Informative Speech: The Fifth Amendment
Attention Grabber: While most people know that the Fifth Amendment establishes the right of a person not to incriminate themselves, what is less commonly known are the three other rights that the Fifth Amendment protects.
Thesis: Beside guaranteeing the right against self-incrimination, the Fifth Amendment also provides for the equally important rights of: due process, access to a grand jury for capital offenses, and the prohibition against being prosecuted or punished twice for the same crime (Kaci, 1998).
Point One: That right is based on the Fifth Amendment’s right against self-incrimination.
A right to “remain silent” also includes the right to an attorney, if requested, to be provided for the duration of the police interrogation.
Any evidence obtained in violation of these requirement cannot be used in court.
Transition: After an arrest and interrogation, the Fifth Amendment also requires that before a suspect can be tried, they have the right to a grand jury
Point Two: A grand jury is a panel of average citizens brought together to determine if the potential charges are supported by the probable evidence. If the jury decides there is not enough evidence, a charge cannot be filed.
Transition: Whether a person is arrested, interrogated or charged, the Fifth Amendment also provides that they must what other rights a person has, the state must honor them.
Point Three: Under the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, the government cannot tale a person’s life, liberty or property without an impartial, systematic and unbiased determination or resolution of the case.
General this means a chance to fight against the charge before a neutral judge
Transition: In the event a suspect is convicted and punished for a crime or is found not guilty, the Fifth Amendment prohibits a retrial on that charge.
Point 4: Commonly known as the “double jeopardy” clause, the Fifth Amendment prohibits the government from prosecuting or punishing a person for the same charge twice whether it is after a finding of guilt or acquittal.
Conclusion: The Fifth Amendment provides a number of important and necessary privileges to citizens. While the amendment’s most commonly known protection is the right against self-incrimination, its other three parts are just as significant and fundamental to the protection of anyone accused of a crime.
References
Kaci, J.H. (1998). Criminal Procedure. Incline Village, NV: Copperhouse Publishing Company.
