Court Opinion

ID: 9900777
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-11-20 15:05:10.434046+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:21:17.725826
License: Public Domain

SYLLABUS

This syllabus is not part of the Court’s opinion. It has been prepared by the Office
of the Clerk for the convenience of the reader. It has been neither reviewed nor
approved by the Court and may not summarize all portions of the opinion.

                 State v. Amandeep K. Tiwana (A-36-22) (087919)

Argued September 26, 2023 -- Decided November 20, 2023

SOLOMON, J., writing for a unanimous Court.

        The Court considers whether an investigating detective’s self-introduction to
defendant Amandeep K. Tiwana at her bedside in the hospital following a car crash
initiated a custodial interrogation or its functional equivalent warranting the
administration of warnings under Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966).

       On April 28, 2020, defendant, while driving in Jersey City, struck a police
officer and collided with two police cruisers. Defendant and three injured officers
were transported to Jersey City Medical Center. Defendant’s blood alcohol content
was 0.268%, three times the legal limit. Detective Anthony Espaillat of the
Regional Collision Investigation Unit of the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office
arrived at the hospital and spoke first to the injured officers in the emergency room.

       Two uniformed police officers were stationed outside the curtain separating
defendant’s bed from other patients. Detective Espaillat walked up to defendant’s
bed, introduced himself as a detective with the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office,
and explained that he was assigned to investigate the accident. Espaillat testified
that, as soon as he had spoken, defendant immediately complained of chest pain and
said “she only had two shots prior to the crash.” Espaillat directed defendant not to
make any other statements. He clarified that he did not come to the hospital to ask
her questions and that he wanted to interview her at a later date at the Prosecutor’s
Office. The entire interaction lasted “less than five minutes.” The next day,
defendant went to the Prosecutor’s Office and invoked her Miranda rights.

       A grand jury indicted defendant for three counts of assault by auto. Pretrial,
the State moved to admit defendant’s statement at the hospital. Following an
evidentiary hearing, the trial court denied the State’s motion and the Appellate
Division affirmed. Both courts found that a custodial interrogation occurred at the
hospital and the detective’s failure to give Miranda warnings rendered defendant’s
statement inadmissible. The Court granted leave to appeal. 253 N.J. 431 (2023).

                                           1
HELD: Defendant was in custody at the hospital in light of the police presence
around her bed area. But no interrogation or its functional equivalent occurred
before her spontaneous and unsolicited admission. Miranda warnings were therefore
not required, and defendant’s statement -- that she “only had two shots prior to the
crash” -- is admissible at trial.

1. To protect a suspect’s right against self-incrimination, law enforcement officers
must administer Miranda warnings when a suspect is in police custody and subject to
interrogation. The parties do not dispute that defendant was in custody at the
hospital. The sole issue is whether Detective Espaillat interrogated defendant in
violation of his duty to first inform her of her right to remain silent. (pp. 10-11)

2. The United States Supreme Court in Rhode Island v. Innis clarified that
“interrogation” for Miranda purposes occurs when a suspect “is subjected to either
express questioning or its functional equivalent,” which may include “any words or
actions on the part of the police . . . that the police should know are reasonably
likely to elicit an incriminating response from the suspect.” 446 U.S. 291, 300-01
(1980). But the Supreme Court stressed that the police “cannot be held accountable
for the unforeseeable results of their words or actions.” Id. at 301-02. (pp. 11-12)

3. The Court reviews several New Jersey cases applying the Innis interrogation
standard. For example, in State v. Hubbard, the Court concluded that the defendant
was interrogated by police because “the targeted questions reflect[ed] a clear attempt
on the part of the detective to cause defendant to incriminate himself.” 222 N.J.
249, 272 (2015). However, in State v. Beckler, the Appellate Division upheld the
admissibility of the defendant’s custodial statements because they “were unsolicited,
spontaneous, and not made in response to questioning or its functional equivalent.”
366 N.J. Super. 16, 25 (App. Div. 2004). (pp. 13-16)

4. Here, defendant was not subject to a custodial interrogation or its functional
equivalent when she stated that she “only had two shots prior to the crash.” No
questioning occurred and Espaillat could not have foreseen that his introduction was
reasonably likely to elicit an immediate incriminating response. Rather, defendant
spontaneously made an unsolicited incriminating statement while in custody. The
trial court and Appellate Division relied heavily on the three police officers in or just
outside defendant’s bed area at the time Espaillat introduced himself. That fact
alone may establish custody, but it does not establish interrogation. (pp. 16-18)

      REVERSED and REMANDED to the trial court.

