Opinion ID: 1600242
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Voluntariness of Statements Given to Police

Text: The evidence shows that the defendant approached Officer Alvin Kidd while the search of his residence was in progress. The record further indicates that the defendant asked Officer Kidd to come to the jail at a later time because he wanted to talk to him. The record further indicates that the defendant approached Kidd when Sims was not present, and that it was the defendant's intent that Sims not be included in his conversation with Kidd. Before Officer Kidd began any discussions with the defendant, the district attorney contacted Sims to seek permission to speak with the defendant. The evidence indicates that Sims inquired as to whether the defendant had requested his presence and, when informed that the defendant had indicated that he did not wish Sims to be present, made no objection to the conversation between Kidd and the defendant. Sims did state that he would be present during the conversation if the defendant wished that he be there and that he would be ready to come to the place of the interview at any time the defendant requested his presence. The record indicates that the defendant did not request his attorney, and Sims was not present at the interrogation. We agree with the Court of Criminal Appeals, 571 So.2d 1237, that the statements were voluntarily given and that they evidenced an effective waiver of the right to counsel. In this case, the facts indicate that the defendant initiated further contact with the police and requested that Officer Kidd speak with him. In Edwards v. Arizona, 451 U.S. 477, 101 S.Ct. 1880, 68 L.Ed.2d 378 (1981), the United States Supreme Court recognized that an accused may validly waive his right to counsel by voluntarily initiating conversation with the police concerning an investigation. In Edwards, the Court stated that when a defendant asserts his right to counsel under Miranda, questioning must cease until counsel has been made available to him, unless the accused himself initiates further communication, exchanges, or conversations with the police. Id. at 484-85, 101 S.Ct. at 1884-85. In this particular case, the defendant had available counsel. George Sims had been appointed his attorney and had accompanied the defendant during the search of his home. It was only after Sims was appointed that the defendant approached Officer Kidd and asked that he speak with him later. Kidd specifically reminded the defendant that his attorney could be present during their conversation. Moreover, the record shows that the defendant was read his Miranda rights and that he stated that he understood those rights. In fact, the taped conversation preserved in the record shows a painstaking and patient approach by the investigators to ensure that the defendant was aware of each of his rights and that he made a knowing and intelligent waiver. Further, it appears in the record that the defendant was not unfamiliar with the criminal process and the importance of his rights, in light of his previous conviction for rape. In any case, the determination of the waiver issue must necessarily depend ... upon the peculiar facts and circumstances surrounding that case, including the background, experience and conduct of the accused. Bartlett v. Allen, 724 F.2d 1524, 1527 (11th Cir.1984). See North Carolina v. Butler, 441 U.S. 369, 99 S.Ct. 1755, 60 L.Ed.2d 286 (1979). In this case, based upon the totality of the circumstances, we find that the facts and circumstances show a knowing waiver of the defendant's right to counsel at the time the incriminating statements were made. Oregon v. Bradshaw, 462 U.S. 1039, 1047, 103 S.Ct. 2830, 2835, 77 L.Ed.2d 405 (1983).