If you get arrested, you may be worried about who to call. You know you need to call someone and let them know what’s happened, but you may be concerned that you only get one phone call. What if you call someone and they don’t pick up?
The good news is that the limitation of one phone call from jail is a Hollywood myth. It’s a good device for creating tension in a movie or a television show. It makes the scene feel more dramatic, and it raises the stakes.
But in real life, you get more than one phone call. Making calls can be time-consuming and complicated, and you’re not going to have your personal smartphone, so you do need to make calls from the prison phone system. But that doesn’t mean that you’re limited to just one phone call and you’re out of luck if the person doesn’t answer.
Your right to an attorney
One important thing to remember here is that you have a right to an attorney and legal representation. Everyone does under the Sixth Amendment.
If the police only allowed you to make one phone call, but your lawyer was asleep or didn’t answer the phone, it would be a violation of your rights to prohibit you from contacting your legal team in the future. You still deserve legal representation, especially when going through an interrogation, heading to trial or simply learning more about your charges and defense options moving forward.
Getting arrested can be stressful, so you can see how important it is to know what legal steps to take.