The New York State Assembly passed legislation Tuesday that would mandate New Yorkers under the age of 18 consult with legal counsel before waiving their Miranda rights and facing police interrogation.
The Youth Interrogation Act, known as the #Right2RemainSilent Act, aims to expand legal protection for children being detained by police, who are more likely than adults to give false confessions under pressure and waive their rights to an attorney before speaking to authorities, according to the American Bar Association. Community organizations and local leaders celebrated Tuesday’s vote.
“It is these young people’s constitutional right to have an attorney,” said Lisa Freeman, the Legal Aid Society’s Special Litigation and Law Reform Unit Attorney-in-Charge. “This is really a racial and economic justice issue, because it just ensures that even people who cannot afford to hire private counsel will have an attorney for their child at that moment.”
The legislation, sponsored by Queens Assembly Member Andrew Hevesi, proposes a modification to the existing Family Court Act and Criminal Procedure Law. In addition to requiring minors to consult with an attorney before waiving their Miranda rights, the legislation would require police to notify a minor’s legal guardians upon taking them into custody before transporting them to the precinct. In a Wednesday news release, the Legal Aid Society commended the passage in the Assembly.
The organization cited the case of the Exonerated Five, in which five Black and Latino teenagers were wrongfully convicted of assaulting and raping a woman in Central Park in 1989. The individuals confessed to the crime, but later recanted their statements, asserting police told them that if they confessed, they would be released from custody.
The NYPD has pushed back on the bill, Freeman said, particularly over details regarding parental notification when minors are taken into custody. The bill has been amended to clarify that NYPD officers need not necessarily make successful contact with parents, but must make a “reasonable effort,” Freeman said.
“That was actually already the law under the Family Court Act, but the NYPD seemed to believe that this was going to alter that law,” Freeman said.
Four states have already passed legislation similar to New York’s #Right2RemainSilent Act—California, Washington, Maryland, and Hawaii.
“This bill is incredibly important for young New Yorkers, as well as for parents and other New Yorkers,” Freeman said. “All too often, children say whatever it is they think will get them out of the situation and able to go home in the moment … It’s not just about the false confessions, it’s also about ensuring that the constitutional right that exists is made a reality.”
The bill will go to the State Senate, where it must be approved for a vote and passed before it can be sent to Gov. Kathy Hochul.
