D.Minn.: Consent form was understandable enough to show voluntary waiver

Defendant consented to the taking of a DNA sample. He was informed that he had a right to refuse consent, but he objected that he did not understand the form or what DNA was. The court finds the form simple and understandable, and he voluntarily consented. [The court downplayed the role of knowledge of the right to refuse consent in voluntariness.] United States v. Cloud, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 54861 (D. Minn. April 19, 2010):

In addition, though the Defendant contends that his consent was not knowing, because Iverson did not explain the meaning of a “voluntary submission,” the language of the Consent Form is clear and simple, and plainly informs the reader that there is no requirement to consent, and that any consent is voluntarily given. As a consequence, we find that the Defendant was sufficiently apprised of the voluntary nature of his consent and, in addition, we observe that, while it may factor into the totality of the circumstances analysis, “[t]he Supreme ‘Court has rejected in specific terms the suggestion that police officers must always inform citizens of their right to refuse when seeking permission to conduct a warrantless consent search.'” United States v. Va Lerie, supra at 710, quoting United States v. Drayton, 536 U.S. 194, 206 (2002); see also, United States v. Esquivias, supra at 701 (“While the officers did not inform [the defendant] of his right to refuse consent, a defendant need not be aware, nor must an officer inform him, of his right to refuse consent for his consent to be voluntary.”), citing United States v. Becker, 333 F.3d 858, 861 (8th Cir. 2003); United States v. Alcantar, supra at 737 (“Although [the defendant] was not advised of his right to refuse consent, that was not in and of itself sufficient to find that consent was not voluntarily given.”), citing United States v. Zapata, 180 F.3d 1237, 1242 (11th Cir. 1999).