Miranda Update #10 – “Equivocal or Ambiguous Response to a Miranda Admonition or During Questioning After a Miranda Waiver

FROM THE CLASSROOM
Ray Hill, Professor Emeritus, Santa Rosa Junior College

“Its ‘402’ time, officer”. “Who wins, you or defense counsel”   Note: 402(b) E.C. – A pre-trial court hearing to determine the admissibility of an admission or confession.

    This is the tenth in a series of mini-articles covering basic Miranda and Confession Law. This review is equally applicable to detectives and those generalists who are assigned to investigate their own cases.

“There wouldn’t be any possible way that I could have a – a lawyer present while we do this ” “Yeah, that’s what my dad asked me to ask you guys, um give me a lawyer” (Sessoms v. Runnells (2011) 776 F 3d. 610).

Equivocal or Ambiguous Response  to a Miranda Admonition

  An arrested suspect must make an unequivocal request for silence or counsel to invoke one’s Miranda rights. If a response is ambiguous, an officer is permitted to ask neutral follow-up questions to clarify an arrestee’s intent in speaking.

   Defendant was arrested for a series of sex crimes. When advised of his Miranda rights, he stated “I have spoken to my mother by phone and she stated I might need an attorney". An officer informed him, “It was his decision whether to talk without a lawyer present, not his mothers". The suspect agreed to speak. The suspect never clearly expressed his desire to have an attorney present. The officer was permitted to follow up to determine whether the arrestee wanted to speak (Peo. v. Tyson (1988) 197 Cal App. 3d 1276).

   After a Miranda admonition, a multiple murder suspect asked, “Do I ....

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