Miranda v. Arizona (1996)

Ernesto Miranda

Ernesto Miranda was arrested and questioned for kidnap and rape. He was not made aware of his Fifth Amendment right to an attorney or the right to remain silent. After being interrogated, he signed a written confession and was found guilty. The Constitutional argument was that the Fifth Amendment states that no person can be a witness against themselves. Viewing the case, the Supreme Court, in a 5 to 4 decision, decided that Miranda could not be guilty without a doubt because of interrogation methods. Personally, I feel that the system worked correctly in terms of future cases and helped prevent inhumane interrogation methods, but for this case, Miranda should not have been let free from a moral point of view. The important idea to accept is that the Supreme Court is there to uphold the Constitution for all individuals, despite personal views.




An American government teacher breaks down the history of the Miranda case and goes into detail about the Fifth Amendment. The question he presents is whether or not the results of the case hindered or benefited police enforcement.