Given the popularity and demand for this course and trip, as a matter of statistical probability, the day will come where a student on the trip loses his/her focus and makes a mistake that changes his or her life forever …. such examples might include committing a drug offense in China while they are off the clock, getting liquored up and drawn into or starting a fight and arrested at a bar while they off the clock, taking a girl back to their hotel room and she has a boyfriend in wait ready to burst into the room and rob you (and no, fellas, she really did not “like you” to begin with), proselytizing (folks, whether you like or agree with it or not it’s against the law in China), deciding that their conscience “demands” that they unfurl that “Free Taiwan” or “Free Tibet” in the middle of Tiannanmen, etc.

No matter how many pre-departure sessions we have, lengthy syllabi and FAQ documents I distribute, the Application and Assumption of Risk agreement that people fill out and sign, something along the lines of the above will, in time, occur and it will be a nightmare for that person and his/her family.

You might check out these mesmerizing National Geographic shows I watched some time ago. They are excellent and powerful. They present, in visual, inescapable form, what can be challenging to effectively communicate in paper form to young people who may feel they are invincible and powerful under the aphrodisiac that travel and adventure can bring, just how severe the consequences of a poor decision abroad can be.

These segments also highlight how nobody is going to give them special treatment in their favor just because they are an American (in fact, they may come down on you harder if you are an American). This is especially the case in Asia, where crimes involving drugs or violence are big-time no-nos. China, Thailand, Vietnam, etc., are NOT Amsterdam.

Locked Up Abroad: Peru (I can’t find Part II)

Locked Up Abroad: Colombia (Parts I, II, III, IV and V) (Addendum: yesterday these segments were available but this morning when I tested them they were not coming up; if these do not work for you perhaps you can do a Google or YouTube search to find them and if you can’t find them, it’s not the end of the world).

Locked Up Abroad: Venezuela (perhaps the best one but I could not find it on YouTube)

If you are that poor chap who makes a similar bad choice like the people featured in the above segments, the ONLY response you should expect from me and Cal Poly, and as laid out in the trip and course application and materials, is that I will notify the US Embassy and/or Consulate that you are in trouble and/or sitting in a local jail (or that we cannot find you), and that they need to try and find you and/or pay you a visit.

The rest of us will need to move on with the trip and leave you behind. Nobody will wait for you. You will be on your own.

The US State Department issued a Fact Sheet on the 2008 Olympics that notes:

All visitors should be aware that they have no reasonable expectation of privacy in public or private locations. All hotel rooms and offices are considered to be subject to on-site or remote technical monitoring at all times. Hotel rooms, residences and offices may be accessed at any time without the occupant’s consent or knowledge. Many hotels and apartment buildings may be of substandard construction, lack emergency exits, fire suppression systems, carbon monoxide monitors and standard security equipment (locks, alarms, and personnel). Americans traveling abroad should be reminded to review fire evacuation procedures for hotels, apartments or offices …. The Department of State or the U.S. Embassy and Consulates General cannot have an American released from prison (emphasis added).

Dan Harris of the China Law Blog said it best:

Though I am sure most experienced travelers understand that US (or German or French or whatever) law typically ends at the border when it comes to criminal violations, you would be surprised at how many travelers either do not know this or think that their embassy or consulate will be there to bail them out no matter what. Now before you laugh, please realize many US companies believe their US trademark or patent registrations extend to China, so it is certainly not that large a legal leap for people to believe US criminal law extends to them wherever they may go.

My firm has assisted on a number of criminal cases inside China for American (and European) defendants and, nearly without exception, we are told (usually by both the defendant and his family) that the US Embassy is not doing enough to get the defendant freed from the Chinese jail. When we explain that the US government will not usually employ its political capital on this or that drug or fraud case, our clients seem downright surprised.

So … let me make it perfectly clear. If you get arrested in China, the role of the US government (be it the consulate the embassy, or whatever), will almost certainly be limited to helping you find a lawyer, helping you contact your family for assistance, and maybe helping you with the logistics of having your family or friends get food or magazines into you at the jail.

I am NOT expressing an opinion as to how anyone should act during the Olympics, but it certainly does not hurt to know the potential repercussions.

Lawyers. People hate us … until they need us.

Be smart. Be safe. Come home to your warm bed, on schedule, with the rest of us.