Opinion ID: 336608
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: admission of the statements

Text: 7 At trial, the appellant disputed that proper warnings were given prior to the two statements made on March 26th. On appeal, he basically abandons that contention since it is clear from the record that proper warnings were given and waivers were secured prior to those statements. He focuses instead upon the April 2d statement and contends that proper warnings were not given nor a valid waiver secured prior to that statement. 8 The District Court 3 held that the April 2d statement was admissible. In so doing, it stated: 9 With respect to the    statements, the Court finds that the Miranda warnings were given, that the defendant knowingly and intelligently waived his privilege against self-incrimination, that the defendant voluntarily, knowingly and intelligently waived his right to have retained or appointed counsel present at any interrogation or statement made by him, and that the confession or statements were freely and voluntarily made. The Court further finds that although it does specifically find that all the requirements of Miranda were met with and that although the particular statements where he was not reread the Miranda statements, he was asked whether he was aware of and knew what the contents of the Miranda warnings were and he acknowledged that he did know and therefore he waived at that point any further formal giving of the statements at that time. The Court will hold therefore that the various statements are admissible in evidence. 10 While the record is clear, and the government concedes, that the appellant was not given the full Miranda warnings immediately prior to the April 2d statement, the lack of such warnings did not render that statement inadmissible. Miranda warnings are required only when statements are taken from a defendant in a custodial interrogation. 384 U.S. at 444, 86 S.Ct. at 1612. The Court explained the term custodial interrogation: 11 By custodial interrogation, we mean questioning initiated by law enforcement officers after a person has been taken into custody or otherwise deprived of his freedom of action in any significant way. (emphasis added) Id. The Court later commented that: 12 There is no requirement that police stop a person who enters a police station and states that he wishes to confess to a crime, or a person who calls the police to offer a confession or any other statement he desires to make. Volunteered statements of any kind are not barred by the Fifth Amendment and their admissibility is not affected by our holding today. (footnote omitted) 13 Id. at 478, 86 S.Ct. at 1630. Thus, statements which stem from interviews initiated by a defendant need not be preceded by the warnings required in Miranda. See Holloway v. United States, 495 F.2d 835, 838 (10th Cir. 1974); Massie v. Virginia, 348 F.Supp. 160, 162-63 (W.D.Va.1972). See also People v. Tomita, 260 Cal.App.2d 88, 66 Cal.Rptr. 739, 741 (1968). 14 The April 2d interview, delayed because of the blizzard, was in response to Standing Soldier's written request to Captain Hill in which he stated that he wanted to talk to an FBI agent or the officer in charge to clarify some statements he had made earlier and to clear Marvin Tootoo of any involvement in the incident. Captain Hill called FBI Agent Williams who told Hill that he was unable to come to Pine Ridge due to the blizzard, but that Hill should take the appellant's statement if he was willing to give one and that he would come down to Pine Ridge as soon as he could. Captain Hill, after giving the appellant proper Miranda warnings, listened to and transcribed the appellant's statement. From the record, it appears that it was not until April 2d that road conditions were such that the agents could return to Pine Ridge to talk to the appellant pursuant to his request of March 26th. Upon their return, Agent Williams interviewed the appellant and he gave the third statement. 15 Appellant contends that the interview by Captain Hill on the evening of the 26th terminated his request to talk to the FBI since he was interviewed at that time. He contends that he did not renew his request subsequent to the interview with Hill and therefore the April 2d interview was not made at his request. We disagree. 16 We find nothing in the record to indicate that Standing Soldier had withdrawn his request to make a statement to the FBI agents or that the statements made on April 2d were not volunteered by Standing Soldier. There is no suggestion that the delay caused by the blizzard operated in any coercive manner as a result of the appellant's incarceration to produce the statement which he had consistently sought to make. 4 The option to remain silent and to have an attorney, the critical safeguards to offset the coercive pressures of a custodial setting, see Michigan v. Mosley,423 U.S. 96, 103-05, 96 S.Ct. 321, 326-27, 46 L.Ed.2d 313 (1975), were again explained to him. Under these circumstances, additional Miranda warnings were not required. 5
17 The appellant contends that the government had probable cause to arrest him on March 26th, that the delay in not presenting him to a magistrate until April 4th was unnecessary, and that the April 2d statement was thus inadmissible under McNabb v. United States, 318 U.S. 332, 63 S.Ct. 608, 87 L.Ed. 819 (1943), and Mallory v. United States, 354 U.S. 449, 77 S.Ct. 1356, 1 L.Ed.2d 1479 (1957). The District Court found that under all of the facts and circumstances    there was not any unreasonable delay in bringing (the defendant) to formal arraignment before a U.S. Magistrate upon the charges which he now faces. 18 For purposes of evaluating a claim of impermissible delay of presentment before a magistrate, we look to the point in time at which the government had probable cause to arrest a defendant then in custody in order to measure the length of the delay. See United States v. Keeble, 459 F.2d 757, 759 (8th Cir. 1972), rev'd on other grounds, 412 U.S. 205, 93 S.Ct. 1993, 36 L.Ed.2d 844 (1973). We doubt that the FBI agents had probable cause to arrest the appellant on March 26th. His statements on that day did not establish that he was culpable of any criminal activities since he asserted a plausible story of self-defense, and the agents had not yet interviewed Tootoo or Red Cloud. It was not until April 2d that the appellant divulged that he had used excessive force and had exceeded the scope of any right to use self-defense, thereby supplying probable cause to arrest on the federal offense. The relevant period of delay was thus from April 2d, after the statement, until April 4th, when he was presented to a magistrate. No statements were made during this period. Even if we were to assume that the federal authorities had probable cause to arrest the appellant on March 26th, the delay which resulted was caused by the blizzard and poor road conditions, and the April 2d statement was thus not inadmissible because of unnecessary delay in presentment before a magistrate. 6 C. Voluntariness of the April 2d Statement 19 The appellant contends that the District Court erred in finding the April 2d statement to have been voluntary within the meaning of 18 U.S.C. § 3501(b). That section provides: 20 The trial judge in determining the issue of voluntariness shall take into consideration all the circumstances surrounding the giving of the confession, including (1) the time elapsing between arrest and arraignment of the defendant making the confession, if it was made after arrest and before arraignment, (2) whether such defendant knew the nature of the offense with which he was charged or of which he was suspected at the time of making the confession, (3) whether or not such defendant was advised or knew that he was not required to make any statement and that any such statement could be used against him, (4) whether or not such defendant had been advised prior to questioning of his right to the assistance of counsel; and (5) whether or not such defendant was without the assistance of counsel when questioned and when giving such confession. 21 The presence or absence of any of the above-mentioned factors to be taken into consideration by the judge need not be conclusive on the issue of voluntariness of the confession. 22 Our review of the record convinces us that the District Court's conclusion that the April 2d statement was voluntarily made, as reflected in its order denying the motion to suppress, 7 exhibited consideration of these factors, was not clearly erroneous, and should be affirmed. 23 Evidence of the three statements made by appellant was thus properly admitted into evidence by the District Court.