What To Say When FBI Comes To Your Door

What To Say When FBI Comes To Your Door

Welcome to Spodek Law Group. Our goal is answering the question you’re actually asking – not the surface question, but the real one underneath it. If you’re searching for “what to say when FBI comes to your door,” you’re looking for magic words. Words that will help you. Words that will make the situation better.

Here’s the truth that every federal defense attorney knows: there are no magic words that help you. There’s only one sentence that ends the encounter before it destroys you. Everything else – every explanation, every clarification, every attempt to “just clear this up” – becomes material in a document you never approved, written by people whose job is to build a case against you.

The question “what should I say to the FBI” is the wrong question. The right question is: what’s the one thing I can say that stops this before it becomes a permanent record? Because that’s what an FBI doorstep conversation actually is. It’s not a conversation. It’s the creation of a document. And once that document exists, you can never take it back.

You’re Not Having A Conversation – You’re Creating A Document

Most people think an FBI interview is a conversation. Two people talking. Questions and answers. Something that happens and then ends. Thats not whats happening.

The FBI dosent record interviews. No audio. No video. No transcript. Instead, two agents sit across from you taking notes. Then, hours later – sometimes days later – they return to their office and write a summary of what you said. This summary is called an FD-302. Its written in there words. Based on there interpretation. From there memory of what you told them.

Heres the part that destroys people. You said: “I think it might have been March.” The FD-302 says: “Subject stated the meeting occurred in March.” Your uncertainty – your honest acknowledgment that you werent sure – becomes a definitive statement. If there records show April, you now have a false statement charge. Not becuase you lied. Becuase the document they created from your words says something you didnt actually say.

You dont get to review the FD-302 before its finalized. You dont get to correct errors. You dont get to add context. The first time you see this document is months or years later, at trial, when the government reads it aloud as evidence against you.

Think about what that means. The “conversation” you thought you were having was actualy the creation of a permanent record – written without your input, finalized without your approval, and used against you forever. You werent talking to agents. You were dictating a document to people who get to decide what you said.

And heres the other thing. A former FBI Academy instructor described the FD-302 process this way: the original interview notes contain “gaps, inaccuracies, mistakes, typos, and numerous other issues.” Turning those notes into a coherent summary is “inherently subjective and error-prone.” The system isnt designed to accurately capture what you said. Its designed to create a document prosecutors can use.

Consider the mechanics of what happens after you leave. Two agents sat with you. One asked questions, one took notes. Now there back at the office. There comparing notes. There trying to remember exactly what you said and in what order. There translating there handwriting into typed sentences. There making editorial decisions about what mattered and what didnt. There turning a messy, human conversation into a clean, official-looking document.

In that process, nuance dies. Your hesitation becomes certainty. Your question becomes a statement. Your “I’m not sure but I think” becomes “Subject stated.” And you have no idea any of this is happening. You went home thinking the conversation was over. The conversation is just beginning – in a document your never going to see until its used against you.

Why A Federal Judge Refused An FBI Interview

Heres something that should tell you everything you need to know about the FD-302 process.

A federal judge – someone who presides over FBI cases, who understands the system better then almost anyone – once refused to be interviewed by FBI agents. His condition? He wanted to be allowed to review there report and make corrections before it was finalized.

Read that again. A federal judge dosent trust the FBI interview process enough to participate in it without safeguards. If someone who has spent there career in federal courtrooms wont trust this system, why would you?

Edwin O. Guthman served as press secretary to Attorney General Robert Kennedy. He spent years inside the Department of Justice at the highest levels. He described FBI interview memos this way: “Any relation between the memo and what was said in the conversation may be purely coincidental.”

Thats not a defense attorney being cynical. Thats someone who worked inside the system describing how it actualy operates.

Consider the Michael Flynn case. Whatever you think about the politics, the FD-302 documentation is instructive. The final version of the FD-302 from Flynns interview took 3.5 months to file. Three and a half months between the conversation and the official record of the conversation. How accurately do you remember a conversation from three months ago? How many nuances have faded? How many exact words have you forgotten?

Now imagine that three-month-old memory becoming the definitive legal record of what you said – a record you never saw, never approved, and cant correct.

The FD-302 system is designed so that agents control the narrative. You provide the raw material. They decide what it means.

