Understanding Your Miranda Rights
Posted on Mar 16, 2010 6:10pm PDT
Miranda Rights are read before the police arrest someone for their suspected involvement in a crime or before they question a suspect in custody. The U.S. Supreme Court case
Miranda v. Arizona was a historic case that gave suspected criminals certain rights when being questioned by a law enforcement officer. These rights are now referred to as the Miranda Rights.
Miranda Rights were enacted to protect an individual’s Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. The American Bar Association confirms that if a suspect is not read his or her Miranda Rights, or if the police continue to interrogate a suspect after he or she has already stated his or her desire to speak with an attorney first, anything the suspect says will be deemed inadmissible in court, and cannot be used against the suspect in any way.
So What Exactly Are Miranda Rights?
Your Miranda Rights are:
- The right to remain silent. If you give up the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
- The right to an attorney. If you desire an attorney and cannot afford one, an attorney will be obtained for you before police questioning
If you have been arrested for a crime, it’s important to remember that you do not have to talk to the police if you don’t feel comfortable. You do have the right to speak with an attorney first, and you most certainly should. A
criminal defense attorney will advise you as to what you should and should not say so you do not incriminate yourself unintentionally or provide the police with more information than they need to know. If you need help finding an attorney to defend your case, click here to
search for a criminal defense lawyer in your state.
