-Caveat Lector- ``The Sixth Amendment right to counsel is personal to the defendant and specific to the offense,'' Rehnquist added. << US high court limits right to have lawyer present http://news.findlaw.com/legalnews/s/20010402/courtinterrogation.html WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A divided Supreme Court ruled Monday that a criminal suspect's constitutional right to have an attorney present does not extend to police interrogation on a related offense. The high court by a 5-4 vote refused to broaden the requirement that police notify counsel before questioning a suspect, unless the defendant waives that right, to offenses factually related to those that have actually been charged. Chief Justice William Rehnquist said for the court's conservative majority that the Sixth Amendment right to counsel was ``offense specific.'' It represented a victory for Texas prosecutors, who were supported by the U.S. Justice Department and police groups. They argued that extended protections would impose unjustified costs on society and make it harder for crimes to be solved. The justices overturned a ruling that a murder suspect who confessed to two killings in 1993 was entitled to a new trial. They said a Texas appeals court was wrong in overturning Raymond Cobb's murder conviction and death sentence. Maggie Owings and her 16-month-old daughter disappeared from their home in rural Walker County, Texas, two days after Christmas in 1993. There had been a burglary at their house. Cobb was a neighbor. An anonymous tip led police to suspect him in the burglary, and he eventually confessed, but denied any involvement in the disappearances. Cobb was indicted on burglary charges and had a lawyer appointed to represent him. The lawyer twice gave police permission to talk to Cobb about the disappearances. By late 1995, Cobb was out on bond and living in Odessa, Texas, when his father called the police and said Cobb had confessed to the killings. The police arrested Cobb, and, under questioning, Cobb confessed to the murders. The Texas appeals court said police should have notified Cobb's lawyer before questioning Cobb about the murders. REHNQUIST DOES NOT FORESEE UNWANTED INTERROGATIONS Rehnquist said Cobb's lawyers were wrong in predicting that the offense-specific rule would give the police almost total license to conduct unwanted interrogations without a suspect's lawyer present. He said suspects, at the time of the initial offense, must be told of their rights. Further, the Constitution does not negate society's interest in the police's ability to talk to witnesses and suspects, even those who have been charged with other offenses, Rehnquist said. The court's four most liberal members -- Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer -- dissented. Breyer said the majority's ``unnecessarily technical definition'' of an offense would undermine constitutional protections ``while doing nothing to further effective law enforcement.'' He said the police officers should have spoken to Cobb's lawyer before questioning Cobb about the murders. >> Court: Cops Can Probe Without Lawyer http://news.findlaw.com/ap_stories/a/w/1154/4-3-2001/20010403020253650.html ============================================================================ Sun Tsu and American Surveillance Aircraft http://www.yowusa.com/Archive/April2001/EP3_1/ep3_1.htm FREEDOM & DIGITAL MONEY http://disc.server.com/Indices/149495.html FEAR http://disc.server.com/Indices/149495.html Truth Dies With OKC Bomber's 'Confession' http://disc.server.com/Indices/149495.html GET THAT GOLD FRINGE OFF MY FLAG! http://www.apfn.org/apfn/flag.htm "The Law"! http://www.apfn.org/apfn/thelaw.htm Jury Issues in The News http://www.levellers.org/jrp/orig/jrp.issuestoc.htm "I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do. What I can do, I should do. And what I should do, by the grace of God, I will do." - Edward Everett Hale http://www.apfn.org/apfn/apfncont.htm <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. 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