Carter v. State
| Citation | 490 N.E.2d 288 |
| Decision Date | 26 March 1986 |
| Docket Number | No. 285S47,285S47 |
| Parties | Thomas CARTER, Appellant (Defendant below), v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee (Plaintiff below). |
| Court | Indiana Supreme Court |
C. Jerome Smith, Hammond, for appellant.
Linley E. Pearson, Atty. Gen., Jay Rodia, Deputy Atty. Gen., Indianapolis, for appellee.
Defendant-Appellant Thomas Carter was convicted by a jury in Lake Superior Court of murder. He subsequently was sentenced to a term of fifty (50) years imprisonment. Appellant now raises the following two issues:
1. whether the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress his confession; and
2. whether the trial court erred by admitting certain testimony.
On December 1, 1983 about 9:00 p.m., Officer Harvey of the Gary Police Department was summoned to the Interlude Motel to investigate a disturbance. A hotel employee escorted Harvey to a room with the door open, Appellant sitting inside. The employee identified Appellant as having created the disturbance. While Harvey questioned Appellant regarding the disturbance, he noticed syringes and a white powdery substance on the dresser, one syringe containing liquid and another with blood on it. Harvey arrested Carter for possession of narcotics and took him to the Gary Police Department.
A dispatch arriving from Lake Station Police Department requested Appellant be detained for questioning. Earlier that evening Sergeant Basista of the Lake Station Police Department had investigated the stabbing of Carter's ex-wife, Cynthia, at Carter's home. Basista had learned that Cynthia had driven her red Nova to Appellant's home. She was later found stabbed to death, a broken knife lying near her purse. A bloody shirt was also found nearby which Tom Carter, Appellant's brother, identified as the shirt Appellant was wearing earlier that day.
Officers Strine and Szostek picked up Appellant at the Police Station in Gary and transported him to the Lake Station Police Department. Appellant, after having had his Miranda rights read to him, indicated his understanding of these rights and signed a written waiver of them. Thereafter, Szostek questioned Appellant about his ex-wife, but Appellant refused to discuss any incident in his home. Szostek then asked Appellant, "What if I were to tell you that she is in the hospital right now talking to some of our officers?" After a moment of silence, Szostek continued, "You thought she was dead didn't you?" Appellant responded affirmatively and confessed to having been with the victim earlier that day, that an argument and struggle had ensued, and she had fallen on a knife. He left her after changing clothes, thinking she was dead.
Appellant asserts that his confession should have been suppressed for three reasons: it was the product of an illegal arrest, it was involuntarily extracted from him through police deception, and because Appellant was so intoxicated he did not voluntarily waive his Miranda rights. However, none of these arguments support a finding that the trial court erred by admitting Appellant's confession.
In support of Appellant's first contention, that his confession was the product of an illegal arrest, Appellant argues that neither the Gary Police Department nor the Lake Station Police Department had probable cause to arrest him. An individual may be arrested without a warrant when the arresting officer has reasonable and probable cause to believe the individual has committed a felony. Fisher v. State (1984), Ind., 468 N.E.2d 1365, reh. denied. The Gary Police had reasonable cause to believe Appellant possessed a controlled substance. Officer Harvey of the Gary Police Department appeared at Appellant's hotel room at the request of security who claimed a disturbance had occurred. Harvey was led to an open hotel room where Appellant was sitting. While questioning Appellant, Harvey saw what he believed to be narcotics and some syringes on the dresser. Therefore, Harvey had reason to believe Appellant had committed a felony and had the probable cause necessary to arrest Appellant. The Lake Station Police also had reasonable and probable cause to have Appellant transferred to their station for a more serious crime investigation. At the time Officer Basista requested transfer of Appellant, he knew that Cynthia Carter, Appellant's ex-wife, had been found dead at Appellant's home that same day. Other information Basista possessed revealed Appellant's shirt, which his brother had observed Appellant wearing that day, was found near Cynthia's body with bloodstains. A knife was also found near the body. These circumstances fully warranted a reasonable and probable cause conclusion by the Lake Station officers regarding Appellant's culpability in his ex-wife's death. Accordingly, since Appellant's detention was at all times lawful, his subsequent confession was not subject to suppression.
Next Appellant argues his confession was involuntarily given because it was induced by Officer Szotek's deception. Officer Szostek admitted at trial and the State concedes that Szostek was not truthful with Appellant during their interview and intimated that Cynthia might still be alive. However, such a fact, while relevant, is only one factor to be considered. The totality of circumstances regarding a defendant's confession must be examined in order to determine the question of voluntariness. Frazier v. Cupp (1969), 394 U.S. 731, 89 S.Ct. 1420, 22 L.Ed.2d 684; Wagner v. State (1985), Ind., 474 N.E.2d 476. In Frazier, police officers untruthfully told the defendant...
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