6am Isn’t Random – They Have A Script, You Don’t

Heres something nobody tells you about FBI home visits. The timing isnt random. When agents knock at 6am, thats not becuase they happened to be in the neighborhood early. Its tactical.

At 6am, your groggy. Your off-balance. Your not thinking clearly. Maybe you havent had coffee. Maybe you were in bed. Maybe your still half-asleep when you open the door to find two people in suits asking if you have “just a few minutes” to answer some questions.

They have a script. You dont.

Before they knocked on your door, the FBI had been investigating for months. Theyve subpoenaed documents. Theyve talked to witnesses. Theyve built a timeline. And most importantly – theyve prepared specific questions, often with the help of a prosecutor who isnt even present. Those questions are designed to get you to confirm or contradict information they already have.

Your improvising. There executing.

Think about the asymmetry. They do this every single day. Youve never experienced it. They have a prepared script of questions designed by trained investigators. Your answering cold, probably scared, definitely confused about whats happening. They know exactly what there looking for. You dont even know why there at your door.

And every word you say – every half-formed answer, every confused response, every statement you make while still trying to figure out whats going on – becomes material for an FD-302. Written later. In there words. Based on there interpretation of your groggy, improvised answers.

The 6am timing is designed to maximize this asymmetry. Its designed to catch you at your worst while there at there best. And the document they create from that encounter becomes the permanent record.

Heres another thing. The FBI can legally lie to you during this encounter. They can claim they have evidence they dont have. They can say witnesses told them things that were never said. They can imply your just a witness when your actualy a target. All of this is legal. But if you lie to them – even accidentally, even becuase your half-asleep and confused at 6am – thats a federal crime. Up to five years in prison under 18 USC 1001.

The rules are completly one-sided.

And theres another layer to this asymmetry. The agents know what questions there going to ask becuase a prosecutor helped write them. They know what answers they expect. They know what documents they already have that your answers will be compared against. Every question is designed to get you to confirm or contradict something – and you have no idea what that something is.

Your walking into an ambush. But it dosent feel like an ambush becuase the agents are friendly. There trained to be friendly. The friendly demeanor isnt personality – its technique. Studies show that “rapport-based” interrogation methods extract more information then aggressive tactics. The smile, the casual tone, the “this will only take a few minutes” – all of it is calibrated to make you talk. And the more you talk, the more material they have for the FD-302.

Martha Stewart Went To Prison For Words, Not Trades

Let me give you a specific example of how this destroys people. Martha Stewart built a media empire worth hundreds of millions of dollars. She went to federal prison – not for insider trading, but for lying to investigators about trades she was eventually acquitted of making illegally.

Think about that. The underlying conduct – the insider trading allegation – was never proven. She was acquitted on those charges. But she went to prison anyway. Becuase the talk became the crime. The words she said during interviews – words she probably thought were helping her clear things up – became the basis for federal charges.

At Spodek Law Group, weve seen this pattern repeatedly. Client thinks talking will help. Client tries to explain. Client leaves the interview thinking it went fine. Months later, theres an indictment – not for whatever they were investigating, but for statements the client made during interviews.

The interview isnt were they gather evidence for another crime. The interview IS the crime.

This is why every federal defense attorney gives the same advice: dont talk. Not becuase your guilty. Becuase the system is designed to create crimes out of conversations. Becuase your words get filtered through agent interpretation into an FD-302 you never approved. Becuase even truth becomes dangerous when it has to pass through a documentation process you dont control.

Martha Stewart probably told the truth as she understood it. Dosent matter. Her words, as interpreted and documented by agents, contradicted evidence they had. Thats all it takes. Five years in prison.

Michael Flynn pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI – the crime wasnt what he did, it was what he said about what he did. George Papadopoulos. Same pattern. The list goes on. Famous people with expensive lawyers still got caught in this trap. The interview became the indictment.

And heres the uncomfortable truth. These people were all trying to help themselves. They thought talking was the smart move. They thought explaining would clear things up. They were wrong. Talking didnt help. Talking created the very charges they were trying to avoid.

The federal conviction rate is above 90%. By the time prosecutors bring charges, theyve already built the case. And often, the foundation of that case is the FD-302 – the document that contains “your” statements, written in there words, based on there interpretation of what you said.

The One Sentence That Ends The Encounter

So what DO you say when FBI agents show up at your door?

