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No right to Miranda while holding police at bay
In a matter of first impression, the North Carolina Court of Appeals has held that Miranda warnings are not required where police are negotiating with a suspect who has barricaded himself and they are attempting to convince him to come out peacefully and not harm himself. In the court’s unanimous May 3 opinion, Judge Fred […]
Teen had to be read his rights even if school cop was silent
A 13-year-old who was interrogated by his school’s principal in the presence of the school’s police officer should have been read his Miranda rights even though the police officer remained silent throughout the questioning, the North Carolina Court of Appeals has unanimously ruled. In March 2019, Deputy William Sechrist, the school resource officer for Gentry Middle […]
Criminal Practice – Miranda & Juvenile Rights – Spanish/English Speaker
Where there is evidence that (1) Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Detective Aimee Kelly advised the 16-year-old defendant of his juvenile rights in spoken English, written Spanish, and written English; (2) defendant initialed each of the rights enumerated on the juvenile rights waiver form that Detective Kelly reviewed with him and signed the juvenile rights waiver form in […]
Criminal Practice – Miranda – Custody – Involuntary Commitment
State v. Hammonds (Lawyers Weekly No. 010-060-17, 25 pp.) (Robin Hudson, J.) (Sam Ervin IV, J., joined by Mark Martin, C.J. & Paul Newby, J., dissenting) Appealed from Union County Superior Court (Tanya Wallace, J.) N.C. S. Ct. Holding: While defendant’s freedom of movement was severely restricted by a civil commitment order (after an […]
‘Miranda’ standard for custody, seizure different
On March 21, the state Court of Appeals granted Devrie Burris a new trial in his driving while impaired case, finding that the trial court wrongly refused to suppress incriminating statements that Burris made to the arresting officer while he was detained without being read a Miranda warning. The next day, it inexplicably withdrew the […]
Criminal Practice – Miranda – Noncustodial Confession – Rape Shield Law – No Offer of Proof
State v. Parlier (Lawyers Weekly No. 011-069-17, 14 pp.) (Phil Berger Jr., J.) Appealed from Caldwell County Superior Court (Yvonne Mims Evans, J.) N.C. App. Holding: Because (1) defendant contacted Sheriff’s Detective Shelley Hartley and voluntarily traveled to the sheriff’s department; (2) Det. Hartley invited defendant to speak with her, and he followed her to […]
I just came to hang out
Much to the defendant’s chagrin but in a relatively straightforward application of the law, the state Court of Appeals held recently in North Carolina v. Rico Barnes that being handcuffed on your cousin’s porch while probation agents search the home does not mean you are officially in custody. Barnes was visiting his cousin, Territon Lewis, […]
Criminal Practice – Confession – In-Custody Interrogation – Miranda Rights – Drug Possession – Identity Theft – Sentencing
State v. Crook (Lawyers Weekly No. 011-194-16, 22 pp.) (Rick Elmore, J.) Appealed from Henderson County Superior Court (Marvin Pope Jr., J.) N.C. App. Holding: Where defendant had been handcuffed and arrested before he was asked, “Do you have anything else on you?”, but where he had not been given his Miranda warnings, his response […]
Involuntary commitment not custody for Miranda
A man involuntarily committed by a magistrate after attempting to kill himself was not “in custody” as it relates to his Miranda rights when he was interviewed at the hospital about his involvement in an armed robbery, a divided Court of Appeals panel held recently. As a result, the court found in this first-impression case […]
Criminal Practice – Constitutional – Right to Counsel – Right against Self-Incrimination – Miranda — Suppression – Conversation Initiation – Intelligent Waiver
State v. Quick After defendant reiterated that he wanted to talk to his lawyer, a detective told defendant that more warrants would be served on him, that an attorney would not help with the warrants, and that the warrants would be served regardless of whether the attorney was there.
Criminal Practice – Constitutional – Right to Counsel – Forfeiture – ‘Gray Area’ Defendant – Confession – Miranda Rights
State v. Cureton Even if defendant’s IQ (82) and his past mental problems placed him in the “gray area” of defendants under Dusky v. United States, 362 U.S. 402 (1960) -- those who are competent to stand trial but may not be competent to represent themselves – neither U.S. Supreme Court precedent nor N.C. law prohibits a trial court from finding that a gray-area defendant has forf[...]
Criminal Practice – DWI – Traffic Stop – Miranda
State v. Braswell Since traffic stops are not “custodial interrogations,” they are not subject to the mandates of Miranda. Therefore, the trial court did not err by denying defendant’s motion to suppress (1) the statements he made before being advised of his Miranda rights and (2) the results of his field sobriety tests that were performed before defendant was advised of his Miranda[...]
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