Opinion | Biden’s Supreme Court nominee should be a criminal defense lawyer

Why does it matter? The Bill of Rights protects the rights of individuals in the criminal justice system — governing searches and seizures, self-incrimination, effective assistance of counsel, impartial juries, burdens of proof, and cruel and unusual punishments. Several landmark decisions — including Mapp v. Ohio (searches), Gideon v. Wainwright (counsel), Brady v. Maryland (discovery) and Miranda v. Arizona (confessions) — addressing these fundamental rights were decided 50 years ago. In the half-century since, the rights established in these decisions keep being narrowed, qualified and, in some cases, practically eliminated. A person now must affirmatively state that he or she wants to invoke the right not to speak; the rule that excludes improperly obtained evidence has been trimmed to near extinction; the right to get an attorney exists in fewer proceedings; and prosecutors often use Brady’s requirement to provide exculpatory material as a road map for what not to disclose. What looks “exculpatory” to a prosecutor (who believes the evidence of guilt is overwhelming anyway) can be markedly different to a defense attorney (whose job is to assemble a defense).