The police will happily ignore some of your basic rights if you don’t know to assert them during an encounter. The law doesn’t always side with those who make mistakes when interacting with the police. Generally speaking, police officers can lie to and manipulate suspects and informants while investigating a criminal incident. The courts typically do not hold officers accountable for lying to or tricking the people they investigate.
The behavior of the police may leave you feeling as though you have no rights when you face criminal charges. Unfortunately, you typically need to know your rights if you want to hold law enforcement officers accountable for violating them. Your Miranda rights are so important that police officers have to inform you about those rights or risk having a difficult time using information obtained while questioning you in criminal court.
What does a violation of your Miranda rights mean for the case against you?
Miranda violations can affect the state’s evidence
The police have to adhere to specific rules with interacting with the public or trying to search private property. Failing to follow certain rules may prevent the police from using the evidence they gathered in a criminal case.
Before questioning an individual who is in state custody, police officers usually need to inform that individual of their right to remain silent and their right to an attorney. If a police officer fails to inform someone of these crucial rights before questioning or interrogation takes place, then any confession that they obtain or other statements that may implicate a suspect may not hold up in criminal court.
The exclusionary rule in criminal court allows the defense attorney to challenge the use of any evidence obtained as a result of the violation of a defendant’s rights or police misconduct. Although the Supreme Court ruled in 2022 to prevent individuals from suing police officers and police departments over Miranda violations, mistakes related to the Miranda Warning can still prevent the use of certain evidence in criminal court.
If you believe that the police officers that arrested or questioned you violated your rights, that violation could influence the best defense strategy in your case. Learning more about rules that apply to criminal prosecution can help those planning a criminal defense strategy when facing charges.
