Competence to Exercise the Right to Stay Silent

Flashcards covering key concepts from the lecture on the competence to exercise the right to stay silent, including legal standards, historical cases, and assessment methods.

Competence

The ability to do something successfully, or the legal authority of a court or other body to deal with a particular matter; having sufficient knowledge, judgment, skill, or strength for a particular duty.

Dusky Standards

Guidelines from Dusky v. United States (1960) for competency, including capacity to understand criminal process, ability to function in that process, consult with counsel, and a reasonable, rational, and factual understanding of proceedings.

Law of Confessions

The legal principles governing the admissibility of confessions, balancing the need for confessions with the requirement for fair attainment and upholding constitutional rights.

Brown v. Mississippi (1936)

A significant case ruling that confessions obtained through physical torture, severe beatings, or other forms of coercion are inadmissible because they deprive defendants of the will to resist police.

Sixth Amendment (1964 Shift)

The constitutional amendment whose right to counsel was questioned in relation to failure to provide counsel during interrogations.

Miranda v. United States (1966)

A landmark case that resulted in the establishment of Miranda Rights, transforming American criminal law by safeguarding against self-incrimination during custodial interrogation.

Miranda Rights

Safeguards stemming from the Fifth Amendment's protection against self-incrimination, intended to protect the innocent and prevent false confessions.

Custody (Miranda)

A condition for Miranda rights to apply, defined as when a reasonable person in the suspect's position would not have felt free to leave.

Interrogation (Miranda)

A condition for Miranda rights to apply, referring to direct questioning or words/actions by police likely to elicit an incriminating response.

Fifth Amendment

The constitutional amendment stating 'No person shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against him or herself,' which forms the basis for Miranda Rights.

Law of Voluntariness

The legal standard that states once individuals are informed of their Miranda rights, their statements are inadmissible unless they were spoken knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily, free from extensive coercion or physical abuse.

Knowing and Intelligent Waiver

A standard requiring that the manner in which Miranda rights were delivered enabled the individual to understand them and make a rational decision to waive them.

Mental Health Professionals (Competency Assessment)

These professionals assess an individual's cognitive functioning, suggestibility, comprehension, and situational factors at the time of rights notification, especially when considering competence to confess or exercise the right to silence.

Reading Comprehension and Miranda

Research indicates individuals need at least a middle school reading comprehension level to fully grasp Miranda warnings.

Instruments for Assessing Understanding and Appreciation of Miranda Rights (IAAUAMR)

An instrument developed by Dr. Thomas Greo in 1981 (later revised) that includes four components to assess a defendant's comprehension of Miranda rights, vocabulary, recognition, and function in interrogation.

Miranda Rights Comprehension Instrument (MRCI)

The updated and revised version (2012) of the IAAUAMR.

Standardized Assessment of Miranda Abilities (SAMA)

An assessment primarily used with adults, comprising five instruments including the Miranda Comprehension Template, Miranda Quiz, Miranda Vocabulary Scale, Miranda Acquiescence Questionnaire, and Miranda Reasoning Measure.

Suggestibility (Assessment Factor)

A factor assessed by evaluators during an interrogation review, considering if the defendant is a youth, has intellectual disabilities, or was under the influence of substances at the time of questioning, as these can impact the voluntariness of statements.