Opinion ID: 1679561
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Statement of John D. Huff

Text: Defendants allege, as an alternative basis for their motion to suppress the statements of Huff and Sanford, that these statements were not freely and voluntarily given. Defendants contend that defendant Huff was under the influence of two 100 mg. tablets of seconal at the time he made his statement and was unable to knowingly and intelligently waive his right to remain silent. They also allege that the Sheriff of Concordia Parish pressured Huff into making his statement by telling him if he cooperated he could possibly avoid going to federal prison or to Angola. John Huff testified that he had worked from 2:00 p. m. to 10:00 p. m. on an oil rig in Adams County, Mississippi the night of his arrest. After working, he rode home to Concordia Parish with fellow worker Steven Dodd. Both Dodd and Huff testified that Huff took two 100 mg. tablets of seconal during the drive home to help him to sleep. The state stipulated Dodd had a prescription for the drug. According to Huff, he also had two or three beers on the way home. Huff was arrested by Concordia Parish Sheriff's Deputies at his home at approximately 11:30 p. m., was booked at the courthouse at 11:50, and then taken to Sheriff Schiele's office. Both defendant and Sheriff Schiele testified that, at first, Huff refused to make any statement. According to Sheriff Schiele, he spoke to Huff for about ten minutes and did not threaten him or promise him anything in exchange for a statement. The Sheriff specifically denied telling Huff that agents of the federal government were after him and that he would try to protect him from them. Huff, on the other hand, maintained that the Sheriff told him there was a federal indictment for his arrest and, that if he cooperated, it would be a lot easier on him and he could stay in Concordia Parish and would not be sent to Angola. However, Huff did testify that the Sheriff repeatedly told him that he could not promise him anything. When questioned about Huff's physical condition when he saw him the night of his arrest, Sheriff Schiele noted that Huff did seem sleepy and that he spoke slowly, but he attributed the sleepiness to the lateness of the hour, and stated that Huff's speech pattern that night seemed to be his normal one as observed on other occasions. Huff described his physical condition the night of his arrest as pretty bad and stated that he was just tired, from working hard. After defendant Huff spoke with Sheriff Schiele, he testified he remembered talking to another man who told him he ought to cooperate, but Huff still refused to talk. Some time later Huff apparently changed his mind and, in his words, told Deputy Sheriff Lyle Schiele (son of Sheriff Schiele and an old classmate and acquaintance of Huff's) that he was ready to get it over with. He then gave the statement at issue to Deputy Schiele at approximately 2:54 a. m. Deputy Lyle Schiele, who was also the arresting officer of Huff, testified as to this defendant's physical condition the night of his arrest. Schiele stated he followed defendant home as he drove his vehicle from the spot where his fellow worker had dropped him off in Vidalia after their ride home from work. He felt that Huff had driven fine and when he spoke to him he did not appear to be intoxicated or drugged or any sleepier than could be expected after working all day. Schiele also testified that he did not coerce Huff or promise him anything in order to get a statement from him and believed Huff's statement to be free and voluntary. Dr. Allen M. Read testified to the effects of the drug seconal on the human body. He stated that seconal was commonly used as a sleeping pill and had a depressant effect, making a person drowsy. The drug's action usually began within fifteen or twenty minutes from the time it was taken and its full effect would last about three to six hours, with a hang-on effect following. Dr. Read described the effect of the drug as simply making a person drowsy, but indicated that a high enough dose could have an hypnotic effect. He felt that two hundred milligrams of seconal could slow down a person's thought processes to the extent that he could not make a decision whether to remain silent and would not know whether a statement he made was inculpatory or incriminating. One or two beers would cause the effect of the drug to be slightly stronger, and the drug would also have a greater effect the more fatigued a person was. Dr. Read explained that the drug's effect varied depending on the particular individual and that age, height, weight and physical condition were relevant to the drug's effect. He testified that he has not examined defendant Huff to determine his particular physical condition. Considering all of the above testimony, we feel that John Huff freely and voluntarily made the statement at issue to the Sheriff's Department. He did not testify that he was threatened or coerced in any way. Huff's testimony regarding Sheriff Schiele's comments about federal involvement and promises to keep him in the Parish were specifically rebutted by Sheriff Schiele, and the trial judge apparently attached more credibility to the Sheriff's testimony on this point. It is significant, also, that Huff admitted that the Sheriff repeatedly told him I can't promise you anything, now. There was no evidence presented at the hearing on the motion to suppress of any other alleged promises or coercion other than Huff's statement that someone at the Sheriff's Office told him he ought to cooperate. This can not be considered a coercive statement, or threat, or a promise, and Huff testified that the statement did not change his decision not to say anything at that time. Huff testified that he finally told his acquaintance Lyle Schiele that I'm ready to get it over with, just prior to giving Schiele his statement. The defense points out that defendant was in custody at the courthouse from 11:50 until 2:54 before he made his statement, and argues that the state cannot account for all of this time period. There is no allegation of threats, coercion or promises made to Huff other than those addressed above. In the absence of some indiction of an event in this time frame that would affect the voluntary nature of his statement, we do not feel that the failure of the state to account for Huff's activities for every moment of time spent in custody should affect the admissibility of Huff's statement. The testimony also indicates that Huff's statement made approximately 4½ hours after he allegedly took seconal was not rendered involuntary by the effect of the drug. Even assuming defendant took the drug in the amount he claims, the testimony as to its effects on Huff is far from conclusive. The doctor who testified did not particularize the effects of the drug as to Huff, although he stipulated that the drug's effect varied among individuals. Also, he stated that the drug simply made one sleepy, and only that an unspecified high dosage could have an hypnotic effect. His opinion that someone would be unable to make a decision as to a waiver of his rights must be discounted as a hypothesis that was not related to any of the facts surrounding Huff's waiver. Huff himself testified that he felt sleepy. Sheriff Schiele and Deputy Schiele both confirmed that defendant acted sleepy, but not intoxicated or drugged, according to Deputy Schiele. An examination of the transcript of Huff's statement does not reveal that Huff was suffering from any impairment to his ability to make a knowing and intelligent waiver of his right to remain silent. There is no indication that Huff requested sleep or stated to the Sheriff's Department personnel that he was, for any reason, overly drowsy or not in control of himself. There is no absolute duty on law enforcement officials to question an arrested suspect as to his physical condition prior to taking a statement from him. Under the evidence we have before us, we feel that the state has met its burden of proving that defendant John Huff's statement was made freely and voluntarily, and that he made a knowing and intelligent waiver of his right to remain silent.