People v. Washington

413 N.E.2d 170, 90 Ill. App. 3d 631, 45 Ill. Dec. 837, 1980 Ill. App. LEXIS 4274
Appellate Court of Illinois·Decided November 19, 1980·No. 79-465·Published·Cited by 15 cases

Opinion

Mr. JUSTICE UNVERZAGT

delivered the opinion of the court:

This is the second appeal in this case and results from a second conviction for murder and armed robbery. The defendant was convicted of armed robbery and murder in his first trial; however this court reversed his conviction and remanded for a new trial because of a violation of the defendant’s right, pursuant to Miranda v. Arizona (1966), 384 U.S. 436, 16 L. Ed. 2d 694, 86 S. Ct. 1602, to remain silent and not be further interrogated by the police after he had requested the assistance of counsel. (People v. Washington (1976), 41 Ill. App. 3d 475.) Upon appeal our supreme court affirmed the decision of this court. People v. Washington (1977), 68 Ill. 2d 186, cert. denied (1978), 435 U.S. 981, 56 L. Ed. 2d 72, 98 S. Ct. 1631.

It is clear that both this court and the supreme court placed the decision to grant a new trial on a violation of the Miranda right to be free of questioning by the police after expressing a desire to consult a lawyer. This court said:

“In the case at bar, while the police officers provided a ‘fresh set of warnings’ after the defendant requested counsel, they resumed interrogation with respect to the same crimes which had been the subject of the earlier interrogation. The defendant’s right to cut off questioning was therefore not ‘scrupulously honored’ and the statements made by defendant after he requested counsel should have been suppressed and were inadmissible.” 41 Ill. App. 3d 475, 480-81.

Our supreme court, in affirming the decision, said:-

“Although we agree with the People that the right to counsel may be waived (People v. Morgan 67 Ill. 2d 1), we conclude that the People did not meet the ‘heavy burden * * * to demonstrate that the defendant knowingly and intelligently waived his privilege against self-incrimination and his right to retained counsel.’ ” 68 Ill. 2d 186,194.

The basis of the decision in the appeal of the first trial is here emphasized because the tactical situation in the second trial and the appeal therefrom was entirely altered. Although the decision of the United States Supreme Court in Harris v. New York (1971), 401 U.S. 222, 28 L. Ed. 2d 1, 91 S. Ct. 643 (allowing the use of a statement taken in violation of Miranda strictures for impeachment purposes) was rendered before the first Washington trial, the State did not invoke that case. It relied apparently on the decision in People v. White (1975), 61 Ill. 2d 288, where the court held that there was no Miranda violation in a case involving a somewhat similar situation except that the questioning of the suspect after he expressed a desire to see a lawyer was with regard to unrelated crimes and there was a longer period of time between the defendant’s expressed desire for counsel and the ultimate confession. In any event, at the second trial, which is the subject of this appeal, the State, accepting the guidelines laid down by the supreme court, did not attempt to introduce the defendant’s inculpatory statements in its case in chief. However, prior to commencement of trial, the defendant made a motion in limine seeking a ruling that the State could not introduce the statements made to the police for any purpose, including impeachment of defendant if he took the stand in his own behalf. The trial court ruled the statements would be suppressed in the State’s case in chief, but could be introduced for purposes of impeachment. The defendant did not take the stand. The defendant, with his post-trial motion, submitted an affidavit to the effect that he had not testified in his own behalf because of the threat of impeachment if he did. We may reasonably believe this contention since, while the defendant had one previous felony conviction, it was more than 10 years before the second trial and under People v. Montgomery (1971), 47 Ill. 2d 510, would not have been admissible to impeach his credibility.

In this appeal from his second conviction the defendant contends that the inculpatory statements to the police were made by the defendant under such circumstances as to render them involuntary and inadmissible for any purpose whatever; therefore the threat to use such statements for impeachment purposes, resulting in his failure to testify in his own behalf, deprived him of a fair trial. Thus the strictures of Miranda are not controlling as to the issue raised.

We must determine if the trustworthiness of the evidence satisfies legal standards. When the evidence in question consists of inculpatory statements, then the critical issue of trustworthiness is determined by whether the inculpatory statements were voluntary. To determine the voluntariness .of the inculpatory statements, we must consider the total circumstances under which they were made to the police.

The defendant contends (1) that the statements made by Washington to the police which gave rise to the threatened impeachment were coerced and involuntary because of prolonged interrogation and psychological tricks and pressures intended to induce a confession; (2) that the statements in question were inadmissible because taken in violation of the defendant’s sixth amendment right to counsel both (a) in failing to cut off questioning after the defendant indicated a wish to consult with counsel at a critical stage of the proceedings and (b) in the persistent and prolonged questioning which resumed after the police knew the defendant was seeking the assistance of counsel; (3) that the defendant’s fourth amendment rights were violated when the police seized and used physical evidence from an automobile in which the defendant had a possessory interest, without a search warrant and (4) the defendant’s fifth amendment rights were violated when the prosecutor, in the presence of the jury, commented on Washington’s failure to testify in his own behalf.

We first consider the voluntariness of the statements made by Washington to the police during the course of their interrogation. Under the “totality of the circumstances” test, set out in the decisions of the United States Supreme Court to determine whether an accused has been subjected to such coercive treatment — physical or psychological or both — as to overbear his will and produce a confession which is essentially involuntary, several facets of police conduct, no single one of which is sufficient, may, when combined, act together to create such pressure on the accused as to amount to coercion and produce a confession which is not “voluntary” in that it is not the product of a free will. See Clewis v. Texas (1967), 386 U.S. 707, 18 L. Ed. 2d 423, 87 S. Ct. 1338 (prolonged questioning without counsel); Davis v. North Carolina (1966), 384 U.S. 737, 16 L. Ed. 2d 895, 86 S. Ct. 1761 (accused isolated and held incommunicado); Haynes v. Washington (1963), 373 U.S. 503, 10 L. Ed. 2d 513, 83 S. Ct. 1336 (prolonged interrogation and threats, denial of counsel and isolation); Fikes v. Alabama (1957), 352 U.S. 191, 1 L. Ed. 2d 246, 77 S. Ct.

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People v. Washington, 413 N.E.2d 170, 90 Ill. App. 3d 631, 45 Ill. Dec. 837, 1980 Ill. App. LEXIS 4274 (Ill. Ct. App. 1980).

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