NCJ Number
158462
Date Published
1996
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This chapter discusses how the U.S. Supreme Court interpretations of the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments to the Constitution have shaped the substance of criminal law and criminal procedures, and how unresolved issues have the potential to further change the criminal justice system.
Abstract
The first section of the article discusses the state of the law, and specifically addresses the Supreme Court's role in protecting freedom of speech and freedom of religion; in upholding the exclusionary rule and dealing with other intrusions on personal privacy such as wiretapping; in protecting citizens' rights against self-incrimination through the Miranda decision, as well as protecting against double jeopardy; in maintaining the right to counsel; and in ruling on issues of bail, cruel and unusual punishment, and the death penalty. The author speculates that, rather than being overturned in the future, the Court's major decisions are more likely to be modified in ways that will reflect changes in the broader society. 1 reference