Com. v. Templin

• Decision Date: 24 April 2002
• Parties: COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellee, v. Russell TEMPLIN, Appellant.
• Court: Pennsylvania Supreme Court

795 A.2d 959

568 Pa. 306

COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellee, v. Russell TEMPLIN, Appellant.

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Argued October 18, 2000.

Decided April 24, 2002.

Alan J. Josel, Norristown, Michael A. John, for Russell Templin.

Michael D. Marino, Norristown, Marianne Killinger, for Com.

Before FLAHERTY, C.J., and ZAPPALA, CAPPY, CASTILLE, NIGRO, NEWMAN, SAYLOR, JJ.

OPINION OF THE COURT

Justice CASTILLE.

This Court granted discretionary pretrial review of a suppression ruling to determine and elucidate the proper standard for evaluating a claim that a confession made after an explicit Miranda¹ waiver was rendered involuntary because it followed upon a promise by police to recommend ROR bail² in the event the suspect was arrested and arraigned. The suppression court excluded the confession in this case, focusing exclusively upon the fact of the post-waiver promise, which it deemed an "improper inducement" that "require[d] suppression of the statement." In so holding, the court relied upon Commonwealth v. Gibbs, 520 Pa. 151, 553 A.2d 409 (1989), a case involving an inducement to waive Miranda rights—specifically, the right to counsel, which the suspect in Gibbs had equivocally invoked. Upon the Commonwealth's certified appeal,³ a divided Superior Court panel reversed, holding that the suppression court erred in focusing only upon the alleged inducement, while failing to consider the totality of the circumstances, in assessing the voluntariness of appellant's confession. Relying upon the totality of the circumstances analysis set forth in Commonwealth v. Nester, 551 Pa. 157, 709 A.2d 879 (1998), the Superior Court panel majority found that appellant's confession was voluntary. Judge Brosky dissented, noting his agreement with the trial court that the case was "extremely similar to, and controlled by," Gibbs.

For the reasons set forth below, we hold that the totality of the circumstances, including any alleged inducement, must be considered in evaluating the voluntariness of a confession. In addition, we affirm the finding of the Superior Court that the totality of the circumstances here demonstrated that appellant's confession was voluntary.

In reviewing a suppression ruling, this Court is bound by the lower court's factual findings that find support in the record but we are not bound by the court's conclusions of law. Nester, 551 Pa. at 160, 709 A.2d at 880-81; see also Commonwealth v. Polo, 563 Pa. 218, 222, 759 A.2d 372, 374 (Pa.2000)

; Commonwealth v. Pickron, 535 Pa. 241, 246, 634 A.2d 1093, 1096 (1993). The determination of whether a confession is voluntary is a conclusion of law and, as such, is subject to plenary review. Nester, 551 Pa. at 160-61,

709 A.2d at 881.

The relevant material facts are as follows. On July 24, 1997, a resident of West Pottsgrove Township telephoned the local police department to report that appellant had had sexual contact with the resident's six-year-old daughter while appellant and the child were watching a movie in appellant's home. Officer Todd Richard took the report and began his investigation by interviewing the child and her mother at the police station. On September 17, 1997, Officer Richard again interviewed the child, who related to the officer appellant's alleged actions. Shortly after speaking with the child, Officer Richard went to appellant's home to attempt to schedule a previously requested polygraph examination. Appellant was already familiar with the allegations made against him, as he had been previously interviewed by a representative from Children and Youth Services, accompanied by a police officer other than Officer Richard during that interview. Appellant had not yet responded to the request to take the polygraph test. Appellant agreed with Officer Richard that he would take a polygraph test, and Officer Richard left.

The next day, Officer Richard returned to appellant's home to discuss possible dates for the polygraph. After speaking briefly to appellant, Officer Richard requested that appellant accompany him to the police station to discuss the incident, and appellant agreed. Appellant was not handcuffed or otherwise restrained during the ride to the police station or during the ensuing stationhouse interview. Nor was appellant under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The interview took place in an interview room in which the doors stood open and unguarded. Officer Richard explained to appellant that the doors would remain open and that he was free to leave at any time. Officer Richard offered appellant something to drink, but appellant declined. Appellant acknowledged in his suppression testimony that Officer Richard was polite and that he felt that he could leave the room during the interview.