Theres only one sentence that actually helps you. Every other sentence – no matter how careful, how truthful, how well-intentioned – becomes material for an FD-302. But this sentence ends the encounter before it becomes a document:

“I invoke my right to remain silent and my right to an attorney. I will not answer questions.”

Thats it. Those words – said clearly and then followed by actual silence – end the creation of the document. They stop the process before it begins. They prevent the FD-302 from having any content except “Subject invoked rights and declined to answer.”

Heres another way to say it if they show up at your door:

“I’m not comfortable answering questions without speaking to an attorney first. Here’s my lawyer’s information. Please direct any questions to them.”

And if you dont have a lawyer yet:

“I’m invoking my Fifth Amendment rights. I won’t be answering questions. May I have your card so my attorney can contact you?”

The key is saying something and then stopping. The danger is saying just a little. “I’ll just explain one thing.” “Let me just clarify.” “I just want you to know…” Every one of those sentences creates material. Every one of those answers becomes part of the document.

Heres the paradox. The more you try to help yourself, the more material you give them. The more you explain, the more chances for your words to be interpreted in ways you didnt intend. The more you talk, the more exposure you create.

The way to help yourself is to say almost nothing. Just the invocation. Then silence.

Todd Spodek at Spodek Law Group handles federal investigations across the country. Call 212-300-5196 before you say a single word beyond the invocation.

What Happens After You Say Those Words

When you invoke your rights correctly, heres what happens: nothing.

No arrest. No warrant. No penalty. The FBI might be frustrated. They might come back later. They might leave a business card. But frustration isnt a crime. Coming back later gives you time to get a lawyer.

Compare that to what happens if you talk.

You talk. Agents take notes. Hours or days later, they write an FD-302 summarizing what you said – in there words, based on there memory. That document becomes permanent evidence. If anything you said contradicts anything they have – a date, a name, a detail you misremembered from years ago – you now have potential 18 USC 1001 exposure. The “helpful” conversation you thought you were having created a federal criminal liability you didnt know existed.

Theres no good outcome from talking. Theres only the possibility of bad outcomes. But invoking and staying silent? Zero downside. The only consequence is that you protected yourself.

At Spodek Law Group, we handle the aftermath of FBI visits every day. An attorney does what you cant do alone. They contact the FBI on your behalf. They find out what the investigation is about. They determine whether your a witness, a subject, or a target – information the agents at your door definately wont tell you. They ensure that if any conversation happens, it happens with protections in place.

Heres what many people dont realize. The same interview that could create 18 USC 1001 exposure becomes safe when conducted through counsel. Your attorney speaks. You stay quiet. Nothing you say can be used against you becuase you didnt say anything. The FD-302 problem disappears becuase theres no content to misinterpret.

Theres another thing attorneys can do that you cant. When agents interview you directly, your words get summarized in an FD-302 that you never see, written by someone whose job is to build a case against you. But when your attorney speaks on your behalf, the dynamic changes completly. Your attorney takes notes. Your attorney creates an independent record. If the FD-302 later says something you didnt say, your attorneys notes contradict it.

Attorneys also know how to engage without creating exposure. They can ask questions that you cant ask. They can find out what the investigation is about without making statements that could be used against you. They can determine your status – witness, subject, or target – and advise you accordingly. The same encounter that destroys people becomes manageable with proper representation.

Consider whats at stake. A federal false statements conviction under 18 USC 1001 carries up to five years in prison. Thats not a theoretical number. Thats what happens to people who talked when they shouldnt have. People who thought they were being helpful. People who believed the conversation was just a conversation.

The question “what to say when FBI comes to your door” has a simple answer. Say the invocation sentence. Then say nothing else. Get a lawyers card in their hands. And understand that what felt like a conversation was actualy the creation of a document – a document you just prevented from ever existing.

Every element of the FBI doorstep encounter is designed to extract words from you – words that will become their document, their interpretation, their evidence. The early morning timing. The friendly demeanor. The “just a few questions” framing. All of it is engineered to get you talking before you understand what talking actually means.

Now you understand. The words you say become a document you never approved. The conversation you think your having is actualy evidence creation. And the only “right thing to say” isnt an explanation or a clarification or a helpful answer – its the one sentence that ends the encounter before it becomes permanent.

Your words are permanent. Your silence is too. Choose the one that cant be used against you.