Miranda v. Arizona: Westover v. United States

    Miranda v. Arizona: Westover v. United States

      This case is lumped in with the Miranda v. Arizona ruling, because it deals with similar Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights issues. A man named Carl Westover was arrested and questioned about robberies in Kansas City and California. After hours of interrogation, by both police officers and the FBI, Westover signed confessions to each robbery. He was sentenced to 15 years in jail for each crime.

      The whole idea here is that we don't really know what goes on in these interrogations, since they're in private rooms with no lawyers present. In those situations, suspects might feel pressured to admit what they did. So, just like the Miranda v. Arizona and Vignera v. New York cases, the Supreme Court reversed the ruling against Westover, because they weren't convinced that he was made aware of his rights to silence and a lawyer.