Miranda rights in school....

[Matt1212]

I am a high school student in Michigan. Earlier this week I was removed from class to be questioned concerning a criminal case. Upon arriving at the school police officer's office, the door was shut and a detective said "I am not placing you under arrest" multiple times and proceeded with questioning me without telling me that I didn't have to talk to them. My mother was present, but she was also not told of any rights. I was under the impression that, because I got called down to the office, I felt that leaving would be like walking out of the principal's office and that I would face punishment. I gave up potentially incriminating information, but later realized that this may have been a violation of my rights.
"I am not placing you under arrest" is hardly similar to the Supreme Court's ruling in Miranda v. Arizona that "The person in custody must, prior to interrogation, be clearly informed that he has the right to remain silent, and that anything he says will be used against him in court; he must be clearly informed that he has the right to consult with an attorney and to have that attorney present during interrogation, and that, if he is indigent, an attorney will be provided at no cost to represent him." While by saying that I was not under arrest may mean that I was not "in custody", I felt like I was in the school's custody, unable to leave during questioning.

Could I pursue this as potential breach of rights to have anything I said thrown out or am I out of luck?

 

[seniorjudge]

Q: Could I pursue this as potential breach of rights to have anything I said thrown out or am I out of luck?

A: If you are charged with a crime and any of the stuff you told is used against you, then have your lawyer file a motion to quash.

 

[Zigner]

And, hope that it's a GOOD lawyer, since you are going to have a very very difficult time proving you were "in custody"

 

[xylene]

And, hope that it's a GOOD lawyer, since you are going to have a very very difficult time proving you were "in custody"

Yeah you are going to have to prove that a reasonable person would believe that he was not free to leave.

Might be hard, depends on what weight the court will place on

The officers statement (which does NOT mean you were not in custody)

The shut door

The presence of a parent (cuts both ways)

The prospect of sanction for non-compliance. (and does the school represent legal authority)

 

[JD440]

The real answer

I will give you a simple answer to a simple question. The Miranda Rights only have to be recited when you are arrested. The detective told you that you were not under arrest. If you re-read the case Miranda V. Arizona you'll notice he was arrested.

 

[gawm]

The police don't have the responsibility of informing you of your rights.

 

[Bretagne]

JD440: I will give you a simple answer to a simple question. The Miranda Rights only have to be recited when you are arrested. The detective told you that you were not under arrest. If you re-read the case Miranda V. Arizona you'll notice he was arrested.

You are very, very wrong. There is no simple answer to a Miranda issue. There are very few simple Miranda questions.

Miranda applies when you are in custody and being questioned in a manner likely to elicit incriminating responses. Therefore the Miranda analysis can be quite complicated depending on your individualzed facts.

The question of whether or not one is in custody typically depends on whether a reasonable person in the same situation would feel free to leave. It's a very subjective analysis.

Also, different jurisdictions apply Miranda more stringently than the federal court does.

Finally, there is much recent caselaw applicible to this particular case (juvenile being questioned in school) that will affect the ultimate Miranda analysis conducted by the Judge.

 

[The Occultist]

If OP was uncertain if he was free to leave, he could have asked...

 

[xylene]

If OP was uncertain if he was free to leave, he could have asked...

That's a nice thought but any notion that because he didn't ask means he was free to go and not in custody for the purpose of Miranda is incorrect.

The officers intentions matter along with the subjects percptions of being in custody and wether the questions were voluntary in nature.