questions, you can answer, you can decline to answer, you can ask the cop to come back later, you can tell the cop to direct any questions to your lawyer or damn near anything else. The fact that you and many others think that there is some obligation to cooperate and to do so on demand does not mean that there actually is some law that creates the perceived obligation.
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By Shay on Dec 2, 2009 | Reply
Since it was a single car accident that happened on private property, Tiger is not obligated to speak with police. But considering the fact that the accident happened just two days after the National Enquirer published a story alleging that Tiger had been having an affair with a New York night club hostess, I think there is lot more to this story!
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http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/news?slug=ap-woods-accident&prov=ap&type=lgns