Title: Ex Parte Wiley
Citation: 516 So. 2d 816
Docket Number: N/A
State: Alabama
Issuer: Alabama Supreme Court
Date: July 10, 1987

516 So. 2d 816 (1987)
Ex Parte: Freddie Lee WILEY.
(Re: Freddie Lee Wiley v. State of Alabama).
86-596.

Supreme Court of Alabama.
July 10, 1987.
Charles M. Allen II, Montgomery, for petitioner.
Don Siegelman, Atty. Gen., and Fred F. Bell, Asst. Atty. Gen., for respondent.
PER CURIAM.
We granted the writ of certiorari to the Court of Criminal Appeals 516 So. 2d 812 to consider whether that court erred in affirming the trial court, which overruled its order in limine requiring that the state refrain from commenting on, or eliciting testimony concerning, the defendant's assertion of his right to remain silent following his arrest, and, if so, whether the Court of Criminal Appeals also erred in affirming the trial court's order denying the defendant's motion for mistrial. We reverse and remand.
Freddie Lee Wiley was convicted by jury of the murder of Ulysses Howard and was sentenced to 30 years' imprisonment. Prior to trial, the court granted the defendant's motion in limine, prohibiting reference in any manner to the defendant's assertion of his constitutional right to remain silent. The defendant objected to the following testimony elicited from an arresting officer:
Officer Davis testified that he and Officer Spivey took the defendant into custody, put him in a police car, and read him his constitutional rights. Officer Davis testified further that once the Miranda warning was given, the defendant stated that he shot Ulysses Howard because he was afraid of him. After hearing testimony that the defendant did in fact make a statement, the trial judge noted on the motion in limine that he had reconsidered the prayer and overruled the motion.
Under the United States Constitution and the Constitution of the State of Alabama, an accused is guaranteed the right to remain silent. 5th Amendment, United States Constitution; Art. 1, § 6, Alabama Constitution (1901). A necessary component of the right to remain silent is that the accused's silence cannot be used against him.
United States v. Hale, 422 U.S. 171, 182-83, 95 S. Ct. 2133, 2139, 45 L. Ed. 2d 99 (1975) (White, J., concurring).
In the case at bar, the defendant made a statement against his interest immediately after he was read his constitutional rights. The defendant was then transported to the police station, where Officer Spivey again read the Miranda warning and offered a written waiver for his signature. The defendant refused to sign the waiver. At *818 trial, the state specifically asked about this refusal: "Did he give you any explanation as to why, or...." The officer answered:
In light of the defendant's confession, made prior to the assertion of his right to remain silent, there is no explanation for the state's reference to the defendant's refusal to make further comment without counsel, other than as an attempt to discredit the defendant in the eyes of the jury.
Moreover, the trial court was in error when it stated:
A person may assert his constitutional rights at any time. He may answer questions if he wishes, but he may stop at any time. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S. Ct. 1602, 16 L. Ed. 2d 694 (1966). It was error for the trial court to conclude in substance that when the defendant waived his right to remain silent by making a statement to the police at the scene of the crime, he could not reclaim the right to remain silent at the police station and keep that assertion from being used against him in court.
We hold that the defendant's constitutional right to remain silent was violated by the state's inquiry at trial about the defendant's assertion of that right. The constitutional violation was aggravated by the trial court's statement about the effect of the defendant's ever making a statement against his interest. Accordingly, the trial court erred in overruling the defendant's motion for mistrial and the Court of Criminal Appeals erred in affirming the conviction. The judgment of the Court of Criminal Appeals is reversed and the cause is remanded.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
MADDOX, JONES, ALMON, SHORES, BEATTY, ADAMS, HOUSTON and STEAGALL, JJ., concur.