Toplines - Crime - June 2-3, 2010

National Survey of 1,000 Adults
Conducted June 2-3, 2010

By Rasmussen Reports

 

1* If someone asked you to describe Miranda rights, how confident are you that you could do a good job?

 

  47% Very confident

  28% Somewhat confident

  13% Not very confident

    4% Not at all confident

    7% Not sure

 

  2* Among other things, Miranda rights require that police officers notify people they are arresting that they have the right to remain silent, that anything they say can and will be used against them, and that they have the right to an attorney. While making an arrest, should police officers be required to read people their Miranda rights?

 

87% Yes

  9% No

  4% Not sure

 

  3* Some people say that there is a natural tension between protecting individual rights and public safety. In the United States today, does our legal system worry too much about protecting individual rights, too much about public safety, or is the balance about right?

 

  33% Legal system worries too much about protecting individual rights
20% Legal system worries too much about public safety
32% Balance is about right

15% Not sure

 

  4* Which is a bigger problem for the US law enforcement and legal system—that too many innocent people are arrested or that too many criminals are set free?

 

  18% Too many innocent people are arrested

  67% Too many criminals are set free
15% Not sure

 

  5* Is the U.S. system of justice fair to most Americans?

 

55% Yes

29% No

16% Not sure

 

  6* Is the U.S. system of justice fair to poor Americans?

 

40% Yes

43% No

17% Not sure

 

  7* Is the U.S. system of justice fair to black and Hispanic Americans?

 

50% Yes

30% No

19% Not sure

 

8* Do you favor or oppose the death penalty?

 

  62% Favor
26% Oppose

12% Not sure

 

  9* Does the death penalty help to deter crime? 

 

45% Yes

43% No

13% Not sure

 

NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence