State v. Fillyaw

312 N.W.2d 795, 104 Wis. 2d 700, 1981 Wisc. LEXIS 3051
CourtWisconsin Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 1, 1981
Docket79-840-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by53 cases

This text of 312 N.W.2d 795 (State v. Fillyaw) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wisconsin Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Fillyaw, 312 N.W.2d 795, 104 Wis. 2d 700, 1981 Wisc. LEXIS 3051 (Wis. 1981).

Opinions

COFFEY, J.

This is a review of a decision of the court of appeals reversing a judgment and order of the circuit court for Milwaukee county, HON. HAROLD B. JACKSON, JR., presiding.1 Defendant-appellant Ronald Fillyaw was convicted of first-degree murder, contrary to sec. 940.01, Stats. Fillyaw appealed, claiming that the trial court erred in refusing to suppress various items of physical evidence allegedly obtained in violation of his [703]*703constitutional rights and in refusing to suppress statements allegedly made by Fillyaw without the benefit of his Miranda2 warnings. The court of appeals reversed, holding that prejudicial error was committed by the trial court when it admitted into evidence the bloodstains found on the floor during a warrantless search of the murder victim’s apartment as the search and seizure were unconstitutional. The appellate court determined that Fillyaw had standing to challenge the search and thus held the search and seizure unconstitutional.

On February 2, 1977, at approximately 11:45 a.m., Officer Robert Drakos was dispatched to a garage at 1820 North 1st Street in Milwaukee to investigate a report that a dead body had been found in the garage. Drakos’ investigation confirmed that there was a dead female body lying on some cement blocks and rubbish in the garage. He summoned the Detective Bureau to investigate.

Sometime between noon and 12:30 p.m. on February 2, 1977, while Drakos was securing the garage area, he was approached by Fillyaw who stated that he was staying at 116-C East Vine Street and saw all the commotion and wanted to find out what was going on.3 He was concerned because his girl friend was missing and he was taking care of her children. He went on to explain that he was at his girl friend’s mother’s house at about 8 p.m. on February 1, 1977, when he received a call from his girl friend, Wanona Jarrett, who lived at 116-C E. Vine Street, who asked him if he would come over and “watch her kids” because she wanted to go out. Wanona Jarrett’s mother lived at 204 East Vine Street. Fillyaw further stated that he went over to watch the children and fell asleep before she went out for the evening.

[704]*704At this point in the conversation, Drakos asked Fillyaw his address and for a description of the girl friend. Fill-yaw replied at this time that he lived at 204 East Vine with Jarrett’s mother and sometimes stayed at 116-C East Vine Street. He gave a description of his girl friend and what she was wearing the evening of February 1, 1977. This description fit the body and the clothes found on the body found in the garage. At this time, Drakos informed Detectives Blackburn and Braun, present at the scene, of his conversation with Fillyaw.

Detectives Blackburn and Braun approached Fillyaw and asked where he lived and he replied for a second time at 204 East Vine. Fillyaw then repeated the same description of his girl friend matching that of the deceased found in the garage. The detectives then asked Fillyaw if he would go with them to the Police Administration building so they could interview him regarding his girl friend’s recent activities and acquaintances. Fill-yaw agreed to go but said that he first wanted to get a babysitter for his girl friend’s baby he had left upstairs in the apartment. Detectives Blackburn and Braun went with Fillyaw to the apartment to wait for the babysitter. Fillyaw asked a neighbor to watch over the baby.

After the sitter arrived, Fillyaw went with the detectives to the Police Administration Building about 1:15 p.m. The police did not advise Fillyaw of his constitutional rights at this point as they testified that he was not a suspect or in custody at this time.

During the interview Fillyaw gave his address as 204 East Vine and stated that he also stayed with his girl friend at 116-C East Vine. As the interview continued, the detectives noticed what appeared to them to be blood spots on Fillyaw’s coat and shoes. It was during this interview that Fillyaw showed the officers a note he had just written to Wanona Jarrett to make up with her after an argument. They also noticed that Fillyaw had a cut on his hand. When questioned about this, Fillyaw ex[705]*705plained that he had cut his finger on glass earlier that day.

At about 2:45 p.m. on February 2, 1977, Detectives Blackburn and Braun received information that the victim in the garage had been stabbed. The officers received this information at approximately the same time they had noticed and questioned Fillyaw about the cut on his hand. Based upon the information that the victim had been stabbed and the fact that Fillyaw’s hand was cut, the officers became suspicious of Fillyaw and, therefore, Detective Braun read him his constitutional rights. After being advised of his Miranda rights, Fillyaw repeated the information concerning Wanona’s and his own activities which he had previously given the officers. At- approximately 5 p.m., Fillyaw was placed under arrest for the murder of Wanona Jarrett. At that time, he was again advised of his Miranda rights. After being placed under arrest, Detective Braun took Fillyaw’s gray leather coat, along with other items on his person, and placed them in police inventory.

Later in the evening of February 2, 1977, Fillyaw was taken to the Bureau of Identification where photographs were taken of his injured finger. He was then transported to Milwaukee County General Hospital to have the laceration to his finger treated. Before being conveyed to the hospital, Fillyaw was advised for a third time of his constitutional rights. While he was in the hospital, a nurse asked Fillyaw how he had injured his finger and, in the presence of Detective Sliwinski, Fillyaw responded that he had cut his finger with a knife. Detective Sliwin-ski had not asked the nurse to ask this question. After the defendant’s cut was treated, Detective Sliwinski asked the defendant if he would “give us some blood samples” and Fillyaw agreed to do so. A separate hospital consent form was prepared by the hospital personnel at Detective Sliwinski’s request, and signed by Fillyaw in [706]*706the detective’s presence although the consent form did not specifically state that the consent was for taking a blood sample. Detective Sliwinski did not inform Fillyaw that he had a right to require the police to get a search warrant for the blood nor his right to refuse consent. Detective Sliwinski personally asked the defendant if he would give “us a blood sample” and he did not object. The doctor also informed the defendant that the police wanted a blood sample and he acquiesced. Further, Fill-yaw was present when the nurse turned the blood sample over to the police detective and did not object at that time either.

Fillyaw was returned to the police station and was interrogated by Detectives James Mallette and Fred Rea-horst in the early morning of February B, 1977. Prior to interrogation, he was advised for a fourth time of his constitutional rights and he denies the completeness and sufficiency of the Miranda warnings given at this time. Fillyaw, in response to the officers’ advice and questions replied that he did not need an attorney and he continued to answer the officers’ questions.

At the time Fillyaw was being interviewed on the afternoon of February 2, 1977, the officers at the scene found the victim’s purse containing her identification in the garage. Somewhere between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. on February 2, 1977, the victim was identified as being Wanona Jarrett.

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Bluebook (online)
312 N.W.2d 795, 104 Wis. 2d 700, 1981 Wisc. LEXIS 3051, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-fillyaw-wis-1981.