Although appellant was not formally restrained,⁴ Officer Richard nevertheless advised him of his Miranda rights by reading a standard Constitutional Rights Form. The officer questioned appellant to make certain he understood his rights. Appellant then indicated that he was willing to give a voluntary statement, and Officer Richard provided him with a written waiver of rights form and asked him to read it and sign it. Appellant read and signed the form, thus explicitly waiving his Miranda rights.⁵

Following the waiver, appellant initially denied having any sexual contact with the child. Approximately half an hour into the discussion, however, appellant asked the officer what would happen if he, in appellant's words, "would .... admit to doing something." Officer Richard responded by describing the process of arraignment, setting of bail and preliminary hearing in detail. Officer Richard noted that appellant "asked the question several times.... [and] I explained it several times in detail." The suppression court found that Officer Richard also told appellant that he could not make any promises as to whether he would spend time in prison, but advised that, if appellant were to admit his actions and charges were filed, the officer would recommend at arraignment that appellant be released on his own recognizance (ROR). The evidence concerning the promise to recommend ROR release was disputed. Officer Richard testified that, although he discussed making a recommendation of ROR release, he did not promise to make such a recommendation in exchange for a statement. The officer testified that he told appellant he would make that recommendation because he believed appellant could be trusted to appear since appellant had been nothing but cooperative. The officer was impeached with his contemporaneous report dated September 18, 1997, which stated:

I explained to [appellant] that I could make no promises as to whether or not he would spend time in prison. I did advised [sic] him that if he he [sic] were to admit his actions and charges were filed then I would recommend R.O.R. bail at his arraignment.

Exhibit D-1. Appellant testified that the officer promised him that he would recommend both ROR release and Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) classes in exchange for a statement. Appellant further claimed that, "I thought I would go in front of a judge and he would give me ROR and ARD classes and I thought it would be over and done with." N.T. 9/8/98 at 49. The suppression court stated that it "resolved the conflict in the evidence and found that Officer Richard promised to make a recommendation for ROR bail, but not ARD. ...." Trial court op. at 2-3. That credibility-based finding is consistent with Officer Richard's report and, thus, is supported by the record evidence.

The suppression evidence also reflects that Officer Richard told appellant that, notwithstanding his recommendation of ROR release, it would be the district justice who would establish the terms of any post-arraignment release. Appellant testified that he realized that the district justice ultimately would determine whether he would be released after arraignment and that, in fact, ROR release was recommended at his arraignment and he was released on his own recognizance. Appellant also testified that Officer Richard never promised him that he would talk to the district attorney about his case. Finally, appellant testified that he understood everything the officer told him up to the point "where the D.J. would come in and, you know, ROR and ARD classes."

Appellant then gave a written statement admitting, inter alia, that he rubbed the six year-old child's vagina with his hand, but denying that he ever exposed himself to the child or otherwise touched her. Appellant also claimed that he was "on acid" when he touched the child. Officer Richard transcribed the statement onto his computer as appellant spoke. Appellant reviewed a printout of the statement, made corrections, then signed and adopted it.

On appeal, appellant contends that the officer's post-Miranda waiver promise to recommend ROR release at arraignment was "an offer of leniency in the prosecution" of the case which rendered his confession involuntary as a matter of law, irrespective of the totality of the circumstances. Appellant argues that, while the totality of the circumstances test generally governs the determination of the voluntariness of a confession, Gibbs and its progeny require a "bright line rule" of exclusion automatically invalidating confessions which follow upon an offer of leniency. In the alternative, appellant argues that his confession was involuntary under the totality of the circumstances. The Commonwealth responds that the constitutional test for exclusion of a confession upon grounds of involuntariness requires consideration of the totality of the circumstances and that, under that analysis, the Superior Court properly determined that appellant's confession was voluntary.

The Superior Court clearly was correct in holding that the voluntariness of a confession is determined by the totality of the circumstances. The contrary, absolute rule that appellant promotes apparently derives...