Law, Justice and Society: Chapter Six

Even though I am not a Criminal Justice Major I am fascinated with it all still. I am a huge fan of going on ride-alongs with different officers and learning hands on experience from what occurs during the hours you are with them. On my very first ride-along I ventured on the officer and I actually ended up taking a younger teen to the detention facility here in Boise. It was awesome to be sitting in the front of the cop car with juvenile in the back seat, but at the same time it was very bizarre. When we first were going to arrest the juvenile with the warrant out for his arrest, I heard the officer I was shadowing tell him his rights. These rights are known as the Miranda Rights. There are four main statements made to any individual placed under arrest and taken into custody. They consist of:
1. Right to remain silent (Fifth Amendment)
2. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law (Fifth Amendment)
3. Right to an attorney (Sixth Amendment)
4. If you can not afford one, one will be provided for you (Sixth Amendment)
When I was witnessing these rights being read to the juvenile the officer stated them slightly different, but they were very much alike. From reviewing this chapter I learned that the rights have to be said when you are going to placed someone under custody and also if the officer wants to question you at all. Every individual has the right to waive these rights at any time. To have a valid waiver it must be voluntary, intelligent and knowingly. When watching criminal cases on television, it is very common that if one happens to be arrested, they usually state that they want an attorney/lawyer. You can find several different interesting facts about Miranda Rights at http://www.expertlaw.com/library/criminal/miranda_rights.html.
Even though it is obligated for an officer to read you your rights if you end up being arrested, there are exceptions to this. If it is in the case of public safety, for instance a victim could be alive somewhere and if time is wasted to read the rights, the person could die; the rights do not need to be said. Another exception is routine questioning at the scene of a crime. It is always a benefit to get as much of the evidence as possible at the time of an accident. Lastly, if someone happens to be asked to take part in a stop and frisk, Miranda rights do not need to be stated. It is okay for an officer to stop and ask your name and their safety they can stop and frisk you.