• Media type: E-Article
  • Title: The benefits of a right to silence for the innocent
  • Contributor: Leshem, Shmuel
  • imprint: Wiley Periodicals, Inc., 2010
  • Published in: The RAND Journal of Economics, 41 (2010) 2, Seite 398-416
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 0741-6261
  • Origination:
  • Footnote:
  • Description: <p>This article shows that innocent suspects benefit from exercising their right to silence during criminal proceedings. We present a model in which a criminal suspect can either make a statement or remain silent during police interrogation. At trial, the jury observes informative but imperfect signals about the suspects guilt and the truthfulness of the suspects statement. We show that a right to silence benefits innocent suspects by providing them with a safer alternative to speech, as well as by reducing the probability of wrongful conviction for suspects who remain silent with and without a right to silence.</p>