State v. Walden

336 N.W.2d 629, 1983 N.D. LEXIS 390
CourtNorth Dakota Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 21, 1983
DocketCrim. 903
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 336 N.W.2d 629 (State v. Walden) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering North Dakota 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. Walden, 336 N.W.2d 629, 1983 N.D. LEXIS 390 (N.D. 1983).

Opinion

*631 ERICKSTAD, Chief Justice.

Defendant/appellant, Glen Otto Walden, was charged with and ultimately adjudged guilty in a bench trial of attempted sexual imposition. Subsequent thereto, a judgment of conviction, dated September 23, 1982, was entered by the Grand Forks County Court of Increased Jurisdiction from which Walden now appeals. For the reasons hereinafter stated, we affirm.

The facts relevant to this appeal are not in dispute and thus can be briefly summarized. On February 15, 1982, a man wearing a yellow ski mask and faded dungarees entered the Valley Dairy convenience store where Donna Odom worked. Realizing that this unidentified man “had his pants down” and “his penis in his right hand,” Mrs. Odom ordered him to leave. Notwithstanding Mrs. Odom’s directive, the man in question advanced toward her. Mrs. Odom therefore picked up the telephone and dialed “911”, the police emergency number. As Mrs. Odom was dialing this number, the man pushed her to the floor and pulled her face toward his penis. Simultaneous therewith, the police answered the telephone and Mrs. Odom told them that there was a “naked man in the Valley Dairy store.” Upon realizing that the police had answered the telephone, the man retreated approximately three feet, masturbated until he ejaculated, and then left the store.

Shortly thereafter, Officer Gunderson arrested Walden for such incident and advised him of his rights in the following manner:

“The right to remain silent. Anything he said could and would be used against him in the Court' of Law. And that he had the right to have an attorney present if he so wished, before giving a statement of any type.”

After partially advising Walden of his rights pursuant to Miranda, the officer asked Walden “where he had disposed of the yellow ski mask.” Upon receiving Walden’s reply, the officer located the ski mask which was later introduced as evidence in Walden’s trial. Thereafter, Walden was transported to the police station where he signed a written statement of his rights, an acknowledgment of waiver of rights, and a statement confessing that he had been the individual at the Valley Dairy store. This statement was likewise admitted as evidence against Walden at his trial.

On appeal, Walden raises three issues. The first and most crucial of which is:

Whether or not Walden’s statement to Officer Gunderson with regard to where the yellow ski mask was located should have been suppressed by the trial court on the basis that Walden was not advised of his right to have an attorney appointed if he could not afford one.

The State concedes that Walden was not fully advised of his rights prior to his being interrogated by Officer Gunderson. The officer’s undisputed testimony in this regard is as follows:

“Q Officer Gunderson, going back to the first time that you gave Mr. Walden his rights, were you able to initially complete giving him his rights?
“A No, I was not. Because after I was a little better than half-way through he interrupted me and said, T know my rights. You don’t have to go any further.’ Or something to that effect.”

Miranda v. Arizona clearly delineates the procedural safeguards to be followed when an individual is subjected to custodial interrogation by a police officer:

“[Ujnless other fully effective means are devised to inform accused persons of their right of silence and to assure a continuous opportunity to exercise it, the following measures are required. Prior to any questioning, the person must be warned that he has a right to remain silent, that any statement he does make may be used as evidence against him, and that he has a right to the presence of an attorney either retained or appointed.” Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 1612, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1965).

These specific warnings, however, do not constitute a ritualistic formula to be administered inflexibly. Commonwealth v. Wilbur, 353 Mass. 376, 383, 231 N.E.2d 919, 923 (1967), cert. denied 390 U.S. 1010, 88 S.Ct. *632 1260, 20 L.Ed.2d 161 (1968). Furthermore, the United States Supreme Court has held in Michigan v. Tucker that: “a failure to give interrogated suspects full Miranda warnings does not entitle the suspect to insist that statements made by him be excluded in every conceivable context.” 417 U.S. 433, 451, 94 S.Ct. 2357, 2367, 41 L.Ed.2d 182 (1973).

In the case at bar, when Officer Gunderson attempted to advise Walden of his right to have an attorney appointed if he was indigent, Walden interrupted the officer and said: “I know my rights. You don’t have to go any further.” Where, as in this instance, the State has made a reasonable effort to inform the defendant of his rights in accordance with the dictates of Miranda and the defendant has refused to listen, the defendant has waived his right to be informed. State v. Thomas, 16 Wash.App. 1, 9-10, 553 P.2d 1357, 1363 (1976); State v. Ouimette, 110 R.I. 747, 774-76, 298 A.2d 124, 140 (1972); Myers v. State, 256 So.2d 400, 402 (Fla.1972); State v. Perez, 182 Neb. 680, 157 N.W.2d 162, 164 (1968), cert. denied 393 U.S. 886, 89 S.Ct. 200, 21 L.Ed.2d 163 (1968). In accordance therewith, Walden is estopped from asserting that his rights as set forth in Miranda were infringed upon.

In addition, since the defendant retained counsel at both his trial and on appeal, and there is nothing in the record to indicate that he was in fact indigent, failure to give this defendant his full Miranda rights did not prejudice him. Hence, Officer Gunderson’s failure to advise Walden of his right to a court-appointed attorney, a warning which was inapplicable to him, was not an error which affected Walden’s substantial rights. United States v. Messina, 388 F.2d 393, 395 (2d Cir.1968), cert. denied 390 U.S. 1026, 88 S.Ct. 1413, 20 L.Ed.2d 283 (1968); United States v. Fisher, 387 F.2d 165, 169-170 (2d Cir.1967), cert. denied 390 U.S. 953, 88 S.Ct. 1047, 19 L.Ed.2d 1146 (1968); United States v. Lubitsch, 266 F.Supp. 294, 297 (S.D.N.Y.1967); United States v. Hecht, 259 F.Supp. 581, 583 (W.D.Pa.1966); People v. Baker, 19 Mich.App. 480, 172 N.W.2d 892, 896 (1969); Commonwealth v. Wilbur, 353 Mass. 376, 383,

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Bluebook (online)
336 N.W.2d 629, 1983 N.D. LEXIS 390, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-walden-nd-1983.