Noncustodial Interviews Must Stop When Lawyer Arrives

Police had a duty, under the State's due process clause, to tell a man being questioned that his lawyer had arrived, even though he was not technically in custody.

State v. McAdams, 2016 BL 126886, Fla., No. SC14-788, 4/21/16

     The Florida Supreme Court ruled that, even if a suspect came to the station voluntarily and is not yet in custody, police questioning must stop when the suspect's lawyer arrives. The court decided that "the only way to properly protect the due process rights of citizens under the Florida Constitution is to implement a bright-line rule." The bright line rule will prevent the court from determining specifically "what type of conduct, coupled with the failure to inform the individual of the attorney's presence, would be sufficiently outrageous to rise to the level of a due process violation."

     This ruling, along with previous rulings, confirms Florida's greater due process protections than that of the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

http://www.bloomberglaw.com/public/desktop/document/State_v_McAdams_No_SC14788_2016_BL_126886_Fla_Apr_21_2016_Court_O?1463582946