Does the Boston Bomber deserve a Miranda warning?

Screen Shot 2013-04-22 at 1.46.24 PMDoes the Boston Bomber deserve a Miranda warning?

by Guest Columnist: Henry Graebe

 

There is a national debate occurring at the moment that has enormous implications for the
future of civil liberties in our country. At the center of the debate is the issue of whether or not
the Boston bomber, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, should have been given a Miranda warning and how
he will be tried.

As it currently stands, the awful shootings at Virginia Tech resulted in exactly ten times the
amount of deaths (33) than those of the Boston marathon. At Columbine, exactly five times
as many people were killed. In Aurora, CO, more than three times. Although only the Aurora
incident saw the perpetrator survive, there is little doubt the other assassins would have been
given a Miranda warning and tried as any other criminal would have.

If the Boston tragedies were not as grave as the aforementioned tragedies and each incident
involved Americans killing Americans, then what sets the surviving Boston bomber apart
from this established precedent? What makes this situation different to some is the possible
connection to a terrorist network. This, however, is neither confirmed nor overly apparent.
It is simply an allegation. And this is precisely what Senators Graham and McCain failed to
comprehend during Senator Rand Paul’s filibuster. A global war on terror, by definition,
is borderless and may extend to American soil. If American citizens on American soil fit
under this ambiguous umbrella, how long are we able to detain him until we confirm or
deny this suspicion? Are they guilty until proven innocent? That’s precisely the point of the
Fifth amendment. Prosecutors are then immediately declaring his guilt by keeping him for
questioning until they can exonerate him from having ties to a terrorist network.

Screen Shot 2013-04-22 at 1.48.06 PMThe basis of the issue comes down to the question: Is he, or is he not, an American citizen on American soil? The question is black and white and thus so is the answer. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev,
as the evidence is overwhelming, will be convicted of murdering innocent civilians and
subsequently resisting arrest by fleeing from the authorities. Like every other criminal, he is
entitled to due process, including the Miranda warning. Otherwise, if we begin to suspend the
Constitution in this case, many criminals face the endlessly broad label of participating in the
global war on terror.

I am not sympathizing with the Boston bombers in the least. I am, though, concerned for the
dangerous precedent that this may set.

3 comments

lsm99.day November 6, 2023 at 8:18 pm

… [Trackback]

[…] Info to that Topic: thelibertarianrepublic.com/does-the-boston-bomber-deserve-a-miranda-warning/ […]

sci-sciss January 16, 2024 at 11:51 am

… [Trackback]

[…] Find More on to that Topic: thelibertarianrepublic.com/does-the-boston-bomber-deserve-a-miranda-warning/ […]

use this link January 16, 2024 at 5:08 pm

… [Trackback]

[…] Read More Info here on that Topic: thelibertarianrepublic.com/does-the-boston-bomber-deserve-a-miranda-warning/ […]

Leave a Comment