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N.D. Iowa: Consent in violation of Miranda can still be valid

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Consent obtained in violation of Miranda can still be valid. A consent is not an incriminating statement. Voluntariness must still be considered, and here it was. United States v. Golinveaux, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 91075 (N.D. Iowa November 6, 2008) The Court finds that when Defendant consented to a search of her car, she was in custody and had invoked her right to counsel (despite not having been given a Miranda warning). Nonetheless, clear precedent in the Eighth Circuit provides that "a consent to search is not an incriminating statement." Cody, 755 F.2d at 1330. Accordingly, Defendant is not entitled to relief under the Fifth Amendment and Miranda. . . . After considering all of the facts and circumstances, the Court concludes that the Government has met its burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that Defendant's consent to search her vehicle was given voluntarily...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on November 12, 2008 (boomark / email).