State v. Munn

56 S.W.3d 486, 2001 Tenn. LEXIS 630
CourtTennessee Supreme Court
DecidedAugust 31, 2001
StatusPublished
Cited by74 cases

This text of 56 S.W.3d 486 (State v. Munn) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Tennessee 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. Munn, 56 S.W.3d 486, 2001 Tenn. LEXIS 630 (Tenn. 2001).

Opinion

OPINION

ANDERSON, C.J.,

delivered the opinion of the court,

in which DROWOTA, BIRCH, HOLDER, and BARKER, JJ„ joined.

We granted this appeal to determine the following issues: (1) whether the secret police videotaping of the defendant’s conversations, while alone with his parents in a police interview room, violated the defendant’s rights under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, article I, § 7 of the Tennessee Constitution, and the federal and state wiretapping statutes; (2) whether the defendant’s Miranda rights were violated; (3) whether later confessions made by the defendant should have been suppressed under the “derivative evidence rule”; and (4) whether the trial court erred in the sentencing phase by refusing to charge the no-adverse-inference instruction.

A majority of the Court of Criminal Appeals panel affirmed the defendant’s conviction for first-degree murder and sentence of life without parole, concluding (1) that the defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights were not violated because the defendant did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy; (2) that the defendant was not in custody when he was interviewed by the officers and therefore a Miranda warning was not required; (3) that the issue regarding the derivative evidence rule was moot; and (4) that the trial court did not err by refusing to charge the no-adverse-inference instruction in the sentencing phase.

After a thorough review of the record and relevant authority, we hold that the defendant had a reasonable expectation of privacy and that his rights under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, article I, § 7 of the Tennessee Constitution, and federal and state wiretapping statutes were violated by the secret taping of his conversations in the police interview room. We also conclude that the defendant was not entitled to Miranda warnings because he was not in custody when interviewed and that his confession was not subject to suppression under the derivative evidence rule. Finally, we conclude that the defendant was entitled to have the no-adverse-inference instruction given to the jury during the sentencing phase of the trial. Accordingly, we affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand to the trial court for a new sentencing hearing in accordance with this opinion.

BACKGROUND

The defendant, Rudolph Munn, was arrested and charged with the first-degree murder of his Middle Tennessee State University (“MTSU”) roommate. The facts leading up to his arrest are as follows.

On November 28, 1995, the Murfrees-boro Police Department received a call that the body of a white male had been found in the Days Inn parking lot on South Church Street in Murfreesboro, Tennes *489 see. Upon arrival, officers discovered that the victim had sustained a wound to the head and had no identification on his person. The autopsy report revealed that the death was the result of a contact gunshot wound to the head with the bullet traversing the brain. On November 30, 1995, someone called the police station and identified the victim as Andrew Poklemba, a student at MTSU.

In an attempt to verify this information, Officers Eddie Peel and Chris Guthrie, both of the Murfreesboro Police Department, along with several other officers, went to PoHemba’s dormitory room at MTSU on November 30, 1995. Shortly thereafter, the defendant returned to the room. The defendant told the officers that he had not seen Poklemba since about 3:45 p.m. on Monday, November 27, 1995. Officer Peel asked the defendant if he had any pictures of Poklemba. After looking at two pictures, the officers identified the victim as Andrew Poklemba. Before leaving the dormitory room, the officers briefly interviewed the defendant.

The next day, December 1, 1995, after having conducted interviews with other people who knew Poklemba, Officers Peel and Guthrie noted several discrepancies in the defendant’s story. The officers also believed that the defendant had more information about Poklemba than he had told them the previous day. That afternoon, Officer Peel called the Munn residence in Manchester, Tennessee and requested that the defendant come to the police station in Murfreesboro.

At approximately 5:00 p.m. on the same day, December 1, 1995, the defendant, accompanied by his parents and his two-year-old sister, arrived at the police station. Officers Peel and Guthrie escorted the defendant and his father to a third floor police station interview room. Over the door was a sign entitled “Felony Booking Room.” The room was equipped with blinds on the windows, a small table, chairs, and an audio tape recorder on the table. Unknown to the defendant or his father, the room was also permanently equipped with a video camera which was hidden in a clock on the wall. In addition, there were hidden microphones located in the ceiling above the tables and chairs. Video cassette recorders were located in a separate private room from which conversations in the interview room could be monitored and recorded. The officers did not inform the defendant or his father that their conversations were to be monitored and recorded by a hidden video camera and microphones.

After the defendant was taken to the interview room, Officer Guthrie explained that he was turning on the tape recorder which was located on the table. He also stated that no one was under arrest and that the defendant could leave at any time. The defendant indicated that he understood this statement. Both Officers Peel and Guthrie inquired about the discrepancies in the defendant’s story, but the defendant generally stayed with his original story. At no time did the defendant state that he wanted to leave or that he wanted an attorney. At the conclusion of the 54 minute interview, Officer Peel said that the defendant and his father were free to go and escorted them to the police station lobby where the defendant’s mother and little sister were waiting.

After the return to the lobby, Officer Peel asked Mr. Munn to explain to Mrs. Munn that the defendant might be asked to return to the station if more information was needed. Mrs. Munn became very upset and asked Officer Peel if he thought that the defendant had killed Poklemba. Officer Peel told Mrs. Munn to ask the defendant. Mrs. Munn did so, and the defendant did not respond. Officer Peel *490 stated that he would like to talk to the defendant alone. Mrs. Munn later testified that Officer Peel kept staring at her as if he wanted her to “get involved in the process” and that she felt that they were no longer free to leave at that time. Mrs. Munn then asked the defendant if he wanted to talk with the police further, and the defendant replied that he did. They all then proceeded to the third floor. Officer Peel, Officer Guthrie, and the defendant went into the interview room while Mr. Munn, Mrs. Munn, and the defendant’s little sister waited outside in the hallway.

Once in the interview room, Officer Peel turned on the audio tape recorder which was still located on the table and told the defendant that he was not under arrest; that he had voluntarily come to the station; and that he could leave at any time he wished. The defendant said that he understood.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
56 S.W.3d 486, 2001 Tenn. LEXIS 630, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-munn-tenn-2001.