People v. Knedler

2014 CO 28, 329 P.3d 242, 2014 WL 1668129
CourtSupreme Court of Colorado
DecidedApril 28, 2014
DocketSupreme Court Case No. 13SA292
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 2014 CO 28 (People v. Knedler) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Knedler, 2014 CO 28, 329 P.3d 242, 2014 WL 1668129 (Colo. 2014).

Opinion

JUSTICE HOOD

delivered the Opinion of the Court.

1[ 1 In this interlocutory appeal, the People seek reversal of the trial court's order suppressing videotaped statements made by defendant Jeffrey Knedler after he signed a written waiver of his Miranda rights. Based on Knedler's extremely high BAC1 at the time of his waiver, the trial court found the waiver invalid. Because Knedler's waiver was nonetheless knowing and intelligent, we reverse the suppression order.

[244]*244I. Facts and Procedural History

1 2 Police officers arrested Jeffrey Knedler for allegedly assaulting two people. Knedler and the victims sometimes lived under a bridge on East Iliff Avenue in Arapahoe County where, the victims claim, Knedler beat both of them with a heavy stick.

T3 Two days after the assault, police officers contacted Knedler at a hair salon where he occasionally stayed. As they approached the salon, the officers observed Knedler drinking from what appeared to be a liquor bottle. He also took a long drink from a can of malt liquor before the officers handcuffed him and placed him in a police car. Investigator Mary Lou Gwaltney, who was present at the scene, asked Knedler if he would talk with her. He agreed but did not want to speak in the police car, so Investigator Gwaltney transported him to police headquarters.

€ 4 Upon arriving at headquarters, Investigator Gwaltney presented Knedler with a written Mirando advisement and read it aloud to him, line by line. Although he stated that he did not have his glasses and therefore could not read, Knedler initialed by each of the numbered rights, signed the advisement and the waiver, and said, "I know my rights." During questioning, Knedler admitted to beating both victims and made numerous incriminating statements.

T5 After the interview, a nurse gave Kne-dler a preliminary breath test to assess his level of intoxication. Although the nurse reported that Knedler was alert and oriented, she recorded his BAC as .284.2 Knedler told the nurse that, on average, he drank "one case plus one pint" of aleohol every day.

T6 Based primarily on his level of intoxication, Knedler moved to suppress on the grounds that his statements were involuntary and the Mirando waiver was not knowing and intelligent. The trial court issued a brief bench ruling granting the motion to suppress, finding that the interrogation was "a situation where [Knedler] was intoxicated and one could believe that he was unable to make a rational decision at that time." The court also noted that Knedler was in custody and that the interview occurred in the middle of the day; the court stated that it would have been reasonable to wait until Knedler was less intoxicated before questioning him.

7 The People now appeal the trial court's suppression order under section 16-12-102(1), C.R.S. (2013), and C.A.R. 4.1.

II. Analysis

18 We begin with the standard of review for suppression cases and then discuss the law governing Mirando waivers. We next consider whether Knedler's waiver was knowing and intelligent and conclude that Knedler validly waived his rights despite being intoxicated.

A. Standard of Review

19 When reviewing a suppression order, we defer to the trial court's findings of fact if they are supported by competent evidence in the record. People v. Quezada, 731 P.2d 730, 732 (Colo.1987). We review the trial court's ultimate legal conclusion de novo and reverse if the court applied an erroneous legal standard or came to a conclusion unsupported by the factual findings. People v. Syrie, 101 P.3d 219, 222 (Colo.2004). It is unnecessary to remand the case for further evidentiary findings if review of the record reveals no disputed factual issues. People v. Owens, 969 P.2d 704, 708 (Colo.1999).

B. Miranda Waivers

110 The Fifth Amendment requires police to advise criminal suspects of their constitutional rights before any custodial interrogation. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 471, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). If a defendant waives his or her rights and agrees to speak with law enforcement, the validity of the waiver depends on two elements:; (1) whether the waiver was voluntary, meaning that it was free from governmental coercion; and (2) whether it was knowingly and intelligently made with full awareness of the nature of the right and [245]*245the consequences of its abandonment. People v. Ferguson, 227 P.3d 510, 513 (Colo.2010); People v. Jewell, 175 P.3d 103, 105 (Colo.2008). The People carry the burden of proving the validity of the waiver by a preponderance of the evidence. Colorado v. Connelly, 479 U.S. 157, 168, 107 S.Ct. 515, 93 L.Ed.2d 478 (1986).

¶ 11 The trial court did not consider the voluntariness of Knedler's waiver in its suppression order, nor does Knedler defend the order on that ground. Consequently, we focus only on whether Knedler's waiver was knowing and intelligent.

C. - Knedler's Waiver Was Knowing and Intelligent

{12 Knedler contends that his Miranda waiver was not knowing and intelligent because he was intoxicated at the time of the waiver, and he asserts that the trial court correctly considered the totality of the circumstances before suppressing his statements. The People argue that the trial court erred by basing its conclusion solely on Kne-dler's degree of intoxication. We agree with the People.

1. Totality of the Circumstances

{13 When evaluating whether a Miranda waiver was knowing and intelligent, we consider the totality of the cireumstances, including, but not limited to, the following factors: (1) the length of time between the initial Miranda advisement and the interrogation; (2) whether the defendant or the interrogating officer initiated the interview; (8) whether and to what extent the interrogating officer reminded the defendant of his or her rights before the interrogation; (4) the clarity and form of the defendant's acknowledgment and waiver; (5) the defendant's background and experience with the criminal justice system; and (6) any language barriers and the defendant's age, experience, education, background, and intelli-genee. People v. Kaiser, 32 P.3d 480, 484 (Colo.2001).

114 In addition to these general factors, a defendant's level of intoxication at the time of the Miranda advisement is relevant to a waiver's validity. Jewell, 175 P.3d at 106. In People v. Platt, we articulated a set of subfactors to assess a defendant's competence in cases involving intoxication, based on the competency inquiry developed in cases involving mental impairment or language difficulty. 81 P.3d 1060, 1066 (Colo.2004).

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Bluebook (online)
2014 CO 28, 329 P.3d 242, 2014 WL 1668129, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-knedler-colo-2014.