Note to Teachers: Use this chart to help students identify the factors that courts might take into consideration in each case to determine if someone is in custody and, therefore, should receive a Miranda warning.
| Answer Key:
Were They in Custody? | J.D.B. v. North Carolina | People v. Brandon |
| Language Used to Summon the Individual | escorted by police from class to school conference room | escorted by mall security to mall business office |
| Confrontation with Evidence of Guilt | yes – shown a digital camera | yes – had tie in his pocket |
| Physical Surroundings/Location | closed-door school conference room with two police officers and two school administrators | mall business office with window on the reception area where others were seen, including his sister using her cell phone |
| Duration | about 45 minutes | 15 minutes + |
| Degree of Pressure Applied (physical or otherwise) | when summoned by school authorities, students do not feel free to leave until released; but was allowed to leave at end of school day | was told that if he didn’t cooperate, he and his sister might go to jail
threat that he would be held in detention pending trial |
| Other Factors | | questioned in a public space, not isolated, and could see his sister talking on her cell phone |
| Totality of the Circumstances:
In Custody or Not? | Question of custody has been remanded to the N.C. state courts to answer | You Decide |
Discussion Guide for J.D.B. v. North Carolina and Fictional Scenario of People v. Brandon Salinger