Case Name and Citation: Brewer v. Williams 430 U.S. 387 (1977)
Previous courts and their rulings: Trial Court denied motion to suppress holding that Defendant waived his right to an attorney. The Iowa Supreme Court affirmed. Defendant then filed a writ of habeas corpus in a US District Court., which was granted, Court Appeal affirmed this conviction using the inevitable discovery doctrine, meaning that the confession did not affect the other evidence, as it would have been found anyway, inevitably.
Facts of the Case: Mr. Williams, the defendant had recently escaped from a mental hospital and was staying at a YMCA in Des Moines where a 10-year-old Pamela Powers was last seen. The defendant was seen leaving the YMCA with something large wrapped in a blanket with two small legs hanging from it. A warrant was then issued for his arrest, and …show more content…
Dissent: Chief Justice Warren Burger (“J. Burger”) dissented, arguing that the defendant was reminded of his rights several times and he chose to waive them when he disclosed the location of the body. Justice Bryon White’s (“J. White”) dissent argue that the facts of the cases indicate that the defendant knew of his rights and knowingly and voluntarily waive them. The officers statement did not constitute coercion. Justice Harry Black (“J. Blackman”) disagreed with the majority’s account of the facts. J. Blackman believed that every comment should be considered an interrogation and the circumstance of a missing girl may still be found alive mandated an urgent need for finding her.
Analysis: In Brewer v. Williams, 430 U.S. 387 (1977), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled by a 5-4 margin that a murder conviction must be overturned because the defendant led officers to the victim’s body without the presence of his attorney. In dissent, Chief Justice Warren Burger stated, "The result in this case ought to be intolerable in any society which purports to call itself an organized
Previous courts and their rulings: Trial Court denied motion to suppress holding that Defendant waived his right to an attorney. The Iowa Supreme Court affirmed. Defendant then filed a writ of habeas corpus in a US District Court., which was granted, Court Appeal affirmed this conviction using the inevitable discovery doctrine, meaning that the confession did not affect the other evidence, as it would have been found anyway, inevitably.
Facts of the Case: Mr. Williams, the defendant had recently escaped from a mental hospital and was staying at a YMCA in Des Moines where a 10-year-old Pamela Powers was last seen. The defendant was seen leaving the YMCA with something large wrapped in a blanket with two small legs hanging from it. A warrant was then issued for his arrest, and …show more content…
Dissent: Chief Justice Warren Burger (“J. Burger”) dissented, arguing that the defendant was reminded of his rights several times and he chose to waive them when he disclosed the location of the body. Justice Bryon White’s (“J. White”) dissent argue that the facts of the cases indicate that the defendant knew of his rights and knowingly and voluntarily waive them. The officers statement did not constitute coercion. Justice Harry Black (“J. Blackman”) disagreed with the majority’s account of the facts. J. Blackman believed that every comment should be considered an interrogation and the circumstance of a missing girl may still be found alive mandated an urgent need for finding her.
Analysis: In Brewer v. Williams, 430 U.S. 387 (1977), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled by a 5-4 margin that a murder conviction must be overturned because the defendant led officers to the victim’s body without the presence of his attorney. In dissent, Chief Justice Warren Burger stated, "The result in this case ought to be intolerable in any society which purports to call itself an organized