Arrest & Confessions Flashcards
What are the requirements of an arrest?
An arrest occurs whenever the police
- take someone into custody
- against her will
- for prosecution** or **interrogation
De Facto arrest when the poilce compel someone to come to the police station** for **questioning** or **fingerprinting
Need probable cause for a valid arrest
All offenses**, even those punishable only by a monetary fine, **permit a custodial arrest
When do you need an arrest warrant?
Not needed** to arrest someone in a **public place
- felony–when have probable cause to believe that the arrestee has committed a felony
- misdemeanor–any misdemeanor committed in their presence
Absent an emergency**, **arrest warrant is necessary** for someone **in his or her home
To arrest** someone **in** the **home of a third party**, police need an **arrest warrant and a search warrant
Common enterprise theory:
- in a traffic stop, where an officer discovers evidence of a crime that suggests a common unlawful enterprise between the driver and his passengers, officer may arrest any or all of them
- based on the reasonable inference of shared dominion and control over the contraband
Which consitutional provisions can be raised to bar a confession?
14th Amendment Due Process Clause
6th Amendment Right to Counsel
5th Amendment Miranda Doctrine
What is the standard in excluding confessions under the Due Process Clause?
Involuntariness in giving the confession
- confession was a product of police coercion that overbears the suspect’s will
What is the standard in excluding confessions under the 6th Amendment Right to Counsel?
Right attaches** when the defendant is **formally charged
- NOT upon arrest
Applies at all critical stages** of the prosecution that take place **after the filing of formal charges
Right is offense specific
- only applies to the crimes with which defendant is formally charged
- no protection for uncounseled interrogation for uncharged criminal activity
Violations of the 6th Amendment if the statements are
- deliberately elicited; and
- defendant did not knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waive his right to have attorney present
Remedy:
- nontrial proceedings–harmless error rule
- during trial–failure results in automatic reversal of the conviction
NOTE: these are express constitutional guarantees
What is the standard in excluding incriminating evidence under the 5th Amendment Miranda Doctrine?
Custody: totality of the circumstances
- whether a reasonable person would have felt that she was not at liberty** to **end** the interrogation and **leave; and
- whether the environment presents the same inherently coercive pressures as the station house–key
- factor in juvenile suspect’s age if relevant and officer’s awareness of such
- detainee must know that being interrogated–must have the badges of the coercive pressures of the station house
Interrogation:
- any** **conduct** the police **knew or should have known was likely to elicit an incriminating response
Communication:
- officer must reasonably convey** to the suspect his **core Miranda rights; and
- thereafter obtain a valid waiver** of the suspect’s rights to **silence** and **counsel
NOTE: implied rights in the Self-Incrimination Clause of the 5th Amendment
NOTE: Miranda does not apply to incriminating statements made spontaneously–not product of an interrogation
NOTE: Miranda does not apply to custodial interrogations prompted by an immediate concern for public safety
What are the Miranda rights?
Four core rights:
- Right to remain silent
- anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law
- you have the right to an attorney
- if you cannot afford one, an attorney will be appointed for you
What are the requirements to a valid Miranda waiver?
Must be knowing** and **intelligent–suspect understands
- the nature of the rights; and
- the consequences of abandoning them
Must be voluntary**–**not the product of police coercion
Waiver may be implied by a course of conduct that indicates the desire to speak with police
- if a suspect has received and understood Miranda rights, waives his right by making an uncoerced statement to the police
Burden of proof of a valid waiver on the prosecution** by a **preponderance of the evidence
How may a suspect invoke his Miranda rights?
Right to remain silent:
- must unambiguously invoke the right
- once invoked, police must scrupulously honor the invocation–1) no badgering, and 2) wait a significant period of time before reinitiating questioning and obtaining a valid Miranda waiver
Right to counsel:
- must be sufficiently clear that a reasonable officer in the same situation would understand the statement to be a request
- once a suspect asks for counsel, all interrogation must cease unless initiated by the suspect
- NOT offense specific
- expires 14 days after released from custody
- waiver** must be **knowing**, **intelligent**, and **voluntary
What are the limitations on evidentiary exclusion for Miranda violations?
Incriminating statements
- inadmissible** in prosecution’s **case-in-chief
- may be used to impeach** the **defendant’s** testimony on **cross
- inadmissible** to **impeach the testimony of third-party witnesses
Failure to give Miranda warnings does not require suppression of physical fruits of the incriminating statements
- statements must be voluntary–Due Process
If a statement is inadmissible b/c of a Miranda violation, subsequent incriminating statements made after obtaining a Miranda waiver are admissible
- initial, non-Mirandized statement must not have been obtained through the use of inherently coercive police tactics or methods offensive to Due Process
In a trial where inadmissible testimonial evidence for Miranda violation was allowed, and defendant is found guilty:
- verdict will stand if the government can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the error was harmless
