Opinion ID: 1905193
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Parental Presence

Text: Fardan next argues his father's absence from the interrogation should have weighed more heavily against finding a valid waiver of his Miranda rights. We have rejected a per se rule requiring parental presence, and have said that a request to speak to a parent does not automatically invoke the right to an attorney or the right to remain silent. Burrell, 697 N.W.2d at 593 (citing State v. Hogan, 297 Minn. 430, 440, 212 N.W.2d 664, 671 (1973)). As part of the totality of the circumstances review, however, we will closely examine whether the juvenile is able to make a valid Miranda waiver without a parent's presence. Burrell, 697 N.W.2d at 594. The absence of a parent is not a compelling factor in assessing the validity of a waiver where the juvenile has not been in close contact with his parents, or has not requested their presence before speaking. Williams, 535 N.W.2d at 280-82, 288; Hogan, 297 Minn. at 432-33, 440-41, 212 N.W.2d at 666-67, 670-71. But, as Fardan notes, in Burrell, we concluded that a Miranda waiver was ineffective primarily because of the lack of a parent's presence. 697 N.W.2d at 597. In that case, the 16-year-old defendant's first words during the interrogation were for permission to call his mother; he requested that twice more before his Miranda warning, and ten times after the warning. Id. at 595. This case is easily distinguished from Burrell. In Burrell, the juvenile made multiple requests to speak with his mother before he indicated that he would waive his right to remain silent. 697 N.W.2d at 595. We relied on these early requests to conclude that Burrell desired his mother's counsel. 697 N.W.2d at 595. By contrast, Fardan's single request for his father's presence to the arresting officers, which was not renewed with the interrogating officers until the end of the interview, does not demonstrate a desire or need for his father's counsel that is so strong that it calls into question the validity of Fardan's Miranda waiver. In fact, the record demonstrates that Fardan was not intimidated, confused, or indecisive during the interrogation. Fardan's answers were generally argumentative, assertive, and often exculpatory. In addition, the district court rejected Fardan's testimony that the lack of his father's presence affected him. The record supports this finding. We hold that the absence of Fardan's father did not invalidate Fardan's waiver of his Miranda rights.