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Miranda Rights
Miranda: Your
Right to Remain Silent.
You know that you are about
to be taken into police custody when a cop say’s
"Read him his rights." , this means
you are about to be informed of your right to remain silent prior to being
questioned. The “Miranda Rights” OK , but
what are these rights, and what did "Miranda" do to get them for you?
What the Miranda Rights Say. (Rights of Silence)
The exact wording of the
"Miranda Rights" statement is not specified in the Supreme Court's
historic decision. Instead, law enforcement agencies have created a basic set
of simple statements that can be read to accused persons prior to any
questioning.
Here are paraphrased
examples of the basic "Miranda Rights" statements, along with related
excerpts from the Supreme Court's decision.
1. You have the right to remain silent.
The
Court: "At the
outset, if a person in custody is to be subjected to interrogation, he must
first be informed in clear and unequivocal terms that he has the right to
remain silent."
2.
Anything you say can be used against you in a court of law.
The Court: "The warning of the right to
remain silent must be accompanied by the explanation that anything said can and
will be used against the individual in court."
3.
You have the right to have an attorney present now and during any future questioning.
The Court: "...the right to have counsel
present at the interrogation is indispensable to the protection of the Fifth
Amendment privilege under the system we delineate today. ... [Accordingly] we
hold that an individual held for interrogation must be clearly informed that he
has the right to consult with a lawyer and to have the lawyer with him during
interrogation under the system for protecting the privilege we delineate
today."
4.
If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you free of charge
if you wish.
The Court: "In order fully to apprise a
person interrogated of the extent of his rights under this system then, it is
necessary to warn him not only that he has the right to consult with an
attorney, but also that if he is indigent a lawyer will be appointed to
represent him. Without this additional warning, the admonition of the right to
consult with counsel would often be understood as meaning only that he can
consult with a lawyer if he has one or has the funds to obtain one.
The Court continues by declaring what the police must do
if the person being interrogated indicates that he or she does want a
lawyer...
"If the individual
states that he wants an attorney, the interrogation must cease until an
attorney is present. At that time, the individual must have an opportunity to
confer with the attorney and to have him present during any subsequent
questioning. If the individual cannot obtain an attorney and he indicates that
he wants one before speaking to police, they must respect his decision to
remain silent."
Can
you be arrested without being read your Miranda
Rights? Yes!
The Miranda rights do not protect you from being
arrested, only from incriminating yourself during questioning. All police need
to legally arrest a person is "probable cause" -- an adequate reason
based on facts and events to believe the person has committed a crime. Police
are required to "Read him his (Miranda) rights," only before
interrogating a suspect. While failure to do so may cause any subsequent statements
to be thrown out of court, the arrest may still be legal and valid.
Also without reading the Miranda rights, police are allowed
to ask routine questions like name, address, date of birth, and Social Security
number necessary to establishing a person's identity. Police can also
administer alcohol and drug tests without warning, but persons being tested may
refuse to answer questions during the tests.
How We Got Our Miranda Rights.
The
"Miranda rights," named after a
The
case of Ernesto Miranda began on
Police
also suspected him of kidnapping, raping and robbing several women from the
During
his trial, Miranda’s lawyers argued that although Miranda signed a confession
saying he was aware of his legal rights, he was not informed of his right to
have an attorney present.
On June 13,
1966, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in deciding the case of MIRANDA v. ARIZONA, 384 U.S. 436
(1966), reversing the Arizona Court's decision, that Mr. Miranda's rights had been violated because he had not
been advised of his right to remain silent. Miranda won a new trial but was
convicted again. The story of Ernesto Miranda has a most ironic ending
as you'll see below.
An Ironic Ending for Ernesto Miranda
Ernesto Miranda was given a
second trial at which his confession was not presented. Based on the evidence,
Miranda was again convicted of kidnapping and rape. He was paroled from prison
in 1972 having served 11 years.
In 1976, Ernesto Miranda,
age 34, was stabbed to death in a fight. Police arrested a suspect who, after
choosing to exercise his Miranda rights of silence, was released due to lack of
any other physical evidence or witness’s.