CHIEF JUSTICE RABNER and JUSTICES PATTERSON, PIERRE-LOUIS,
WAINER APTER, FASCIALE, and NORIEGA join in JUSTICE SOLOMON’s
opinion.
                                           2
        SUPREME COURT OF NEW JERSEY
               A-36 September Term 2022
                         087919

                  State of New Jersey,

                   Plaintiff-Appellant,

                            v.

                 Amandeep K. Tiwana,

                 Defendant-Respondent.

           On appeal from the Superior Court,
                  Appellate Division.

       Argued                        Decided
  September 26, 2023             November 20, 2023

 Patrick F. Galdieri, II, Assistant Prosecutor, argued the
 cause for appellant (Esther Suarez, Hudson County
 Prosecutor, attorney; Patrick F. Galdieri, II, of counsel
 and on the briefs).

 Emily K. Graham, Assistant Deputy Public Defender,
 argued the cause for respondent (Joseph E. Krakora,
 Public Defender, attorney; Emily K. Graham, of counsel
 and on the briefs).

 Steven K. Cuttonaro, Deputy Attorney General, argued
 the cause for amicus curiae Attorney General of New
 Jersey (Matthew J. Platkin, Attorney General, attorney;
 Steven K. Cuttonaro, of counsel and on the brief).

JUSTICE SOLOMON delivered the opinion of the Court.

                            1
      Following a car crash near the Holland Tunnel that left two police

officers in critical condition, an investigating detective visited defendant, the

driver of the car that struck the officers’ vehicles, in the hospital. The

detective approached and introduced himself to defendant and advised her that

he was investigating the collision. In response, defendant complained of chest

pain and stated that she “only had two shots [of alcohol] prior to the crash.”

      The trial court suppressed defendant’s statement and the Appellate

Division affirmed. Both courts found that a custodial interrogation occurred at

the hospital and that the detective’s failure to give Miranda warnings rendered

defendant’s statement inadmissible. We now reverse. As the parties agree,

defendant was in custody at the hospital in light of the police presence around

her bed area. But no interrogation or its functional equivalent occurred before

her spontaneous and unsolicited admission. Miranda warnings were therefore

not required, and defendant’s statement -- that she “only had two shots prior to

the crash” -- is admissible at trial.

                                         I.

                                        A.

      Just after midnight on April 28, 2020, defendant Amandeep Tiwana,

while driving on Route 139 in Jersey City, bound for the Holland Tunnel,

struck a police officer and collided with two police cruisers. Three officers

                                         2
were injured in the crash. Evidence obtained from defendant’s car showed that

she was traveling at eighty-two miles per hour prior to the crash; the posted

speed limit was forty-five miles per hour.

      Defendant and the injured officers were transported to Jersey City

Medical Center. At around 1:00 a.m., following routine triage, hospital staff

noted that defendant was “[s]table enough” to respond to questions but

complained of pain in her chest and arms. A blood draw showed her blood

alcohol content was 0.268%, three times the legal limit.

      Detective Anthony Espaillat of the Regional Collision Investigation Unit

of the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office was assigned to investigate the

crash. Detective Espaillat arrived at the hospital at about 2:40 a.m. and spoke

first to the injured officers in the emergency room. The emergency room

consisted of a row of “beds divided by cloth curtains on both sides,” with

curtains further separating the beds from the rest of the room. The injured

officers and defendant were all in the same room, “two or three beds” apart,

separated by curtains. Two uniformed Jersey City police officers were

stationed outside the curtain separating defendant’s bed from other patients.

                                       3
       After speaking to the injured officers, Detective Espaillat approached

defendant.1 He walked up to defendant’s bed, introduced himself as a

detective with the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, and explained that he

was assigned to investigate the accident. Espaillat testified that, as soon as he

had spoken, defendant “immediately . . . started complaining of . . . chest pain”

and said “she only had two shots prior to the crash.”

