WHAT ARE THE “MIRANDA”
RIGHTS?
In 1966, the U.S. Supreme
Court decided the historic case of Miranda v. Arizona, declaring that a person
taken into custody must be read his or her rights before being questioned. Those
rights are enforceable through the Fifth Amendment right not to make any
self-incriminating statements against himself or herself. As a result of
Miranda, an individual in police custody must be told that he or she has the
right:
1. To remain silent.
2. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court
of law.
3. You have the right to an attorney.
4. If you cannot afford
an attorney, one will be appointed for you.
What if police fail to
advise me of my Miranda Rights?
When questioned, a
suspect in custody without first being read his or her Miranda warnings then any
statement or confession made maybe presumed involuntary and cannot subsequently
be used against the suspect during his or her criminal case involving the
matter. Any evidence discovered as a result of that statement or confession maybe
suppressed unable to be presented during trial.
Suppose
that “John” is walking down the street and Officer X was walking on the other
side of the street at the same time. Because Officer X is an outstanding police
officer and looks over every single warrant notice that the department issues,
he recognizes “John” from a warrant he saw last week (which included the
booking picture of “John”).
Officer X walks over to “John” and asks him his
name. “John” replies and Officer X calls the station to determine if this is in
fact the “John” that has a warrant issued for his arrest. This is the correct
“John,” and the warrant was issued for failure to appear at a hearing for a
current criminal case pending involving “John.” Officer X subsequently arrests
him and takes him back to the police station. He is never read his Miranda
rights, shortly after “John” is booked at the station, Officer X puts “John” in
the room where he is questioned for 30 minutes. Officer X still never read him
his Miranda rights. During the interrogation, which was custodial, “John” made
numerous incriminating statements about his criminal case that was still
pending at the court.
The
incriminating statements made by “John” would likely be suppressed when it came
to trial, which means that the prosecutor working on the case would not be able
to use the statements as evidence against John when prosecuting him for the
crime. However, this would not preclude prosecution altogether, at least with
regards to the facts as noted. Of course, the statements are only likely to be
suppressed, and this is said because many situations, especially when dealing
with the law, are not always black and white.
Circumstances
can influence and/or change the outcome of any case, for better or worse. This
article was supposed to point out that these things, such as Miranda rights,
are key to defending any individual’s Constitutional and Moral rights. It is a
defense lawyer’s job to notice these things, pull them out of the case, and
determine if it will stick. If it does then we take a shot at it, if we advise.
PLEASE
DO NOT RELY ON THESE LEGAL OPINIONS AND OBSERVATIONS WHEN REPRESENTING YOURSELF
IN COURT. THESE ARTICLES ARE NOT MEANT TO COMPENSATE OR EFFECUATE LEGAL
REPRESENTATION. YOU SHOULD AND MUST CONTACT AN ATTORNEY AND DISCUSS WITH HIM OR
HER THE CONSEQUENCES OF ANY AND ALL IDEAS, STATEMENTS, OPINIONS, EXPRESSIONS OR
OTHERWISE STATED ON THIS SITE. WE HOPE TO SPEAK WITH YOU SOON.
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