NPR

Supreme Court Upholds Individual Rights In 2 Key Criminal Justice Cases

The court decided only the accused have a right to profess guilt or innocence, not a lawyer. And in the age of Zipcar, you still maintain a right to privacy even if you aren't on a rental agreement.

The Supreme Court handed down five decisions Monday, and one that could pave a path for legalizing sports gambling throughout the country got most of the attention Monday morning. But the court also decided two important criminal-justice and personal rights cases.

In one, McCoy v. Louisiana, the court ruled by a 6-3 margin in favor of a defendant whose lawyer told a jury that his client was guilty, disregarding the explicit instructions of his client. His lawyer wanted him to plead guilty to avoid the death penalty.

"Guaranteeing a defendant the right 'to have

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