Bob CollinsMiranda rights are again at the center of an investigation into a criminal/terrorist act in the U.S.
At a news conference today, FBI Deputy Director John Pistole said Faisal Shahzad, arrested in the attempted car bombing of Times Square, was questioned by authorities before he was read his Miranda rights. He did not say how long he was questioned before he got the famous “you have the right to keep silent” warning, but said he cooperated before and after the reading.
Sen. Joe Lieberman suggested changing the law to strip citizenship — and the accompanying rights — in cases like this:
“Don’t give this guy his Miranda rights until we find out what it’s all about,” Sen. John McCain added.
Nothing seems to be preventing investigators from finding out what it’s all about. In just a few days Shahzad was picked up with nothing original to go on but a smoking SUV, it’s been determined he attended a “terrorist training camp” in Pakistan, and was losing his Connecticut home to foreclosure.
Still the Miranda warning is still a flashpoint in the incident, although conservative commentator Glen Beck and some civil liberties advocates appear to be on the same side.
“He is a citizen of the United States, so I say we uphold the laws and the Constitution on citizens… If you are a citizen, you obey the law and follow the Constitution. [Shahzad] has all the rights under the Constitution,” Beck said.
Maybe that’s the news.
