Law Day

Justice Earl Warren via Wikipedia

2016 marks the 50th anniversary of one of our most famous court cases, Miranda v. Arizona. In recognition of this historic case, the ABA has announced that the theme for this years Law Day is "Miranda: More than Words."

The opinion of the Supreme Court was delivered by Chief Justice Earl Warren and ruled that police had violated Ernesto Miranda's 5th and 6th Amendment rights. Referencing the existing practices of the FBI and the Uniform Code of Military Justice which required notifying a suspect of their right to remain silent, and a right to counsel, the Court stated, "As with the warnings of the right to remain silent and of the general right to counsel, only by effective and express explanation to the indigent of this right can there be assurance that he was truly in a position to exercise it."

The Miranda Warning has become a fixture in law enforcement and popular culture since the court decision was made in June, 1966. The ABA is encouraging us to reflect on not just the words of the warning itself, but the meaning of the words and the rights we safeguard and preserve through them.

Also, you can listen to the original oral arguments here, courtesy of Oyez. It's pretty awesome.