Opinion ID: 781722
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Ismoil's Motion to Suppress His Statement to Jordanian Authorities

Text: 335 Ismoil challenges the District Court's denial of his pre-trial motion to suppress the post-arrest written statement he provided to Jordanian officials on the ground that the Jordanians did not read him his Miranda rights before taking the statement. Ismoil also challenges the District Court's subsequent denial of his two renewed motions to suppress both his written and his oral post-arrest statements on the basis that (1) his statements were not voluntary and (2) the Government had failed to comply with discovery orders. As stated above, we review the legal issues presented in a motion to suppress de novo, and, viewing the facts in the light most favorable to the Government, we review the District Court's factual findings for clear error. See Casado, 303 F.3d at 443. 336 In Ismoil's affidavit accompanying his December 15, 1995 pre-trial motion, he asserts that the Jordanian officials who arrested him repeatedly questioned him and asked him to write a statement. See Ismoil Aff. in Supp. of Mot. to Suppress ¶ 3 (Ismoil Aff.). He further stated that at various times during his custody he heard these officials speaking in English on the telephone. See id. ¶¶ 5-6. Although Ismoil asserts that he was not given Miranda warnings by the Jordanian officials, he does not claim in his affidavit that they mistreated him in any way or that his statements were given involuntarily. See id. ¶ 3. In its opposition to Ismoil's motion, the Government submitted an affidavit from FBI Special Agent Brian Fortin asserting that the United States government had not encouraged, requested, or participated in Ismoil's interrogation or written statement, and that the government did not receive Ismoil's written statement from the Jordanian authorities until after Ismoil was in United States custody. See Fortin Aff. in Opp. to Mot. to Suppress ¶¶ 4, 7-9. The District Court denied from the bench Ismoil's pre-trial motion concerning his written statement and denied in a written opinion Ismoil's first renewed motion, in which he sought to suppress the oral statements he made to Jordanian authorities. In denying these two motions, the District Court concluded that Ismoil had failed to allege sufficient United States involvement in his interrogation to warrant suppression of either statement, relying on Lira, 515 F.2d at 71 (denying motion to suppress where the only suggestion of possible involvement on the part of United States officials comes from [defendant's] testimony that he heard English spoken at the time of his torture). 337 Prior to the testimony of Brigadier General Fayez Qablan, the Jordanian official who had obtained Ismoil's written statement and through whom it was offered at trial, Ismoil renewed his motion to suppress a second time, arguing now that newly discovered evidence found in notes taken by Qablan at the time of Ismoil's interrogation revealed that (1) the Jordanians had been asked to help by the United States in apprehending Ismoil, and (2) Qablan had told Ismoil that he would not turn his statement over to the United States. The District Court denied this renewed motion on the ground that it added nothing new to the previous motions. 338 We hold that the District Court properly denied all of Ismoil's motions to suppress. As an initial matter, we reject Ismoil's contention that the District Court improperly considered the Government's affidavit in determining the admissibility of Ismoil's statement. The Federal Rules of Evidence explicitly permit the District Court to do so. See Fed.R.Evid. 104(a) (court not bound by rules of evidence in preliminary proceedings concerning admissibility of evidence, except for issues of privilege); Fed.R.Evid. 1101(d)(1) (evidence rules inapplicable to [t]he determination of questions of fact preliminary to admissibility of evidence when the issue is to be determined by the court under rule 104); see also United States v. Raddatz, 447 U.S. 667, 679, 100 S.Ct. 2406, 65 L.Ed.2d 424 (1980) (At a suppression hearing, the court may rely on hearsay and other evidence, even though that evidence would not be admissible at trial.). 339 As for Ismoil's claim that his statements should be suppressed because he was not read Miranda warnings, the law is settled that statements taken by foreign police in the absence of Miranda warnings are admissible if voluntary. See United States v. Bagaric, 706 F.2d 42, 69 (2d Cir.1983), overruled on other grounds, Nat'l Org. for Women, Inc. v. Scheidler, 510 U.S. 249, 259-60, 114 S.Ct. 798, 127 L.Ed.2d 99 (1994); United States v. Welch, 455 F.2d 211, 213 (2d Cir.1972); United States v. Nagelberg, 434 F.2d 585, 587 n. 1 (2d Cir.1970); United States v. Bin Laden, 132 F.Supp.2d 168, 182 n. 9 (S.D.N.Y. 2001); see also United States v. Covington, 783 F.2d 1052, 1056 (9th Cir.1985). There are two exceptions to this rule. 340 One exception is the joint venture doctrine, under which statements elicited during overseas interrogation by foreign police in the absence of Miranda warnings must be suppressed whenever United States law enforcement agents actively participate in questioning conducted by foreign authorities. See, e.g., United States v. Heller, 625 F.2d 594, 599 (5th Cir.1980); Pfeifer v. United States Bureau of Prisons, 615 F.2d 873, 