[DOWNLOAD] "State v. Munoz" by New Mexico Supreme Court # eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: State v. Munoz
- Author : New Mexico Supreme Court
- Release Date : January 24, 1998
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 63 KB
Description
APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF OTERO COUNTY Robert M. Doughty, II, District Judge OPINION {1} Defendant Alex Munoz appeals his conviction for first-degree murder for the stabbing death of James Rogers. He asserts that his right to due process under the Fourteenth Amendment and his right against compelled self-incrimination under the Fifth Amendment were violated by the admission of a coerced confession obtained without his being advised of his rights pursuant to Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 467 (1965). He also asserts that the jury was improperly instructed on the cause of death, that there was insufficient evidence that his admitted act of stabbing the victim was a cause of death, and that there was insufficient evidence that the killing took place in New Mexico. We hold that various specific factors, if they influenced Defendant's confession, did not render it involuntary. We also hold that because Defendant's freedom of action at the time of the confession was not curtailed in a way that could be associated with a formal arrest, he was not denied his right to be free from self-incrimination. Finally, we affirm the trial court as to the remainder of Defendant's claims. I. Factual and Procedural Background.