What should be read into a murder suspect’s silence during initial questioning by police? And can it be used against him at trial?

Lyle Denniston has an interesting recap of the United States Supreme Court oral argument in Salinias v. Texas entitled “Argument recap: Reading silence’s meaning.”

“If the sentiment that seems to run high in a Supreme Court hearing dictated how a case would come out, the Justices might well be on their way to declaring that the Constitution forbids prosecutors from telling juries that a suspect’s silence when talking to police in any criminal investigation means he is guilty.  The argument Wednesday in Salinas v. Texas (12-246) showed the appeal of treating silence in response to police questions as too ambiguous to be allowed as proof of guilt.”