Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: Within the due process, miranda is a priority when?

I will try and decipher your question.

Normally a Miranda warning is given before a custodial interrogation to make sure the arrestee knows he or she has the right not to talk to the officers. It has nothing to do with whether there is probable cause to make an arrest. It can be skipped entirely if the officer is not going to question the arrestee. For example, if an officer is going to make a DUI arrest, it might not matter what the arrestee does or doesn't say to the police or whether or not he or she confesses.

If you tried just giving the facts instead of a long-winded hypothetical question, you might get a better answer.

Re: Within the due process, miranda is a priority when?

Miranda warnings are never required in order to make a valid arrest.

However, if the police, prosecutor, etc. question the suspect while he is in custody (note that "in custody" has a specific legal meaning and is not the same as "under arrest"), then the suspect must first be advised of his Miranda rights. If he is not so advised, his answers -- and any other information the authorities later obtain as a result of his answers -- will normally not be admissible against him at trial.

There are exceptions to this rule. Also, whether someone is "in custody" for these purposes depends upon the facts and will not always be easy to determine.

Re: Within the due process, miranda is a priority when?

I lost you somewhere in the fog of that question and didn't have any fog-lights. Suffice to say, Miranda warnings are generally required when you have 2 things:1)custody and 2) interrogation. Custody occurs when a reasonable would believe he/she is not free to leave and 2) interrogation is any questions posed to illicit a response to the focus of law enforcement's interrogation. That's the best general answer I can give to a general scenario. David wallin @ www.wallinlaw.com

Re: Within the due process, miranda is a priority when?

You seem to be a bit confused. Miranda rights are triggered when two factors coincide. First a person must be in custody - meaning not free to leave. Second the officer must be questioning the person about the suspected offense. Miranda rights are given only if a person is taken into custody and questioned about the underlying offense. If a person is merely arrested (taken into custody) and not questioned then reading them their Miranda rights isn't necessary.