People v. Figueroa González

95 P.R. 96
CourtSupreme Court of Puerto Rico
DecidedJune 28, 1967
DocketNo. CR-65-500
StatusPublished

This text of 95 P.R. 96 (People v. Figueroa González) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Puerto Rico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Figueroa González, 95 P.R. 96 (prsupreme 1967).

Opinion

Mr. Justice Santana Becerra

delivered the opinion of the Court.

At the age of 16 years and 8 months appellant took the life of a human being, by firing four revolver shots. He was accused of murder in the first degree and convicted of murder in the second degree, carrying of weapons (felony) and possession of weapons (misdemeanor). He was ordered to serve in the penitentiary from 12 to 20 years and from 1 to 4 years, respectively, and one year in jail. On appeal he assigns the following errors:

(1) That the court erred in admitting in evidence defendant’s extrajudicial statement;

(2) That the trial against defendant does not comply with the requirements of the due process of law;

(3) That the court acted without jurisdiction in the prosecution for the violation of § 6 of the Weapons Law;

[99]*99(4) That the judge committed error of law in severely reprehending the witness for the defense, appellant’s father, in the presence of the jury, and in sentencing him for contempt; and

(5) That the court erred in denying a motion for new trial.

Appellant maintains that at the time he offered the extrajudicial statement the Juvenile Court had not waived its jurisdiction over him, and that he was not warned that if he made a statement it could be used against him in the event the court waived its jurisdiction in his case. He also maintains that the decision in Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478, should be applied, according to the construction of this Court in Rivera Escuté v. Delgado, Warden, 92 P.R.R. 746 (1965).

The statement was given on October 21, 1962. The trial was held on June 26 and 27, 1963. On said dates appellant did not have, under the state of law in force, the constitutional guarantee that his extrajudicial statement be excluded from the proceeding because when he made it he did not have assistance of counsel, nor was he warned of his right to have legal assistance there, nor was an attorney assigned to him. Rivera Escuté v. Delgado, Warden, supra; People v. Adorno Lorenzana, 93 P.R.R. 768 (1966). On the dates on which the statement was given and the trial was held, the present Rules 4, 22(b) and 23(a) and (b) of the Rules of Criminal Procedure were not in force either.

As to the other requirement of warning, there is nothing in Act No. 97 of June 23, 1955, concerning minors which requires that appellant be warned of the fact that the Juvenile Court could waive its jurisdiction as a requisite to the validity of the extrajudicial statement for the purpose of its exclusion at the trial. Actually, subsequent to the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in the case of a minor In Re Gault, 387 U.S. 1, decided May 15, [100]*1001967, insofar as basic constitutional guarantees are concerned, there should be no differences between treatment of a. minor and of an adult.

Irrespective of the applicable rule in relation to .the cases of Rivera Escuté and Adorno Lorenzana, supra, arising from Escobedo v. Illinois, supra, appellant was protected at all times by the constitutional guarantee of not incriminating himself, and as a sequel thereof, of being warned of said guarantee.

Appellant’s sworn statement' taken by the prosecuting attorney appears in an official printed form which says: “Witness’ Sworn Statement:_(name)_;_ At__, on_, 19_ I, . (name of deponent) ' , born in. _ resident of_,_years old, appear before the prosecuting attorney and subsequent to the legal warnings which have been made to me, I voluntarily declare under oath:” (the rest of the form is in blank). After the statement of the facts recited by appellant in a narrative form, an interrogatory, of questions and answers follows which ends like this:

“Q. Why were you carrying the revolver yesterday?
“A. I have been carrying the revolver for two days.
“Q. Why have you been carrying that revolver for two days?
“A. For defense. To defend myself from being bumped off by anybody, or rather, not anybody, but from being bumped off by them.
“Q. Is everything you have said true?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. Do you declare it voluntarily?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. I explained to you that you had the right not to testify if you did not want to.
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. That if you testified, anything you said could be used against you in, any case? .... -, /
[101]*101“A. Yes, sir.
' “Q. Has anybody threatened you to testify?
“A. No, sir.
“Q. Then, I must understand that everything you have testified has been of your own free will ?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. Do you regret what you did?
“A. No, sir.
“Q. Up to what grade did you go to school?
“A. I studied the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh grades, I mean, I took the seventh grade examinations and passed them.”

The fact that in the printed form used to make the sworn statement there appears the phrase “subsequent to the legal warnings” does not constitute compliance with the constitutional provision of warning against self-incrimination. It does not state what warnings were made, nor can it serve as a basis for an intelligent waiver of such right. A final statement, after the facts have been testified, that the person under arrest has been warned of his right in that sense, is not the best manner either. Although appellant accepts it was so done, it does not affirmatively appear at what time the prosecuting attorney could have made the warnings. To comply strictly with the constitutional protection, such warning should precede every sworn statement, and it should thus specifically appear from the text thereof, if it were written.

On the other hand, it does appear from the sworn statement, although not in the best manner, that appellant was warned of his right not to incriminate himself, and that what he testified could be used against him in any case. This, in addition to the fact that from an examination of the record we are fully convinced that that was a voluntary statement made without coercion of any sort, to which we shall refer later on, does not render it fatally inadmissible in the light of said constitutional guarantee.

[102]*102It is alleged that as a result of the admission of the extrajudicial statement there was a conviction without the due process of law. In the second case of Rivera Escuté, 80 P.R.R. 800, although we held that at that time there did not exist the constitutional right to assistance of counsel during the investigatory stage of the case, yet, we said, following the rule in Crooker v. California,

Related

Haley v. Ohio
332 U.S. 596 (Supreme Court, 1948)
Crooker v. California
357 U.S. 433 (Supreme Court, 1958)
Cicenia v. Lagay
357 U.S. 504 (Supreme Court, 1958)
Escobedo v. Illinois
378 U.S. 478 (Supreme Court, 1964)
Kent v. United States
383 U.S. 541 (Supreme Court, 1966)
In Re GAULT
387 U.S. 1 (Supreme Court, 1967)

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Bluebook (online)
95 P.R. 96, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-figueroa-gonzalez-prsupreme-1967.