Miranda Revisited: The Erosion of a Clear Standard

• Author: Alfredo Garcia
• DOI: 10.1177/104398628700300304
• Published date: 01 August 1987
• Date: 01 August 1987
• Subject Matter: Articles

19

Miranda

Revisited:

The

Erosion

of

a

Clear

Standard

by

Alfredo

Garcia

ABSTRACT

In

Miranda

v.

Arizona,

the

United

States

Supreme

Court

erected

safeguards

designed

to

protect

a

criminal

suspect’s

Fifth

Amendment

privilege

against

self-incrimination.

In

a

series

of

decisions

issued

since

Miranda,

however,

the

Court

has

diluted

the

effect

of

Miranda

by

refusing

to

extend

its

application

and

by

creating

a

"public

safety"

exception

to

the

Miranda

safeguards.

This

article

will

examine

the

decisions

which

have

eroded

Miranda’s

impact

and

will

assess

the

policy

implications

of

the

Court’s

restrictive

interpretation

of

Miranda

.

In

Miranda

v.

Arizona

(1966),

the

United

States

Supreme

Court

enunciated

a

new

standard

for

determining

the

admissibility

of

confessions

in

criminal

proceedings.

Henceforth,

the

Court

held,

a

confession

would

be

deemed

voluntary,

and

thereby

admissible

evidence

against

the

defendant

at

trial,

only

if

certain

procedural

safeguards

are

strictly

observed

by

law

enforcement

personnel

who

interrogate

a

suspect

in

their

custody.

These

safeguards

require

the

authorities,

before

questioning

the

suspect,

to

administer

warnings

designed

to

protect

the

suspect’s

rights

against

self-incrimination.

That

is,

a

police

officer

must

warn

a

suspect

who

is

in

custody

(1)

of

the

right

to

remain

silent

(2)

of

the

right

to

the

assistance

of

counsel

before

and

during

the

course

of

the

interrogation,

and

(3)

that

anything

said

may

be

used

against

him/her

at

trial.

Moreover,

any

waiver

of

Miranda

rights

by

the

suspect

must

be

voluntary,

intelligent

and

knowing.

1

The

fundamental

premise

underlying

Miranda

is

the

protection

of

the

Fifth

Amendment

privilege

of

a

suspect

against

self-

incrimination,

a

privilege

which

is

most

susceptible

of

being

violated

in

the

inherently

coercive

atmosphere

of

custodial

interrogation.

In

a

series

of

decisions

issued

since

Mir n ,