Can someone please tell me the day when the Miranda case became a cause celeb to constitutional Conservatives?
I have always believed that if you are too stupid to know your rights then you shouldn’t have to have some government flunky explain them to you before you shoot your mouth off about a crime you have just committed.
Miranda was a really stupid decision. But everyone here seems to treat it like the holy grail of conservative constitutional principles.
The overwhelming benefit of the Miranda warning was that it assured that the cops knew your rights and were aware of their obligation to respect them.
It's pretty hard to tell a person in one breath, "You have the right to remain silent" and then in the next breath tell them that if you don't speak you will be charged with a crime.
It's similarly difficult to tell a person one minute that "You have a right to an attorney before any questioning" and then insist that they answer your questions without the benefit of an attorney.
If you don't believe that cops have coerced confessions out of innocent people then you haven't been paying attention.