State v. Machain

225 P.3d 75, 233 Or. App. 65, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 2144
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedDecember 30, 2009
Docket04CR1808FE; A134503
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 225 P.3d 75 (State v. Machain) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Machain, 225 P.3d 75, 233 Or. App. 65, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 2144 (Or. Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

ORTEGA, J.

Defendant appeals her murder conviction, ORS 163.115, assigning error to the denial of her motion to suppress statements she made during an interview with police officers. Although she was provided with Miranda warnings at the beginning of the interview, she contends that her waiver of her rights to remain silent and to have the assistance of counsel was not knowing and intelligent.

The trial court did not decide whether defendant’s waiver was valid. Instead, it concluded that defendant was not in the sort of compelling circumstances that require Miranda warnings when she made the statements at issue, obviating the need to evaluate the validity of the waiver. The state contends that that conclusion was correct; defendant takes the opposite view. The parties agree that, if this court determines that defendant was in compelling circumstances during the interview, the case should be remanded to the trial court for findings on the validity of defendant’s waiver. For the reasons set forth below, we conclude that defendant was in circumstances requiring Miranda warnings, and we therefore vacate and remand.

For context, we begin with some background information that the parties do not dispute. At the time of the murder, defendant was 15 years old and living with her sister and her sister’s 14-year-old son, Troy Anderson, the victim. On the afternoon of September 30, 2004, the victim was found in the family home; he had been shot, and he died later that day. Things had been strewn around the home, and money was missing from a safe in defendant’s sister’s bedroom.

Some neighbors reported hearing loud music and a gunshot that afternoon; another neighbor reported seeing defendant and her friend Irwin walking away from the home in the afternoon, although not necessarily around the time of the shot. Detectives Wheaton and Batsch were assigned to contact defendant and Irwin to see if they had any useful information. Wheaton and Batsch interviewed defendant twice that day — once from 5:00 to 5:35 p.m. at the sheriffs office and once briefly later in the day at the police department. Wheaton provided Miranda warnings each time. [68]*68Defendant does not assign error to the admission of evidence obtained during those interviews.

The next day, October 1, defendant was again interviewed twice. The trial court granted defendant’s motion to suppress evidence obtained during the final interview because Wheaton continued to question defendant after she made at least an equivocal invocation of her right to counsel. The court denied defendant’s motion to suppress evidence obtained during the first October 1 interview. The court concluded that defendant was not in compelling circumstances and that Miranda warnings therefore were not required. On appeal, defendant contends that she was questioned under circumstances requiring Miranda warnings and that this case should be remanded for findings about whether she knowingly and intelligently waived the rights described in those warnings.

We turn to the evidence specific to the first October 1 interview. We state the facts consistently with the trial court’s factual findings and, in regard to factual issues as to which it made no findings, its denial of defendant’s motion to suppress. State v. Shaff, 343 Or 639, 641, 175 P3d 454 (2007). On the afternoon of October 1, Wheaton and Batsch picked up defendant at Irwin’s house, where she had spent the night. The detectives asked defendant if she would accompany them to the sheriff s office for another interview, and she agreed to do so.

At the beginning of the interview, Wheaton again provided Miranda warnings, and defendant orally waived the relevant rights. Wheaton thought that defendant appeared tired; in fact, she told him as much early in the interview, which took about two and one-half hours, from about 1:35 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. Wheaton acknowledged that, during that interview, the tone of his questioning changed from being fatherly and friendly; he started feeling that defendant’s story had discrepancies.

The interview took place in an interview room and was recorded on both videotape and audiotape. Initially, Wheaton and Batsch conducted the interview, with Wheaton asking most of the questions. Defendant asked Wheaton at one point how much longer the interview would take, to [69]*69which he replied, “Not too much longer.” Wheaton and Batsch then left the room. After a break, during which defendant was left alone in the interview room, Wheaton reentered the room with a different detective, Borigo, and told defendant that “what we’re gonna do is just gonna finish up with you. Sometimes it helps us if we get a fresh detective in here. Maybe she’s got some questions that we’re not asking.” It is after this juncture, in defendant’s view, that the circumstances became compelling.

Defendant again asked, “So, like how much longer do you think?” Wheaton told her that he did not know but did not think it would be too much longer; he added, “I don’t want to sit there and tell you ten minutes and then it takes an hour, you know what I mean?” Defendant responded, “Yeah. I understand.” Defendant did not, however, state that she wanted to leave, and Wheaton believed that she was willing to remain and talk.

Wheaton told defendant that “stuff ain’t adding up,” that there were inconsistencies between defendant’s and Irwin’s accounts, and that “you need to be a little bit more truthful with us and kinda give us some more.” Wheaton and Borigo talked with defendant about polygraph testing, stating that they would probably give her one and that the tests were very accurate and asking if she would have problems passing a polygraph. Borigo stated that she had interviewed Irwin and that “I come listening on [Wheaton’s] interview and I hear you lying to him. So, now it’s time to tell the truth.” Borigo told defendant that a polygrapher was on his way and the DA’s office had called the polygrapher “because they know you lied.” Defendant then answered questions concerning sensitive topics not directly related to the shooting.1

After some questions about the safe in defendant’s sister’s bedroom, Wheaton reminded defendant that she had been fingerprinted and asked her whether her fingerprints would be on the safe. Defendant then admitted trying to get into the safe to see what was in it. After some other questions [70]*70about the condition of the house, the following exchange occurred:

“Wheaton: I’m gonna come right out and ask you. Did, did you try to get in that safe yesterday?
“[Defendant]: Not yesterday.
“Wheaton: Are you sure?
“[Defendant]: Mm, hmm (indicates affirmative).
“Wheaton: And we’ll be able to prove that.
“[Defendant]: M’kay.
“Wheaton: That’s why I... I want to giving you the benefit of the doubt.
“[Defendant]: M’kay.
“Wheaton: I’m not as . . . saying you’re involved in anything else. I am strictly asking you if you tried to get in that safe yesterday?
“[Defendant]: No.
“Wheaton: Be honest.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
225 P.3d 75, 233 Or. App. 65, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 2144, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-machain-orctapp-2009.