Legal Commentary

Want To Make Miranda Irrelevant? Repeal Federal Laws Criminalizing Terrorism

By Big Tent Democrat

Lindsey Graham:

“Miranda warnings are counterproductive in my view,” Graham said at a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing Wednesday. “We need a law that would allow you to go to a judge…and hold a guy like this and work with the intelligence officials of this country. Even if you’re an American citizen helping the enemy, you should be treated as a military threat,” Graham said. “Devise a law that recognizes we’re at war.”

If Lindsey Graham has the courage of his rhetoric, the solution is simple - repeal all federal laws criminalizing terrorism. After that, Miranda becomes irrelevant.

If you want to treat terrorism solely as a question of war, then do that. So long as people like Joe Lieberman and Lindsey Graham insist that suspected terrorism be treated as a criminal question, then Miranda and terror trials in federal court will remain "counterproductive" in their view. They need to put their money where their mouths are.

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on May 05, 2010 (boomark / email).