Wedgeworth v. State
| Decision Date | 02 October 2008 |
| Docket Number | No. CR 07-1042.,CR 07-1042. |
| Citation | 374 Ark. 373,288 S.W.3d 234 |
| Parties | James WEDGEWORTH, Appellant, v. STATE of Arkansas, Appellee. |
| Court | Arkansas Supreme Court |
Cullen & Co., PLLC, by: Tim Cullen, Little Rock, AR, for appellant.
Dustin McDaniel, Att'y Gen., by: Deborah Nolan Gore, Ass't Att'y Gen., for appellee.
This appeal arises from the conviction and sentence of Appellant James Wedgeworth in Union County Circuit Court for the capital murder of Megan Harbison. Appellant was convicted by a jury of capital murder, a violation of Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-10-101 (Repl.2006) and a class Y felony, and was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. On appeal, he argues that his taped custodial statement was obtained in violation of his Fifth Amendment right to counsel and that the circuit court erred in denying his motion to suppress and in allowing that evidence to be admitted at trial. We reverse and remand.
On July 16, 2005, Megan Harbison was murdered in her apartment in El Dorado. Appellant and the victim were in a relationship for more than one year and, according to Appellant, were supposed to marry when her divorce was final. However, after the victim's divorce became final, she ended her relationship with Appellant. On the night of the murder, he told his mother about the relationship and that the victim had ended it. He left the house, went to the victim's apartment, and shot and killed Megan Harbison.
The El Dorado Police Department was advised that A.F., the victim's eleven-year-old daughter, called 911 and told dispatchers that her mother was covered in blood. Upon arrival, police found A.F. and another juvenile crying and asking for help. Lieutenant Kevin Holt summoned emergency personnel to the residence. The victim's father advised police that his daughter had broken off her relationship with Appellant, and since that time, Appellant had been harassing her and making threats toward her.
Union County police officers arrested Appellant at his parent's residence in Smackover and transported him to the El Dorado Police Department where he was interviewed by Detective Jamie Morrow. At approximately 4 a.m., Detective Morrow read Appellant his rights, and Appellant signed the rights form. When asked if he wished to have an attorney, Appellant replied that he wanted "his attorney," but he did not remember his attorney's name. Detective Morrow told Appellant that he would give him a few minutes to remember his attorney's name, and the detective left the room. Within five to ten minutes, Detective Morrow returned and asked Appellant if he remembered his attorney's name. Appellant replied that he had not. Detective Morrow asked Appellant, "What do you want to do?" At that time, Appellant indicated that he wanted to make a statement. Detective Morrow said, "Even without an attorney?" Appellant said, "Yes." Detective Morrow used the original form to re-Mirandize Appellant and took a statement from him. At the pretrial motion hearing, Detective Morrow testified that he "read his rights to him a couple of times."
During the interview, before Appellant's confession, the following colloquy took place:
After Appellant confessed to shooting the victim with a twenty gauge shotgun, the following colloquy took place:
On August 5, 2005, a criminal information was filed charging Appellant with the capital murder of Megan Harbison. On August 3, 2006, Appellant filed a motion to suppress, alleging that El Dorado police "conducted an illegal custodial interrogation of the defendant after the defendant made an unambiguous request for legal counsel and before counsel was provided in violation of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and the Constitution of the State of Arkansas." The circuit court entered an order on August 4, 2006, denying Appellant's motion to suppress. The circuit court ruled that "the defendant was advised he had the right to counsel, implied he wanted his counsel but could not remember his name, and then did not ask for alternate counsel, did not ask to call his family or ask for a court-appointed attorney when asked what he wanted to do." The circuit court found that Appellant understood his rights and voluntarily and intelligently waived his right to have counsel present.
A jury found Appellant guilty and sentenced him to life imprisonment without parole. A judgment and commitment order was filed on August 17, 2006. Amended orders were filed on August 21, 2006, and September 5, 2006. On August 30, 2006, Appellant filed his notice of appeal.
For his sole point on appeal, Appellant argues that the circuit court erred in denying his motion to suppress and in allowing evidence to be introduced at trial that was allegedly obtained in violation of his Fifth Amendment right to counsel. Specifically, Appellant contends that his right to counsel was violated when he continued to be interrogated by a police officer when he requested to have an attorney present. Appellant asserts that he clearly invoked his Fifth Amendment right to counsel and that he did not initiate further communication with Detective Morrow.
In response, the State argues that the circuit court properly denied Appellant's motion to suppress his custodial confession. The State concedes that it is undisputed that Appellant invoked his right to counsel after being advised of his Miranda rights and that Detective Morrow, rather than Appellant, initiated contact. The State asserts the detective's post-invocation communications with Appellant did not amount to a re-initiation of an interrogation, but rather Appellant's communication with Detective Morrow amounted to a self-incriminating statement.
In Grillot v. State, 353 Ark. 294, 107 S.W.3d 136 (2003), we clarified the appropriate standard of review for cases involving a trial court's ruling on the voluntariness of a confession: We make an independent determination based upon the totality of the circumstances. Id. We review the trial court's findings of fact for clear error, and the ultimate question of whether the confession was voluntary is subject to an independent, or de novo, determination by this court. Clark v. State, 374 Ark. 292, 287 S.W.3d 567 (2008).
The narrow issue is whether the detective interrogated Appellant after initiating contact with him. Both the Fifth and Sixth Amendments provide a right to counsel. Vidos v. State, 367 Ark. 296, 239 S.W.3d 467 (2006). Under the Fifth Amendment, the right to counsel is derived from the amendment's prohibition against self-incrimination while in custody. See Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). Once a defendant invokes his Fifth Amendment right to counsel at a custodial interrogation, the police may not interrogate any further until counsel is provided, or the defendant initiates further communication. Michigan v. Jackson, 475 U.S. 625, 106 S.Ct. 1404, 89 L.Ed.2d 631 (1986).
In Robinson v. State, 373 Ark. 305, 283 S.W.3d 558 (2008), we stated that once a defendant is read his or her Miranda rights, the relevant inquiry is whether a defendant's initial response "indicated in any manner" under Miranda and Arkansas Rule of Criminal Procedure 4.5 an invocation of the right to remain silent or an invocation of the right to counsel. If so, the interrogation must immediately cease whenever the suspect states that he or she wants counsel, Miranda, 384 U.S. at 474, 86 S.Ct. 1602, or when he or she invokes the right to remain silent, pursuant to Miranda and Rule 4.5. In Robinson, supra, we noted that neither the record reflected nor the State argued the existence of a waiver.1
However, an accused may waive her rights by initiating further communication with the police. Jackson, 475 U.S. at 636, 106 S.Ct. 1404. If an accused waives his or her rights and initiates further communication, exchanges, or conversation with police officers, after initially requesting an attorney before speaking, any resulting statements may be admissible. Vidos, supra (citing Edwards v. Arizona, 451 U.S. 477, 101 S.Ct. 1880, 68 L.Ed.2d 378 (1981)). An accused, having expressed his desire to deal with the police only through counsel, is not subject to further interrogation by the authorities until counsel has been made available to him, unless the accused himself initiates further communication, exchanges, or conversations with the police. Id.
With this precedent in mind, we turn...
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Wedgeworth v. State
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