Rights of People Accused of Crimes

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All Articles on Rights of People Accused of Crimes

Your Right to Know Criminal Charges: When Police Must Tell You What You’re Arrested For

The scene plays out countless times on television: flashing lights, the sharp command to "put your hands behind your back,"…

By
Alison O'Leary

The Right to Face Your Accuser: How the Sixth Amendment Works in Criminal Cases

The right to look your accuser in the eye during a criminal trial isn't just for courtroom drama. It's one…

By
GovFacts

Speedy Trial Rights: Can You Actually Wait Years for Trial?

The fear of being arrested and left to languish indefinitely in jail without trial strikes at the heart of what…

By
GovFacts

Double Jeopardy Loopholes: When the Government Can Try You Again

At the heart of the American criminal justice system lies a fundamental promise enshrined in the Fifth Amendment to the…

By
GovFacts

Not Just for Mobsters: Why the 5th Amendment Matters to You

When a witness in a dramatic courtroom scene or a mobster in a tense police interrogation defiantly states, "I plead…

By
GovFacts

5th Amendment Myth vs. Fact

The Fifth Amendment packs five major constitutional protections into a single sentence. Most Americans know about "pleading the Fifth," but…

By
Deborah Rod

When You Can “Plead the Fifth” and What It Means

The phrase "I plead the Fifth" appears in every courtroom drama and political hearing. Popular culture treats it as an…

By
Alison O'Leary

Warrant 101: What Makes a Search Warrant Legitimate?

It's a scenario many have seen in movies but few ever wish to experience: a sharp, authoritative knock at the…

By
GovFacts