       Detective Espaillat directed defendant not to make any other statements.

He clarified that he did not come to the hospital to ask her questions and that

he wanted to interview her at a later date at the Prosecutor’s Office, where the

conversation would be recorded. The entire interaction lasted “less than five

minutes,” and Detective Espaillat was in the hospital for a total of fifteen

minutes. No other investigator spoke with defendant while she was in the

hospital.

       The next day, defendant went to the Prosecutor’s Office as requested,

and invoked her Miranda2 rights.

1
  The trial court noted that “Detective Espaillat and two other officers[]
entered the room.” The record before us shows that the two officers were
stationed near defendant’s bed before Detective Espaillat arrived, not that the
three approached defendant together.
2
    Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966).
                                        4
                                        B.

      A Hudson County Grand Jury indicted defendant for three counts of

assault by auto. Pretrial, the State moved to admit defendant’s statement at the

hospital that she “only had two shots prior to the crash.” Following an

N.J.R.E. 104(c) evidentiary hearing, the trial judge denied the State’s motion.

      Applying the two-pronged Miranda test for custodial interrogations, the

court found under the first prong, whether defendant was in custody, that

defendant was in custody in the hospital when she admitted that she had

consumed alcohol before the crash. Under the second prong, whether

defendant was subjected to interrogation, the judge found that defendant would

have believed Detective Espaillat was there to question her, noting the

presence of two other officers. The judge added that the officers “had reason

to know that the presence of the three of them walking into a hospital room,

where the [d]efendant was clearly not free to leave, may elicit an incriminating

response or statement made by the [d]efendant.” The judge stated that

“actions, rather than words alone, by detectives or officers may . . . satisfy the

requirement of interrogation.”

      The State moved for leave to appeal the trial court’s decision and for a

stay of the proceedings, both of which the Appellate Division granted.

                                         5
      On appeal, the State argued the trial court’s ruling “yields the absurd

result of requiring law enforcement officers to administer Miranda warnings

every time they approach someone prior to introducing themselves.” Further,

the State contended it was “unforeseeable” that defendant would make an

incriminating statement immediately after Detective Espaillat introduced

himself.

      Noting that the parties did not dispute whether defendant was in custody,

the Appellate Division focused on whether defendant was subjected to

interrogation by Detective Espaillat. The Appellate Division agreed with the

trial court and rejected the State’s argument that the lack of direct questioning

meant defendant was not being interrogated. The Appellate Division found

that, because the detectives were not there to render medical treatment, “the

only reasonable understanding of their presence was to obtain information

about a criminal investigation.” Thus, the Appellate Division affirmed the trial

court’s suppression of defendant’s statement, stating the court’s analysis “was

based on correct legal principles and was supported by the evidence found

credible.”

      The State filed a motion for leave to appeal, limited to the admissibility

of defendant’s statement to police at the hospital, which this Court granted.

253 N.J. 431 (2023). We also granted leave to the Association of Criminal

                                        6
Defense Lawyers of New Jersey (ACDL) and the Attorney General of New

Jersey to appear as amici curiae.

                                        II.

                                        A.

      The State asks us to reverse the Appellate Division and hold that

defendant’s hospital-bed statement was admissible despite the lack of Miranda

warnings because it was not the product of interrogation or its functional

equivalent under the standard established in Rhode Island v. Innis, 446 U.S.

291 (1980). It notes Detective Espaillat did not ask defendant any questions,

allude to any details about his investigation, or invite any response. The State

argues that, instead, defendant spontaneously and voluntarily complained of

chest pain and announced that she had consumed two shots of alcohol prior to

the crash. It contends that because Detective Espaillat could not have

anticipated that defendant would blurt out incriminating information in

response to his mere introduction, he did not interrogate defendant. The State

observes that when unexpected incriminating statements are made by a

defendant in custody in response to “non-investigative” statements by police,

those statements fall short of the Innis standard.

