Opinion ID: 1730571
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Was Defendant's Confession Voluntary?

Text: The trial court found, and the court of appeal did not dispute, that the defendant's confession was a voluntary one. Before a criminal defendant's confession may be admitted into evidence, the State has the burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the confession was freely and voluntarily made. [7] The voluntariness requirement, which antedates the Miranda rule, is a component of the fundamental fairness which is guaranteed by the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Oregon v. Elstad, 470 U.S. 298, 304, 105 S.Ct. 1285, 1290, 84 L.Ed.2d 222 (1985) ( listing cases ). In cases, such as this one, which involve allegations of diminished mental capacity, although the defendant bears the burden of proving the existence of any mental abnormality which might render his confession per se involuntary, in the absence of such a showing the State retains the ultimate burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the confession was voluntary. State v. Brooks, 92-3331, Slip. Op. P. 12 (La. 1/17/95), 648 So.2d 366, 373. See also State v. Napier, 385 So.2d 776 (La.1980). In all cases, regardless of the applicable burden of proof, courts look to the totality of the circumstances surrounding a confession to determine its voluntariness. See Withrow v. Williams, ___ U.S. ___, ___, 113 S.Ct. 1745, 1754, 123 L.Ed.2d 407 (1993), re'hg denied ___ U.S. ___, 113 S.Ct. 3066, 125 L.Ed.2d 748 (1993) (listing factors relevant to voluntariness inquiry); Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U.S. 218, 226, 93 S.Ct. 2041, 2047, 36 L.Ed.2d 854 (1973) ( same ). The only issue presented to us by the opinion of the court of appeal, however, concerns the defendant's ability to comprehend his Miranda rights. We have noted in the past that in cases involving mental retardation the question of a confession's voluntariness often becomes enmeshed in the related, but distinct, question of the knowing and intelligent nature of the defendant's Miranda waiver. Brooks, supra, at P. 12, 648 So.2d at 373, citing State v. Lindsey, 404 So.2d 466, 472 (La.1981) ( citations omitted ). However, the current posture of this case makes it unnecessary for us to engage in an extensive discussion of the voluntariness issue. Because our review of the record reveals no reason to disturb the lower courts' findings regarding the voluntariness of Green's confession, we affirm the lower courts' judgment that Green's confession was voluntarily made and proceed to our discussion of Green's Miranda waiver.