Recent Legal Developments Recent Legal Developments: Maryland v. Shatzer: Revisiting Reinterviewing After Invoking Miranda’s Right to Counsel

A unanimous Supreme Court modified its previously strict holding forbidding reinterviewing a suspect after he invoked his right to counsel under Miranda. An initial request for an attorney no longer means that police can never reinitiate questioning. Questioning may be resumed when a suspect has returned to his normal life for some time before the later attempted interrogation. Once a break in custody occurs that is of sufficient duration to dissipate its coercive effects, it is permissible for detectives to reapproach suspects to inquire whether there is a change of heart regarding interrogation without counsel. Adequate breaks in custody suitably attenuate the inherently compelling and coercive pressures that existed during the original custodial interrogation. This decision militates against the finite Edwards presumption of an involuntary waiver of rights