Constitutional Law
SCOTUS to Decide Case Expanding Miranda Warning
Posted Jun 22, 2009, 09:28 am CST
By Molly McDonough
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed today to take a case that explores whether police should have to tell suspects that they have a right to have a lawyer present during interrogations.
The high court challenge comes from Kevin Dwayne Powell, who was convicted in Florida of being a felon in possession of a firearm, the Associated Press reports.
When arrested, Powell was Mirandized, with officers telling him he had a right to a lawyer before questioning. But they didn't tell him he could have lawyer during his interrogation.
After Powell was convicted and sentenced to 10 years, he appealed and challenged the standard form warning used by Tampa police as inadequate. The Florida Supreme Court agreed and overturned his conviction.
SCOTUSblog, in a post in April predicting the issue was ripe for review, noted that the issue has caused a division in the lower courts.
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