      The Attorney General agrees with the State and argues that Detective

Espaillat’s introductory remarks are not the type of “inherently coercive

                                        7
conduct” that amounts to interrogation or its functional equivalent. The

Attorney General contends that a reasonable officer could not expect that

briefly introducing oneself would produce a spontaneous inculpatory

admission.

                                       B.

      Defendant argues that the record supports the trial court’s decision and

that, under the totality of the circumstances, Detective Espaillat should have

known that his decision to approach defendant was reasonably likely to elicit

an incriminating response. Defendant asserts that Detective Espaillat had no

legitimate purpose in approaching her, and his stated goal of “making contact”

to advise her that she was under investigation was properly rejected by both

the trial court and the Appellate Division. Defendant further claims that, under

Innis, the only reasonable explanation for the detective’s presence was that he

was there to obtain information about a criminal investigation.

      The ACDL agrees with defendant and asserts that the State cannot

credibly argue police were present at defendant’s bedside for a benign or

innocent reason. The ACDL further asserts that the circumstances clearly

indicate police were hoping to elicit an incriminating statement.

                                        8
                                       III.

      We now turn to the issue before us -- whether the detective’s self-

introduction to defendant at her bedside initiated a custodial interrogation or

its functional equivalent under Innis. Because we find that Detective

Espaillat’s introduction did not initiate a custodial interrogation, we reverse the

judgment of the Appellate Division and remand to the trial court for further

proceedings.

                                        A.

      We accord deference to the trial court’s factual findings, State v. Elders,

192 N.J. 224, 243 (2007), and will uphold “factual findings in support of

granting or denying a motion to suppress . . . when ‘those findings are

supported by sufficient credible evidence in the record.’” State v. A.M., 237

N.J. 384, 395 (2019) (quoting State v. S.S., 229 N.J. 360, 374 (2017)). But we

do not defer to a trial judge’s legal conclusions, which we review de novo.

State v. Rockford, 213 N.J. 424, 440 (2013).

      Here, we review de novo the suppression of an incriminating statement

under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution and this state’s

common law, now codified in a statute and evidence rule. See U.S. Const.

amend. V (“No person . . . shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a

witness against himself . . . .”); N.J.S.A. 2A:84A-19 (“[E]very natural person

                                        9
has a right to refuse to disclose in an action or to a police officer or other

official any matter that will incriminate him or expose him to a penalty or a

forfeiture of his estate . . . .”); N.J.R.E. 503 (same as N.J.S.A. 2A:84A-19).

      The United States Supreme Court clarified the Fifth Amendment right

against self-incrimination in Miranda by establishing safeguards “to protect a

suspect’s right against self-incrimination from the psychological pressures

inherent in a police-dominated atmosphere that might compel a person ‘to

speak where he would not otherwise do so freely.’” State v. L.H., 239 N.J. 22,

41-42 (2019) (quoting Miranda, 384 U.S. at 467). To counteract the pressures

inherent in custodial interrogation, the Court mandated a set of warnings that

law enforcement officers must give a suspect before beginning an interrogation

-- warnings that, in part, inform “the suspect that ‘he has the right to remain

silent’ and ‘that anything he says can be used against him in a court of law.’”

Id. at 42 (quoting Miranda, 384 U.S. at 479).

      The failure to administer Miranda warnings prior to a custodial

interrogation “creates a presumption of compulsion,” and any unwarned

statements must be suppressed -- even when they “are otherwise voluntary

within the meaning of the Fifth Amendment.” Oregon v. Elstad, 470 U.S. 298,

307 (1985); see also State v. O’Neill, 193 N.J. 148, 170 (2007).

                                         10
      Custodial interrogation is defined as “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.” Miranda, 384 U.S.

at 444. Therefore, whether a suspect must be informed of the rights under

Miranda depends on (1) whether the suspect is in police custody, and (2)

whether police subjected the suspect to interrogation. State v. Hubbard, 222

N.J. 249, 266 (2015). In resolving whether police conduct constitutes

interrogation or its functional equivalent, we consider whether, under the

circumstances, a police officer’s questioning or the functional equivalent was

“particularly ‘evocative’” or “reasonably likely to elicit an incriminating

response.” Innis, 446 U.S. at 303; accord State in Int. of A.A., 240 N.J. 341,

354 (2020).

