Go to next caseMiranda is one of the best-known cases in the history of the Supreme Court. It represents the Court's determination to treat even the lowliest of criminals with the same dignity and respect as the wealthiest celebrity. Ernesto Miranda was arrested in Phoenix and taken directly to the police station. A victim of rape and kidnapping identified him as the perpetrator. The police then brought Miranda into the interrogation room, questioned him for two hours, and received a signed confession. The police had never advised Miranda of his right to an attorney or the fact that anything he said could be used against him in a court of law. Although Miranda's treatment was actually quite mild, compared to some of the other methods used at the time, the Supreme Court still found in favor of him, holding that "the defendant's confession was inadmissible because he was not in any way [informed] of his right to council nor was his privilege against self-incrimination effectively protected in any other manner."
* The content on this page and the pages to which it is linked are based on the information from Anatomy of a Murder: A Trip Through Our Nation's Legal Justice System.
