James Joseph Duane (born July 30, 1959)[1] is an American law professor at the Regent University School of Law, former criminal defense attorney, and Fifth Amendment expert. Duane has received considerable online attention for his lecture "Don't Talk to the Police", in which he advises citizens to avoid incriminating themselves by speaking to law enforcement officers.
James Duane | |
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Born | James Joseph Duane July 30, 1959 Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
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Duane was born in Buffalo, New York,[1] and is a descendant of the Revolutionary-era leader Judge James Duane.[2] He received his AB magna cum laude from Harvard College in 1981 and his JD cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1984. Duane was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa honor society while at Harvard.[3]
In 2008, Duane gave a lecture at Regent University alongside Virginia Beach Police Department officer George Bruch, in which they explain in practical terms why citizens should never talk to police under any circumstances.[4]
Using former Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson as support of his "Don't Talk to the Police" advice, Duane says (among other things) that:
A video of Duane's lecture posted on YouTube by Regent University has been viewed over 18 million times by 2023, and has been called a "YouTube sensation" by The Independent.[7] In 2016, Duane clarified that his advice does not extend to routine traffic stops.[8] The lecture continues to be popular on YouTube and received support from security expert Bruce Schneier.[9]
Duane has also written about his views that there are bizarre legislative drafting errors in the Virginia Statute on Privileged Marital Communications[10] as well as issues involving the introduction of hearsay evidence at trial (known as "bootstrapping").[11] Duane, a member of the advisory board of the Fully Informed Jury Association,[12] has also written in defense of jury nullification.[13]
JAMES JOSEPH DUANE, (Professor), born Buffalo, New York, July 30, 1959; admitted to bar, 1985, New York.
He was born near Buffalo, New York, and is a descendant of Judge James Duane of New York, the first judge appointed to the newly-created federal judiciary by President George Washington in 1789.