Death Penalty Upheld: Court Rules FBI Car-Ride Confession Constitutional

By Robert Phillips
Deputy District Attorney (Ret).

Legal Concepts 

• Miranda vs. Arizona
• The issue of custody for purposes of Miranda
• An in-custody suspect’s attempt to invoke his right to silence
• An interrogation vs. a simple conversation
• An ingratiating interrogation vs. offers of leniency

Rule: A suspect is in custody for purposes of Miranda despite being told he is not under arrest when FBI agents use handcuffs, tell him they want to talk to him about a “high-profile murder,” put him into their car, and seek to transport him to the agents’ office. A criminal suspect telling agents that he “prefer(s) not to talk now” after having been advised of his Miranda rights is not a Miranda invocation. Talking to a suspect while transporting him to the agents’ office about topics other than his alleged crimes is not an interrogation. Agents are allowed to interrogate a criminal suspect after he provides a waiver of his Miranda rights. An agent ingratiating himself to the suspect during questioning is permissible so long as no offers of leniency are made, and the questioning is not otherwise coercive.

Case Decision at a Glance

Defendant Cary Stayner, who as a maintenance man at a lodge near Yosemite National ....