Vol. 75/No. 15      April 18, 2011

Under the 1966 Supreme Court Miranda decision, cops are required to inform those in their custody of their right to remain silent and to have an attorney present during interrogation. Statements made to the police before informing the accused of these rights are inadmissible in court.

An Oct. 21, 2010, FBI memorandum, which first appeared in the Wall Street Journal March 24, asserts that the “magnitude and complexity” of terrorist threats justifies “a significantly more extensive public interrogation without Miranda warnings.”

The document instructs FBI agents to “ask any and all questions” that they deem related to “safety of the public or the arresting agents” without advising detained individuals of their Miranda rights. After they finish with their initial interrogation, agents may then inform suspects of their rights but should then “seek a waiver of those rights before any further interrogation occurs,” the document states.

In May 2010, Attorney General Eric Holder offered to work with Congress to codify into law a lengthier questioning period of “terror” suspects before having to issue the Miranda warning. While no legislation was passed, FBI director Robert Mueller testified before Congress in July of that year that the Justice Department had been carrying it out anyway.  
 
 
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