      The parties in this case do not dispute that defendant was in police

custody at the hospital. The sole issue presented to this Court is whether

Detective Espaillat interrogated defendant in violation of the State’s duty to

first inform defendant of her right to remain silent.

                                        B.

      The United States Supreme Court in Rhode Island v. Innis clarified the

meaning of “interrogation” under Miranda, noting that “interrogation” for

Miranda purposes “must reflect a measure of compulsion above and beyond

                                        11
that inherent in custody itself.” 446 U.S. at 298, 300. The Court in Innis

concluded that Miranda applies whenever a suspect is in police custody and “is

subjected to either express questioning or its functional equivalent,” which

may include “any words or actions on the part of the police . . . that the police

should know are reasonably likely to elicit an incriminating response from the

suspect.” Id. at 300-01 (footnote omitted).3 The Court stressed that, although

the latter portion of its definition of interrogation “focuses primarily upon the

perceptions of the suspect, rather than the intent of the police,” the police

nevertheless “surely cannot be held accountable for the unforeseeable results

of their words or actions.” Id. at 301-02.

      In Innis, officers arrested the defendant for robbery with a sawed-off

shotgun but did not recover the firearm. Id. at 293-94. Innis received his

Miranda warnings, declined to waive his rights, and insisted he speak with a

lawyer. Id. at 294. While en route to the police station, officers transporting

Innis commented to each other about the risk that students who attended a

nearby school “might find a weapon” and “hurt themselves.” Id. at 294-95.

Innis interrupted the conversation and told the officers to “turn the car around

so he could show them where the gun was located”; he then led police to

3
  We do not rely on State v. Barnes, 54 N.J. 1 (1969), which predated Innis
and applied a different standard.

                                        12
where he hid the weapon. Id. at 295. The Court found that Innis had not been

subjected to interrogation because the police did not expressly question him.

Id. at 302. Moreover, the dialogue between the two officers was not the

“functional equivalent” of questioning because reasonable officers would not

have known that their conversation was likely to elicit an incriminating

response. Ibid.

      We applied the Innis interrogation standard in Hubbard, in which police

interviewed the defendant at the police station about serious injuries to his

five-month-old child. 222 N.J. at 254, 259. A detective questioned Hubbard

for approximately one hour, asking him to account for his whereabouts on the

day of the incident, whether he loved his child, and whether he had ever been

“frustrated with” or “resented the baby.” Id. at 271-72. The detective never

administered Miranda warnings or told Hubbard he was free to leave. Ibid.

      Emphasizing “the conditions, substance, and duration of the interview,”

we held that the detective’s questioning constituted custodial interrogation and

that Hubbard’s statement had to be suppressed. Id. at 272. We concluded that

Hubbard was in police custody and was interrogated by police because the

questions “roamed far from merely obtaining information that might assist the

child’s treatment.” Id. at 271. “[T]he targeted questions,” in our view,

                                       13
“reflect[ed] a clear attempt on the part of the detective to cause defendant to

incriminate himself.” Id. at 272.

       Our recent decision in A.A. further clarified the meaning of the

“functional equivalent of interrogation.” 240 N.J. at 344-45. In that case,

police arrested A.A., a juvenile, and contacted his mother to come to the police

station. Id. at 347, 357. Police informed A.A.’s mother of his involvement in

a shooting and then brought her to the holding cell to see her son; five officers

remained in the room while the two spoke. Ibid. Police did not inform A.A. of

his Miranda rights in his mother’s presence, and A.A. made “critical

admissions to his mother” in front of police. Id. at 357. We held that A.A.’s

statements were inadmissible because “[t]he police should have known it was

reasonably likely that A.A.’s mother would elicit incriminating responses from

him.” Id. at 357-58. Relying on Innis, we explained that “A.A. was subjected

to the ‘functional equivalent’ of express questioning while in custody” because

A.A.’s incriminating statements, although made to his mother, were also made

in the presence of police officers. Id. at 358 (quoting Innis, 446 U.S. at 300-

01).

