State v. Scarborough
State v. Scarborough
Opinion of the Court
Writ granted. As a general matter, at a hearing on a motion to suppress a statement given while in custody, the state bears the burden of proving the free and voluntary nature of the confession. State v. Hills ,
Here, no officer testified at the suppression hearing who had any knowledge of whether defendant was given his Miranda warnings or was present when defendant was questioned. Although a detective with pertinent knowledge was subpoenaed by both parties, he was out of state and unable to attend. Therefore, the district court erred in finding the state carried its burden and in denying defendant's motion to suppress. Accordingly, we vacate the district court's ruling and remand with instructions that the district court conduct a new suppression hearing at which, at the minimum, the detective who was previously unavailable can testify.
VACATED AND REMANDED
WEIMER, J., would deny.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- STATE of Louisiana v. Eugene SCARBOROUGH
- Cited By
- 2 cases
- Status
- Published