The Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution is a very powerful amendment. Cases have been heard at the Supreme Court level regarding violations by police, law enforcement, and other judicial organizations to individuals. In the Miranda v. Arizona ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that any individual taken into custody for interrogation must be read his or her Miranda rights. The Miranda rights that must be read by law enforcement state: "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you," ("What Are Your Miranda Rights," (n.d.).
Choose a recent case (from 1990 to the present) from the Fifth Amendment in regard to the Miranda rights, and explain how the case was dismissed/rejected because of law enforcement officials or others failed to read the suspect his or her Miranda rights. Further, provide a four- to eight-sentence synopsis of the case, and explain why it has historical precedence if any. Finally, identify whether you believe this case had a positive or negative impact on society.
REPLY TO MY CLASSMATE’S RESPONSE TO THE ABOVE QUESTIONS AND EXPLAIN WHY YOU AGREE? (A MINIMUM OF 100 WORDS)
CLASSMATE’S POST
In Florida v. Powell 559 U.S. 50, Kevin D. Powell was convicted in a Florida state court of being a felon in possession of a firearm and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Mr. Powell appealed arguing that his Miranda warning was invalid because the written form used by the Tampa police at his arrest did not explicitly indicate that he had a right to an attorney at his questioning (Oyez).
Miranda rights have a positive and negative impact in society. It is positive because some individuals may not know their rights, and this is a way to tell them and make it fair. Miranda rule gives the police and prosecutors with clear guidelines as to how pretrial questioning of a suspect must be conducted.
However, it is also negative. If a police officer asks a question forgetting to read them the rights, then it is not used in court. This could get a lot of criminals off the crime they commit. The Constitution, as well as the fifth amendments is a way to protect the innocent, not help the guilty.