Narrator: Listen to part of a talk in an American Government class.

Professor: In 1966, the United States Supreme Court handed down a landmark decision that affirmed the constitutional rights guaranteed under the fifth amendment of the Bill of Rights. That case was Miranda v. Arizona. Who remembers what the fifth amendment is? The fifth amendment protects somebody suspected of a crime from incriminating themselves. So if you commit a crime and you don’t have a lawyer with you, you don’t have to talk to police or answer their questions if you don’t want to. And the government must give you a lawyer if you can’t afford one. Miranda v. Arizona involves the case of a man, Miranda, who was arrested for kidnapping and rape. After police arrested him, he made a confession of his guilt without being informed of his constitutional rights. When he went to trial, the only evidence the government’s lawyer gave was Miranda’s confession of guilt. Miranda was convicted and sentenced to jail, but he appealed to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court later overturned the decision of the court and Miranda was freed from jail, but then he was immediately arrested again for a new trial. Under the new trial, the prosecutor used witnesses to convict Miranda, who then served his due time in jail. After that trial in 1966, the Supreme Court mandated that each suspect must be read their Miranda rights before evidence may be obtained from them. The Miranda rights 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 have an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you.”

Narrator: Now get ready to answer the question.

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The Miranda Rights are…special rights given to Americans by their government. Umm…the Miranda Rights say that you don’t have to talk to the police or answer their questions if they arrest you. They say that you have the right to have a lawyer with you, to help you, when the cops ask you questions. The rights also say that if you don’t have enough money to pay for a lawyer…that…the government will give you one. In the case Miranda v. Arizona, a man was accused of a crime and when the cops arrested him, he told the cops everything he did. But, the police did not tell him about his rights and that he could have an attorney. Miranda didn’t know about all this, so the Supreme Court now forces police officers to tell all suspects about their rights.