Supreme Court of the United States

Edwards v. Arizona

June 22, 1981451 U.S. 477

Summary

The Court held that after a suspect invokes the right to counsel during custodial interrogation, police may not reinitiate interrogation unless counsel has been made available or the suspect initiates further communication. Because Edwards's incriminating statement followed police-initiated questioning without access to counsel and was not a valid waiver, the confession was inadmissible and the state-court judgment was reversed.