Brown v. Mississippi
Brown v. Mississippi is a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case from the early 1930s that addressed the issue of coerced confessions in criminal trials. The case involved three African American tenant farmers convicted of murdering a white planter, with their confessions serving as the primary evidence against them. These confessions were obtained through brutal methods, including physical abuse and threats by law enforcement. Despite this, the initial convictions were upheld by the Mississippi Supreme Court, which raised concerns about due process rights.
The U.S. Supreme Court ultimately reversed the state court's ruling unanimously, asserting that coerced confessions violate fundamental principles of justice. Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes emphasized that such practices are deeply contrary to the values of the American legal system. Although the Court ruled in favor of the defendants, it clarified that the Fifth Amendment's protection against self-incrimination did not apply to the states at that time. Brown v. Mississippi set a crucial precedent for ensuring fundamental fairness in the use of confessions during state trials and laid the groundwork for future legal protections against coercive interrogation practices.
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Brown v. Mississippi
Date: February 17, 1936
Citation: 297 U.S. 278
Issues: Coerced confessions; defendants’ rights
Significance: The Supreme Court held that the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment prohibited states from using criminal confessions obtained by means “revolting to the sense of justice.”
In the early 1930s, three African American tenant farmers in Mississippi were convicted of murdering a white planter. The main evidence was their confessions. At trial, police officers admitted that they had employed brutal whippings and threats of death to obtain the confessions. The defendants, nevertheless, were convicted and sentenced to be hanged. The Mississippi supreme court upheld the constitutionality of their trials and convictions.
By a 9-0 vote, the Supreme Court reversed the state court’s ruling. Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes’s opinion held that coerced confessions violated a principle “so rooted in the traditions and conscience of our people as to be ranked as fundamental.” At the same time, however, the Court reaffirmed that the self-incrimination clause of the Fifth Amendment was not binding on the states. Despite its modest requirements, Brown was the first in a line of cases requiring fundamental fairness for the use of confessions in state trials.
Bibliography
"Brown v. State of Mississippi." FindLaw. Thomson, n.d. Web. 7 Jan. 2016.
Cortner, Richard C. A "Scottsboro" Case in Mississippi: The Supreme Court and Brown v. Mississippi. Jackson: UP of Mississippi, 1986. Print.