S. Supreme Court's decisions in Escobedo v. Illinois (Escobedo v. Illinois, 1964) and Miranda v. Arizona (Miranda v. Arizona, 1966). These two cases dramatically altered how police treated criminal defendants subsequent to their arrests and forced police agencies throughout the United States to develop new procedures. The reading of what have become to be popularly known as Miranda rights has become a routine part of every arrest. Like it has in many areas of criminal procedure, the U.S. Supreme Court has narrowed the application of Miranda and gradually chipped away at the rights originally granted by the Court that decided the case. Two of the more significant cases were decided in 1984 when the Court allowed an exception to Miranda in the case of New York v. Quarles (New York v. Quarles, 1984) so that police can use Miranda statements in situations involving public safety. Additionally, in a companion case the Supreme Court created the inevitable discovery exception which allowed the use of evidence that would have been inevitably discovered even without improper police questioning. The inevitable discovery rule arose from the Court's decision in Nix v. Williams (Nix v. Williams, 1984). The involvement of the Court in the operation of the police has always been a hotly debated issue. On one side of the aisle are those that argue that the police should be provided wide latitude in combating crime in the United States while on the other side are those who argue that primary concern should be the protection of individual rights. The role of the Courts in this argument has been to seek a balance between the two extremes.

There is no argument...

Many of the Court decisions have blocked the police from acquiring and using valuable evidence in criminal case but many experts argue that these Court decisions have had little real impact on the ability of police to apprehend criminals. In limited circumstances the guarantees extended to criminal defendants have handcuffed the police but, for the most part, the police have been able to continue interrogating defendants, search crime scenes, and make investigatory stops. Meanwhile, the Court decisions have been able to protect the rights of private citizens and to prevent overt police abuses from occurring. Additionally, the notoriety of the most important Court cases has contributed to creating a greater awareness among the public as to the activities of the Courts and increased the public's awareness as to their constitutional rights. This greater awareness has served to increase the public's trust in how the criminal justice system operates and the public's respect for how the police fulfill their responsibilities.