Miranda Deconstitutionalized: When the Self-Incrimination Clause and the Civil Rights Act Collide

Abstract:     
This paper documents the manner in which current developments in Fifth Amendment jurisprudence encourage law enforcement officials to violate the standards of conduct imposed upon them by the Miranda decision, and the manner in which current developments in civil rights jurisprudence make impossible a successful action based upon a violation of either Miranda or the privilege against compelled self-incrimination. Together, the intersection of these two areas of law encourage a rational police officer to ignore the dictates of Miranda.

This and similar problems can be resolved only if the Supreme Court reconstitutionalizes Miranda or begins to form a coherent theory recognizing prophylactic rules as part of a concept of "constitutional common law." Such a theory would encourage a dialogue with the executive and legislative branches of government to find modern and workable solutions to protect constitutional criminal procedure guarantees."

Number of Pages in PDF File: 37

Keywords: miranda, constitutional law, self-incrimination

Accepted Paper Series