E.D.Wis.: Arresting def and family during raid at gunpoint and taking him outside to talk was still custodial; family inside in handcuffs

Defendant’s house was raided by police at gunpoint and then had everybody in the house in handcuffs and wouldn’t let a mother tend to her crying child in another room. Defendant was unhandcuffed and taken outside to talk. “Defendant was then instructed to go outside to talk with the agents. He was no longer in handcuffs but was escorted by armed officers to the waiting police car. The agent then told Defendant that he was not under arrest and could leave, but as in Borostowski, this assurance clearly rang hollow. Defendant was questioned for less time than Borostowski, but two hours is still significant. The length of the interrogation, combined with the fact that Defendant’s family was still being held in the house, does not detract from a finding of custody.” United States v. De La Vega, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 56395 (E.D. Wis. Apr. 2, 2019).

This entry was posted in Custody. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.