Garrity Warning

The Garrity Ruling, also called the Garrity Warning, comes out of a 1967 Supreme Court decision. The Court held that confessions given under that statute were not admissible in criminal proceedings.

Under Garrity, state employees can be disciplined and even dismissed for refusing to answer questions in an internal investigation, but if they choose to provide information under these conditions the information disclosed cannot then be used against them in a criminal prosecution.

If an employee refuses to answer questions during an investigation, s/he must be given a warning that by so doing s/he could be disciplined up to and including termination. S/he must also be advised that the information gathered will not be admissible in criminal proceedings. To see the WSU Garrity Warning, click here.