Interrogating Juveniles; Custody, Beheler, & Common Sense By Robert C. Phillips DDA: Retired April, 2018 It is becoming increasingly recognized that juveniles present a unique problem in attempting to obtain incriminatory statements in the…

  Interrogation Tactics, Attenuation, and the Use of Police Agents Robert C. Phillips DDA (Retired) April, 2018             Sometimes the police are good.  Sometimes they are just lucky.  A recent California appellate court decision out of division…

Legislating Away a Case Law Problem: Miranda, Welfare & Institutions Code § 625.6, and Juveniles By Robert C. Phillips DDA (Retired) November, 2017 During the past legislative session, Governor Jerry Brown signed into law SB 395, effective as…

The Ten Lawful Exceptions to Miranda Robert C. Phillips DDA (Retired) April, 2017             When Chief Justice Earl Warren first announced the landmark case decision of Miranda v. Arizona[1] in 1966, delivering the opinion of a majority of the…

Recording Interrogations and Penal Code § 859.5 Robert C. Phillips Deputy District Attorney (Ret.) January, 2017             As of January 1, 2017, with an amendment to Penal Code § 859.5,[1] it is now the law in California that any interrogation of…

Interpreting the Unambiguous Invocation Robert C. Phillips DDA; retired December, 2016             It has long been one of Miranda v. Arizona’s[1] principle tenants that once an in-custody suspect invokes his right to silence (e.g., “I don’t want to…

A “Witness or a Suspect;” Offers of Leniency Robert C. Phillips DDA (Ret.) September, 2016 Fabian Florence Perez was in need of a little extra cash.  So when his friend, Christopher Jasso, suggested that they rob someone randomly off the street,…

Doing the Interrogation “Two-Step” Again Robert C. Phillips DDA (Ret.) April, 2016 Over three decades ago, the United States Supreme Court decided the case of Oregon v. Elstad,[1] where it held that when law enforcement officers talk to an in-…

Self-Incrimination and Mind Games; The Interrogation of Minors Robert C. Phillips Deputy District Attorney (Ret.) January, 2016 Thirteen-year-old Elias V. lived with his parents in an apartment complex in Santa Rosa.  His friend, nine-year-old…

The Edwards/Shatzer Fourteen-Day Break in Custody Requirement Robert C. Phillips DDA, Retired November, 2015              On January 4, 2010, Bryan David Bridgeford and two others committed a home invasion robbery at a residence in the town of Dos…