| This paper develops a Biblical basis for criminal confessions and determines whether contemporary criminal confessions law--Miranda and 18 U.S.C. Section 3501--comports with this Normative model.;Both federal and state criminal confessions law fail normative scrutiny. The original holding in Miranda is substantially close to a Normative position, even though it exceeded both Scriptural and Fifth Amendment intentions. In response to Miranda, Congress' section 3501 was an overreaction, potentially denying the criminal suspect the right to remain silent when confronting custodial interrogation by law enforcement authorities.;An alternative remedy for the current imbalance is offered. By utilizing a combination of modified warnings, electronically recorded interrogations, time-limits on police interrogations, and an optional confession-hearing with an independent judge, much of the current law's normative deficiency can be properly eliminated and conformed to a Biblical basis. |
