Minnick v. Mississippi

In Miranda v. Arizona, the Court held that “the police must terminate an interrogation of an accused in custody if the accused requests the assistance of counsel.” To ensure compliance with this mandate, the Court held in Arizona v. Edwards that “once an accused requests counsel, officials may not reinitiate questioning until counsel has been made available to him.” The issue in this case was whether the police could reinitiate questioning after a defendant, who requested counsel, has been given the opportunity to consult with counsel. The Court relied upon the language in its Miranda decision for the holding that “the Fifth Amendment protection of Edwards is not terminated or suspended by consultation with counsel.” In other words, “when counsel is requested, interrogation must cease, and officials may not reinitiate interrogation without counsel present, whether or not the accused has consulted with his attorney.” The need for counsel to protect a suspect’s Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination includes not only the right to consult with counsel, but also to have counsel present during any questioning, if the suspect so desires.