You have the right to remain silent? Maybe not.

Justice Alito et al reset our federal Miranda rights

If you live in the United States, you may know about your Miranda rights. This is especially true if you watch shows like Law & Order. Some time ago, I read that something like 70 percent of Americans who know about their Miranda rights know about them thanks to the television franchise. If I wasn’t a fan before learning that, I became a fan.

Now in the recent Vega v. Tekoh decision, Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the court that the rights provided under that landmark decision, Miranda v. Arizona, are not real rights at all. They provide ways to safeguard one’s civil rights — namely the right against self-discrimination — but do not constitute rights in and of themselves.

Terence Tekoh, an immigrant from Cameroon. He was working as a nurse’s assistant in a medical center in Los Angeles when a patient accused him of sexual assault. Los Angeles Deputy Carlos Vega interrogated him in a soundproof room, which he prevented Tekoh from leaving. During the interrogation, where Vega never presented Tekoh with his Miranda rights, Tekoh confessed. According to Justice & Law:

Tekoh claims Vega forced him into giving a false written confession by using profanity, racial slurs, threats of deportation, threats of…