[JURIST]

The US Supreme Court [official website] granted certiorari in six new cases [order list, PDF] on Friday. In Salinas v. Texas [cert. petition, PDF; docket] the court will consider the boundaries of the Fifth Amendment [text] right to remain silent prior to arrest. Genovevo Salinas was suspected of being involved in a murder. He consented to a search of his home, where police found a shotgun, and consented to questioning at the police station, but he was not arrested or given Miranda warnings [backgrounder]. An officer asked, "if the shotgun [his father had given them] would match the shells recovered at the scene of the murder." Salinas looked down and refused to answer the question. The state then offered the refusal to answer as a key piece of evidence against Salinas, which he contends was a violation of his right against self-incrimination. The Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas upheld [opinion text] the conviction.