Did Mayhew voluntarily waive his Miranda rights and were his statements voluntary?
Mayhew killed his ex-girlfriend, her fianc, and then abducted his daughter and took her across state lines. He shot an officer who stopped him for a minor traffic offense. He then fatally shot his daughter and shot himself. On the way to the hospital in an ambulance, Mayhew was administered Miranda warnings, waived his rights, and made incriminating statements to the police. The entire conversation in the ambulance was videotaped. Mayhew was in moderate pain during the interrogation as evidenced by grimaces and moans, but he never complained of pain analogous to unbearable discomfort. He complained of blood in the back of his throat. His eyes were closed when he was loaded onto the ambulance, prompting the paramedics to instruct him to open his eyes. The paramedics used a blood pressure cuff and an intravenous drip to treat him. He did not lose consciousness at any point during the ambulance ride, but he claims that he was generally confused at the time because of the days' traumatic events, as supported by the EMT report which noted Mayhew was confused to time/place/surroundings. During interrogation he made a number of inquiries to the officers. A police lieutenant occasionally pulled Mayhew's oxygen mask down toward his lower lip and chin in an apparent effort to clearly hear his words. Each time the mask was removed, the medics returned the mask over Mayhew's mouth and nose. On two separate occasions the lieutenant, who was a trained emergency medical first responder, aided the paramedics. He was not intoxicated and had taken no prescription or illicit drugs. Many of his statements were couched in voluntary language, he coherently answered almost all of the questions posed, and he answered these questions with absolute accuracy.
What will be an ideal response?
Question 2
Was Mahmood in custody for purposes of Miranda during this interrogation?
Asif Mahmood, a recent immigrant from Pakistan, was charged with engaging in marriage fraud to evade the immigration laws. One morning at about 11:30 a.m., three Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agents arrived at his residence to investigate a report by woman purporting to be Mahmood's ex-girlfriend who claimed that he offered her money to marry him. In an application to change his immigration status, Mahmood claimed to be married. The agents wanted to know whether this marriage to Miriam Santos was legitimate. The Agents were let in voluntarily by Mahmood. Two agents, without asking permission, conducted a protective sweep of the premises, ordering Mahmood to remain in the living room, within view at all times of at least one agent. Satisfied that he was alone, the Agents asked Mahmood a series of questions, without informing him that he was free to decline to answer or that he could terminate the interrogation at his discretion. Despite his obvious foreign accent and tentative grasp of English, the agents did not ask if he would prefer to speak with them via an interpreter. Whenever Mahmood requested that the Agents slow down or repeat themselves, they became visibly annoyed and harsh in their tone. He was unaware that he had the right to remain silent, to seek the advice of an attorney, or to ask the agents to leave. Questioning lasted an hour and the quality of the session, including blocking Mahmood from answering a ringing telephone, left him with the reasonable conclusion that he was not free to leave or to ask the agents to leave. At the end of the hour he admitted that Miriam Santos did not live with him at his residence and that he had paid her to marry him. He provided a written statement to that effect. During the ninety-five minute interrogation, the agents did not ask Mahmood if he cared to use the bathroom, and he did not feel he was entitled to do so. He was anxious and concluded that he was obliged to be compliant. One Agent described Mahmood as meek, mild, and very soft-spoken.
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