In juvenile custody, who must invoke Miranda rights?

• A. The juvenile must invoke their rights.
• B. Parents may invoke the juvenile's rights on their behalf.
• C. Police may proceed without invoking rights if the juvenile is cooperative.
• D. A court must invoke the juvenile's rights before questioning.

Answer: (A)

The right to invoke Miranda protections is personal. In juvenile custody, the juvenile themselves must clearly indicate they want to exercise their rights—their right to remain silent or their right to have an attorney. Parents or guardians cannot invoke those rights for the juvenile, and police cannot proceed under the assumption that rights are waived simply because a juvenile is cooperative or because a court could later address the issue. When the juvenile explicitly asks for an attorney or says they want to remain silent, interrogation must stop and cannot resume until counsel is present or the juvenile chooses to waive the rights again with proper warnings. The key idea is that the act of invoking is done by the juvenile, not by anyone else.