MUNCIE, Ind. – The recent Supreme Court refusal to strike down its 1966 decision on Miranda warnings should settle the matter for many years, says a Ball State University criminologist.

The ruling is one of the most important criminal law rulings in 34 years, said J. Steven Smith, a criminal justice and criminology professor.

"The Supreme Court made it clear that not only is Miranda a good idea but they also made it clear that no law could be imposed to undo this requirement," said Smith. "The Supreme Court has clarified the Miranda issue for a very long time to come."

The U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed a 1966 decision that ordered the police to inform criminal suspects of their Miranda rights during the arrest.

In a 7-2 vote decision handed down June 26, the nation's highest court refused to strike down the Miranda decision and replace it with a 1968 federal law that allowed suspects' voluntary confessions to be admitted in court even if they had not been advised of their Miranda rights.

"There are millions of guilty pleas entered every year and some of them will be thrown out because of mistakes," Smith said. "The court ruled that the number of mistakes is so small that to take away the Constitutional protections afforded by Miranda would not be wise.

"The plaintiffs in this case were concerned about a small number of unique cases where errors resulted in inadequate or inappropriate justice," he said.

The case that challenged Miranda was Dickerson vs. U.S., involving Charles Dickerson, a Virginia bank robbery suspect who was not read his rights before making a voluntary confession.

The reading of the Miranda rights has become famous to viewers of television police dramas or movies. When arresting someone, police officers start out by saying, "You have the right to remain silent...." Defendants are also advised of rights to an attorney and that any statement they make may be used as evidence against them.

Smith believes that Miranda warnings would have continued no matter what the Supreme Court would have ruled.

"There were several police departments and the FBI who indicated that they were going to continue with the Miranda warnings regardless of the Supreme Court's decision," he said. "Simply put, Miranda works well and many police departments realize that it does."

By Marc Ransford, Communications Manager

(NOTE TO EDITORS:For more information, contact Smith a jsmith2@bsu.eduor (765) 285-5102.)