       In several cases, the Appellate Division has found that police action was

not the functional equivalent of interrogation. For example, in State v. Ramos,

police asked the suspect where his glasses were. 217 N.J. Super. 530, 534

                                        14
(App. Div. 1987). The officers knew that the defendant wore glasses and

posed the question while he was getting dressed to be taken to police

headquarters, in the same way that they might have asked him where his shoes

were if he had been barefoot. Id. at 537. The Appellate Division therefore

found that Ramos’s response -- that he did not wear glasses -- was admissible

as a “casual remark” that did not contravene Miranda’s protections. Ibid. The

appellate court noted that “[t]he unexpected response that defendant did not

wear glasses was not the result of an interrogation as to whether defendant

wore glasses or not, but was a non-responsive answer to a question directed to

prod defendant to finish dressing so that he could be taken to police

headquarters.”

      Similarly, in State v. Beckler, police arrested the defendant and read him

his Miranda rights at the station, but they ceased questioning when they

determined “he did not understand what was happening.” 366 N.J. Super. 16,

22-23 (App. Div. 2004). While they transported the defendant to another part

of the station, he “just started talking” about prior paid sexual encounters with

underaged males. Id. at 23. The Appellate Division upheld the admissibility

of those statements because, although they were “made while [the] defendant

was in custody, [the statements] were unsolicited, spontaneous, and not made

                                       15
in response to ‘questioning or its functional equivalent.’” Id. at 25 (quoting

State v. Ward, 240 N.J. Super. 412, 418 (App. Div. 1990)).

      In other cases, the Appellate Division has found no Miranda violation

when a defendant’s unexpected statements to police were in response to

routine questions or incident to arrest and booking. See State v. M.L., 253 N.J.

Super. 13, 19-22 (App. Div. 1991) (finding no Miranda violation when police

questioning was premised on concerns for a child and an incriminating

response was not anticipated); State v. Mallozzi, 246 N.J. Super. 509, 516-17

(App. Div. 1991) (holding that merely informing the defendant of the charges

against him during the booking process did not constitute the functional

equivalent of interrogation).

                                        IV.

      Weighing the circumstances of this case, we determine that defendant

was not subject to a custodial interrogation or its functional equivalent when

she spontaneously stated that she “only had two shots prior to the crash.”

      In Hubbard, police asked the defendant “targeted questions” which

“reflect[ed] a clear attempt . . . to cause defendant to incriminate himself.”

222 N.J. at 272. Here, it is undisputed that defendant was in custody at the

hospital. But the record shows that no questioning occurred -- Detective

Espaillat simply introduced himself. Law enforcement officers “cannot be

                                        16
held accountable for the unforeseeable results of their words or actions” and

we find that Detective Espaillat could not have foreseen that his introduction

was “reasonably likely to elicit an [immediate] incriminating response.” See

Innis, 446 U.S. at 301-03.

      Although Detective Espaillat approached defendant after she provided

her medical history to hospital staff, he did not engage in what the Supreme

Court termed particularly “evocative” conduct reasonably likely to yield

incriminating statements from defendant. Id. at 303 (rejecting the defendant’s

arguments that police conduct was particularly “evocative” “under the

circumstances”); cf. A.A., 240 N.J. at 357-58 (holding that, “[u]nder the

circumstances, it was hardly a surprise that A.A.” made incriminating

statements to his mother in front of police). Rather, defendant spontaneously

made an unsolicited incriminating statement while in custody, like the

defendant in Beckler. The Appellate Division found in that case, and we agree,

that “unsolicited, spontaneous” statements are not protected by Miranda when

those statements are not made in response to questioning or its functional

equivalent. Beckler, 366 N.J. Super. at 25-26.

      Both the trial court and Appellate Division here relied heavily on the

police presence at the time Detective Espaillat introduced himself -- three

police officers in or just outside defendant’s bed area. Although that fact alone

                                       17
may establish custody, which the parties do not dispute, it does not establish

interrogation.

                                       V.

      For the reasons set forth above, we reverse the judgment of the Appellate

Division and remand to the trial court for further proceedings consistent with

this opinion.

    CHIEF JUSTICE RABNER and JUSTICES PATTERSON, PIERRE-
LOUIS, WAINER APTER, FASCIALE, and NORIEGA join in JUSTICE
SOLOMON’s opinion.

                                       18