877 (9th Cir. 1980); United States v. Emery, 591 F.2d 1266, 1267 (9th Cir.1978); United States v. Hensel, 509 F.Supp. 1364, 1375 (D.Me. 1981). The Second Circuit has implicitly adopted this doctrine, but has failed to define its precise contours in speculating that the joint venture doctrine may also apply where United States officials, although asking no questions directly, use foreign officials as their interrogation agents in order to circumvent the requirements of Miranda. See Bagaric, 706 F.2d at 69; Welch, 455 F.2d at 213; see also Heller, 625 F.2d at 599. We agree with the District Court that the joint venture doctrine is inapplicable here because Ismoil's only support for his allegation that United States agents played a role in his interrogation is his assertion that he heard English being spoken on the telephone and the fact that Qablan's notes stated that the United States had asked the Jordanians to help in his apprehension. In United States v. Lira, we held that evidence that the United States may have solicited the assistance of a foreign government in the arrest of a fugitive within its borders is insufficient as a matter of law to constitute United States participation under the joint venture doctrine, noting that United States law enforcement officers are not required to monitor the conduct of foreign officials who execute a request for extradition or expulsion. See Lira, 515 F.2d at 71. We also held that a defendant's allegation that he had heard English spoken was insufficient to warrant dismissal of an indictment. See id. In line with that decision, we conclude that the evidence proffered by Ismoil is insufficient to warrant the suppression of a statement given to foreign officials. 341 The second exception to the general admissibility of voluntary statements taken by foreign officials is that any such statements obtained under circumstances that shock the judicial conscience will be suppressed. See United States v. Cotroni, 527 F.2d 708, 712 n. 10 (2d Cir.1975) (stating that if the conduct of foreign police [were] so reprehensible as to shock the conscience, then application of the exclusionary rule might be warranted); Nagelberg, 434 F.2d at 587 n. 1 (noting that there [was] no claim of `rubbing pepper in the eyes,' or other shocking conduct that might warrant exclusion); United States v. Molina-Chacon, 627 F.Supp. 1253, 1262 (E.D.N.Y.1986) (Statements obtained by foreign officials under circumstances that shock the judicial conscience will be suppressed.), aff'd sub nom. United States v. DiTommaso, 817 F.2d 201 (2d Cir.1987); see also Heller, 625 F.2d at 599. This exception has no application here because Ismoil has not alleged that he was mistreated in any way by the Jordanians or that his statements were obtained in a manner that shocks the judicial conscience. 342 On appeal, Ismoil argues that Qablan's statement to Ismoil that he would not turn his statement over to the Americans raises a question as to the voluntariness of Ismoil's statements, and he faults the District Court for not addressing this claim when it denied his motion. It is not clear to us, reading Ismoil's motion papers, that he actually raised this claim in the District Court. But even if he did, we conclude that the claim lacks foundation and merit. Ismoil's affidavit in support of his pre-trial motion to suppress contained no assertion that his statement was involuntary and made no mention of Qablan's purported assurance, see Ismoil Aff. ¶¶ 1-8, nor did Ismoil file a new affidavit with the second renewed motion asserting reliance on Qablan's statement. Nor do we see any reason why Qablan's assurance, even if true, would lead to a finding of involuntariness. 343 Finally, Ismoil claims that his statements should have been suppressed because the Government violated Fed. R.Crim.P. 16 and the District Court's discovery orders. He argues that the Government's failure to disclose Qablan's notes concerning Ismoil's statements until the day before Qablan testified was a violation of Rule 16. Assuming without deciding that there was a Rule 16 violation, we nevertheless reject Ismoil's claim because it is clear that he suffered no prejudice from the Government's failure to disclose. The Government had previously disclosed the substance of Qablan's notes and Ismoil's statements, and disclosure of the notes themselves would have added nothing material to the defense case. See United States v. McClelland, 141 F.3d 967, 972 (10th Cir.1998) (affirming denial of motion to suppress based on purported Rule 16 violation where defendant had failed to demonstrate prejudice). 344 Ismoil also argues that the Government failed to comply with the District Court's discovery order to provide certain information to Ismoil. When this issue was first raised in the District Court, however, the Government asserted that it had complied and provided the District Court with a copy of its internal directory showing that a discovery letter had been drafted. The District Judge accepted the Government's representation in part because his law clerks remembered seeing the letter. Ismoil's effort to revisit the issue here is unavailing because we will not second-guess the District Court's findings of fact on the matter or its conclusion that the Government complied with one of its own orders. In any event, Ismoil has alleged no prejudice from this alleged failure to comply.