Read Your Miranda Rights for a DUI?Many people who have been arrested for driving under the influence (DUI) will want to know whether their DUI case will be impacted if the police officer failed to read you your Miranda Rights. However, contrary to popular perception, police do have to read you your Miranda Rights after an arrest. Police must read a Miranda warning if someone has been arrested and is being interrogated.
This means that police do not have to read you your Miranda Rights in a DUI case if:
If you believe that the police have acted unlawfully on your DUI case, contact The Ticket Lawyers in Florida today. A criminal defense attorney at our law firm could help you if you were interrogated at your DUI arrest and not read your Miranda Rights by the police. If you have any questions or think you may have a case following your DUI arrest, contact us today. Our law firm has a wealth of knowledge and experience in dealing with Florida DUI cases. Call us at 855-323-8488.
Miranda Rights take their name from the historic 1966 Supreme Court case of Miranda v. Arizona, declaring that whenever a person is taken into police custody, they must be told their Fifth Amendment right before the police interrogate them. These Miranda Rights apply in all criminal cases, including cases of DUI.
Following the 1966 case, it has been held that following a DUI arrest, a person must be advised of their constitutional rights whenever the following conditions are met:
The police do not need to give a Miranda warning if the suspect is not being interrogated or is free to leave.
For a Miranda warning to be valid, no specific words must be read. As long as the driver’s rights following a DUI arrest are clearly stated, any words can be used by the police.
Following a DUI arrest, the police will usually issue a Miranda warning that reads as follows:
After the police have read an arrestee their Miranda Rights following their DUI arrest, they will usually ask whether the driver wishes to waive these rights and speak to them.
We would like to note that if you are a driver who has been arrested for DUI, you do not have to waive these rights and speak to the police.
In the context of a DUI investigation in Florida, your Miranda Rights and other constitutional rights mean that you can do the following:
If a police officer questions or begins interrogating a suspect in custody before reading them their Miranda rights, any confession or statement made by the suspect will be presumed to be involuntary. This is crucial because any evidence held against you that was discovered as a result of that confession or statement cannot be used in a criminal case and will also likely be thrown out.
If you have been arrested and wish to invoke your Miranda Rights, there are no special words that you are required to state. However, what you do say must be stated affirmatively and stated. For example, you may wish to state “I am invoking my right to remain silent” or “I want to speak to a lawyer.” You must make it clear that you wish to invoke your Miranda rights as staying silent is simply not enough.
If you remain silent without invoking your Miranda Rights, your refusal to answer police questions can be seen as evidence of guilt.
As soon as you invoke your Miranda Rights, your choice to remain silent cannot be used against you. Your choice to revoke your Miranda Rights is at the heart of the Fifth Amendment’s protection against self-incrimination.
After the police read a Miranda warning to a suspect following an arrest, they will usually ask whether the suspect understands each right. The officer should then ask if the suspect wishes to speak to them. It is this that is known as the Miranda waiver.
Just like the Miranda warning itself, there are no specific words that must be read. Sometimes, the police will wait until they have read the Miranda warning in full before they issue the waiver. They will then say something along the lines of “Having these rights in mind, do you wish to talk to us now?” or “Do you understand all of these rights that I have explained to you?”
Other officers will simply ask a suspect whether they understand after stating each individual right and then, at the end, ask whether the driver wishes to speak to them.
It is at this exact point that the suspect driver must clearly and affirmatively invoke their right to remain silent.
If you have been arrested, you do not have to exercise all of your Miranda Rights at once. For example, you can exercise your right to stay silent and ask for an attorney later on.
It is important that you make it clear and affirmatively state, though whenever you wish to exercise your rights. You must clearly communicate with the police and make it obvious that you are invoking your rights.
It is important to note that asking for an attorney is another way of invoking your right to stay silent. As soon as you ask for a lawyer, the police must stop questioning you.
The Fifth Amendment in the United States Constitution provides you the right to stay silent and not incriminate yourself during your DUI arrest and the booking process. This right applies to anyone accused of a crime in Florida.
The Ticket Lawyers advise that you stay silent. If you choose to stay silent, that cannot be held against you in court.
You should provide the police identification information, such as your name and address. You should also show them your driving license. You do not need to answer their questions regarding how much you have had to drink or why you were arrested. If you are read your rights by the police and the make a statement, anything you say can be seen as a confession and held against you as evidence.
You can be arrested if the police arrest you and read you your Miranda Rights and choose to stay silent. Although, if the police have a probable cause to arrest you, then regardless of whether you choose to invoke your right to stay silent or not, you will more than likely be arrested.
In a lot of cases, though, the police do not have a probable cause to arrest someone until they start talking. The Ticket Lawyers always advise that you invoke your right to stay silent even if it possible that you could be arrested after doing so.
The Ticket Lawyers advise that if you are approached by the police that you stay silent but cooperate.
The manner of speech that you use towards the police will be observed. The police may be able to predict how much alcohol or how many drugs are in your system by observing your manner of speech.
When the police ask you to exit your vehicle, they will observe your actions. They will note how quickly you choose to exit the vehicle, whether you lose your balance, whether you drop anything etc.
Your actions and manner of speech can be observed as evidence of your impairment to the police. We strongly recommend that you cooperate with the police and do what they ask in an attempt to prove your innocence. Your cooperation can also help your defense lawyer later on when fighting your case. It will be easier for your lawyer to prove your innocence in your case.
This does not mean that you should answer their questions, though, you have the right to stay silent.
If you think that the police have acted unlawfully in your case and interrogated you without having read to you your Miranda Rights, you should contact The Law Place today. One of our skilled defense lawyers may be able to help you.
We have a wealth of knowledge and experience in dealing with DUI cases, and we can help you fight for the justice that you may be entitled to. Call us today for some legal advice and a chance to talk to one of our defense lawyers at 855-323-8488.
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