Home > Great American Court Cases > Rhode Island v. Innis

Legal Citation: 446 U.S. 291 (1980)

Petitioner
State of Rhode Island

Respondent
Thomas J. Innis

Petitioner's Claim
That a conversation between two police officers with a murder suspect within earshot did not constitute an interrogation in violation of the suspect's Miranda rights.

Chief Lawyer for Petitioner
Dennis J. Roberts II

Chief Lawyer for Respondent
John A. MacFadyen III

Justices for the Court
Harry A. Blackmun, Warren E. Burger, Lewis F. Powell, Jr., William H. Rehnquist, Potter Stewart (writing for the Court), Byron R. White

Justices Dissenting
William J. Brennan, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, John Paul Stevens

Place
Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision
12 May 1980

Decision
Suspect Thomas J. Innis was found to have not been interrogated by the...