Miranda Rights and Criminal Justice Lecture Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards defining key legal terms, Supreme Court cases, and procedural concepts related to Miranda rights and law enforcement interrogation.

Miranda v. Arizona

The landmark 1966 Supreme Court case ruling that the Fifth Amendment requires law enforcement to inform suspects in police custody of their right to remain silent and to an attorney before interrogation.

Ernesto Miranda

The individual arrested in 1963 in Phoenix, Arizona, for kidnapping and rape whose confession was used without prior knowledge of his Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights, leading to the landmark Supreme Court ruling.

Due Process

The Fifth Amendment requirement that legal matters be resolved according to established rules and principles, ensuring an individual is treated fairly and protected against government overreach.

Indigent

The legal status determined by a judge indicating that a defendant is financially poor enough to qualify for a court-appointed attorney.

CSI Effect

A phenomenon where public misunderstanding and misinformation about the criminal justice system are spread through popular fictional television shows.

Spontaneous Utterances

Incriminating statements made voluntarily by a suspect prior to being Mirandized, which can legally be used as evidence against them in court.

Chief Justice Earl Warren

The Supreme Court Chief Justice who authored the majority opinion in Miranda v. Arizona, ruling that procedural safeguards are mandatory to protect against the compelled forces of in-custody interrogation.

Conditions for Mandatory Miranda Warnings

The two legal prerequisites that must simultaneously occur for law enforcement to be required to read Miranda rights: being in police custody (under arrest) and being asked incriminating questions.

Vega v. Takao

A 2022 Supreme Court case establishing that an individual cannot sue a law enforcement officer for failing to read them their Miranda rights.

Selective Invocation

A proposed Miranda reform that would allow suspects in custody to pick specific questions to answer while remaining silent on others, without their partial silence being used against them.