Opinion ID: 1986196
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 9

Heading: the motion to suppress hightower's statements to the police

Text: Counsel for defendant argues on appeal that Hightower's statements given to the Barrington police and the State Police should have been suppressed because he claims that Hightower had requested the presence of counsel. No such issue was raised before the trial justice on the motion to suppress. The only two witnesses who testified in support of the voluntariness of the confessions were Sergeant Lazzaro of the Barrington police department and Sergeant Richard Hurst of the Rhode Island State Police. Sergeant Lazzarro testified that he gave Miranda admonitions to Hightower immediately upon confronting him in the Brendel vehicle. Hightower responded to the oral admonitions by stating that he understood his rights and did not need an attorney and further that he wanted to help in the investigation of the missing members of the Brendel family. He was then transported to the Barrington police headquarters where he was again advised of his constitutional rights from a prepared form. He was then given the rights form and asked to read it aloud. He did so. He initialed each portion of the form and then signed the entire form. His signature was witnessed by two members of the Barrington police department, including Sergeant Lazzaro and by FBI Agent McGraw. He was then offered the use of a telephone in order to contact an attorney if he so desired. He stated that he did not wish to call an attorney at that time. Sergeant Lazzaro then interrogated defendant and prepared a typed statement, which defendant examined, corrected, and signed. At no time did he request an attorney even though Lazzaro advised him during the course of the statement that he should consider consulting with counsel. After the Barrington police had taken a statement, Sergeant Hurst and Detective David Dias of the Rhode Island State Police presented a second Miranda -type of rights form to Hightower, which he signed and which was witnessed by Hurst and Dias. Hightower then gave an extensive statement to Hurst, after which he was conducted to a cell for an overnight stay. At about 4 a.m. Sergeant Lazzaro informed defendant that he was going to go out and check some tire tracks that had been observed in the area of Boxwood Court, a location near Jones Circle. Hightower responded to this information by saying Sarge, you're wasting your time. They are not buried there. Call me an attorney for the morning. After talking to the attorney, if he says its all right, I will talk to you. This was the first time that Hightower requested an attorney during the course of his contacts with any of the members of the Barrington police or the State Police. This request was made long after the statements had been taken. Pursuant to the request, Sergeant Lazzaro communicated with the Chief of the Criminal Division of the Attorney General's office in order to see if arrangements could be made to contact an attorney from the Public Defender's office. The next morning a representative of the Public Defender's office came to the Barrington police station to see Hightower. Relying upon the uncontradicted testimony of the two officers, which was buttressed by the waiver-of-rights forms signed and initialed by defendant, together with the signed statements, one of which had been corrected by defendant in his own handwriting, the trial justice observed that the state had established the voluntariness of these statements not only by clear and convincing evidence but beyond a reasonable doubt as well. Although our review of a trial justice's findings of voluntariness is deferential, see State v. Leuthavone, 640 A.2d 515, 518-19 (R.I. 1994), in this case the findings of the trial justice are unassailable since he had nothing before him save evidence that Hightower had intentionally, and after multiple admonitions, waived his right to remain silent and his right to counsel. There was not a scintilla of evidence that he requested counsel until his final exchange with Sergeant Lazzaro at about 4 a.m. The only time that defendant raised the question of a request for counsel was in his testimony to the jury. The jury did not believe him in light of the massive documentary evidence to the contrary. However, his testimony to the jury would not affect the correctness of the ruling of the trial justice on the motion to suppress wherein no such testimony was presented. In light of the fact that the jury found that the statements were voluntary by clear and convincing evidence pursuant to the trial justice's instructions, it is far more than probable that had he given this testimony to the trial justice at the suppression hearing, the same result would have occurred. In any event there is no question that on the evidence presented to the trial justice in support of and in opposition to the motion to suppress, he made the only decision possible in denying the motion. The claim that he was in error has no merit.