State v. Baez-Delarosa

107 So. 3d 1205, 2013 WL 645533, 2013 Fla. App. LEXIS 2955
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedFebruary 22, 2013
DocketNo. 5D12-925
StatusPublished

This text of 107 So. 3d 1205 (State v. Baez-Delarosa) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Baez-Delarosa, 107 So. 3d 1205, 2013 WL 645533, 2013 Fla. App. LEXIS 2955 (Fla. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

GRIFFIN, J.

The State appeals an order granting defendant, Julio Baez-DeLaRosa’s [“Defendant”], motion to suppress statements that he made to law enforcement. The State urges that the trial court erred by granting the motion to suppress because Defendant was not in custody at the time that he made the statements and, thus, law enforcement was not required to give Defendant Miranda1 warnings. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

On June 17, 2011, the State charged Defendant through information with one count of sexual activity with a child, while in a position of familial or custodial authority to the child, in violation of section 794.011(8)(b), Florida Statutes; one count of tampering with a witness in violation of sections 914.22(1) and (2)(d), Florida Statutes; one count of lewd or lascivious molestation of a child in violation of section 800.04(5)(c)(2)., Florida Statutes; and one count of child abuse in violation of section 827.03(1), Florida Statutes. These charges arose out of a report by Defendant’s teenaged daughter that, on multiple occasions in the preceding two to three years, her father would force her to allow him to digitally penetrate her vagina, ostensibly [1206]*1206to see if she was still a virgin. Upon receipt of this report, the police interviewed Defendant twice. In the first interview, Defendant denied the allegations and claimed his daughter was lying. On May 16, 2011, he returned to the police department and gave another interview, admitting that, on five or six occasions, he had physically touched his daughter’s vagina to see if she was “wet.”

On December 8, 2011, Defendant filed a motion to suppress statements that he made “during a custodial interrogation conducted by the Apopka Police Department on May 16, 2011.” He asserted:

1. On May 11, 2011, the Defendant, JULIO BAEZ-DE LA ROSA, reported to the City of Apopka Police Department (hereinafter “APD”) in reference to allegations made against him.
2. Before the interview began, Officer Diaz (APD), who served as a Spanish interpreter, read the Defendant Miranda warnings in Spanish from a pre-printed card.
3. The Defendant agreed to speak to the investigating Detective, Andre2 Parkinson, and denied all of the allegations which were presented to him.
4. On May 16, 2011, the Defendant received a phone call from an unknown caller from an APD phone number.
5. According to the Defendant, the unknown caller indicated that his presence was required at the APD for further questioning.
6. The Defendant appeared at the APD and was further questioned regarding the previously made allegations.
7. Detective Andre Parkinson was present with a Spanish-speaking officer who served as a Spanish interpreter during the questioning and confirmed that the number from which the Defendant received the earlier phone call was in fact an APD phone number.
8. The Defendant made incriminating statements during this interrogation without the benefit of being informed of his constitutional rights.
9. At the end of the interrogation the Defendant was arrested and taken into the custody of the Orange County Jail.
10. There are audio and video recordings for both custodial interrogations.
Argument:
11. The interrogation of the Defendant that took place on May 16, 2011, was a custodial interrogation that required the benefit of Miranda warnings. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966).
12. During the interrogation that took place on May 16, 2011, the Defendant was not advised of his rights a [sic] required by Miranda.
13. The statements made by the Defendant should be suppressed because they were obtained illegally without the knowing, intelligent, and voluntary waiver of the rights enunciated in Miranda. Traylor v. State, 596 So.2d 957 (Fla.1992).
14. This interrogation was conducted in violation of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution.
15. This interrogation was conducted in violation of Article 1, Section 9 of the Constitution of the State of Florida.

The State filed a response in opposition to Defendant’s motion to suppress on January 20, 2012:

[1207]*1207On May 16, 2011 Defendant went to the police station without police presence, and without being ordered to do so. Defendant voluntarily went into the police station and gave a video and audio recorded confession. Detective Parkinson did not re-issue Miranda warnings. Prior to the May 16th confession at Apopka Police Department, Defendant was never handcuffed, told he was under arrest, or otherwise restrained in his ability to leave.
[[Image here]]
In this case, Defendant was not in custody. He went on his own volition to the Apopka Police Station. It was by coincidence that Detective Parkinson was at the station. Defendant was not transported by law enforcement, and appeared to want to reinitiate contact with Detective Parkinson. The only reason the conversation happened inside the station was so it could be recorded. Defendant was never handcuffed, never told he had to do anything, and there was no show of authority whatsoever toward the Defendant. He was not presented with evidence of his guilt. In fact, the only questions Detective Parkinson asked of him were to the effect of what other information do you have for me, and I heard you were going to confess .... Defendant Baez-de la Rosa came by himself to Apopka Police Department, coincidently met Detective Parkinson in the parking lot, and went inside on his own volition. He was never searched, handcuffed, and therefore his freedom of movement was not curtailed to the degree associated with a formal arrest. He simply went to the police station voluntarily, which both the United States and Florida Supreme Court’s have routinely recognized as not custodial.
Even if this Court finds Defendant was in custody on May 16th suppression of the Defendant’s confession is not appropriate because he had already been issued Miranda warnings and waived them. The Florida Supreme court has held “[t]here is no requirement that an accused be continually reminded of his rights once he has intelligently waived them.” Bush v. State, 461 So.2d 936, 939 (Fla.1984) citing Biddy v. Diamond, 516 F.2d 118, 122 (5th Cir.1975) (lapse of 14 days did not require full recitation of Miranda warnings).

The trial court conducted a three-day hearing on Defendant’s motion to suppress. Jose Diaz, a police officer with the Apopka Police Department [“Officer Diaz”], testified that he was fluent in Spanish, and that his role on May 11, 2011 was “[t]o read [Defendant] the Miranda rights from a prepared card.” He confirmed that after reading “the Miranda

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Miranda v. Arizona
384 U.S. 436 (Supreme Court, 1966)
Bush v. State
461 So. 2d 936 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1984)
Traylor v. State
596 So. 2d 957 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1992)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
107 So. 3d 1205, 2013 WL 645533, 2013 Fla. App. LEXIS 2955, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-baez-delarosa-fladistctapp-2013.