7th Circuit: Counsel's invocation of Miranda fails.

AuthorZiemer, David

Byline: David Ziemer

You would think that, if you are with your client when he meets with the police and invoke his Miranda rights for him, you wouldn't have to worry about any incriminating statements.

Unfortunately, as a Nov. 10 opinion from the Seventh Circuit demonstrates, that is not always enough.

The court acknowledged, It is perhaps odd that having anticipated the need to retain an attorney and clearly asserting his right to counsel, [the defendant] so quickly disregarded his attorney's advice and confessed his involvement with the gun trafficking conspiracy.

Nevertheless, the court concluded, Whatever doubt that this unusual twist may have raised was likely outweighed by the district court's recognition of [the defendant's] demonstrated propensity to chat with law enforcement agents and his belief that he could talk his way out of any sort of trouble.

Although the defendant, Myron Robinson, had a long history of cooperating with FBI agents and Illinois police officers, he was also involved in illegal gun trafficking on the side.

In 2003, two ATF agents, an officer from the Chicago Police Department and one from the Illinois State Police set up a meeting with Robinson at his mother's house to discuss the gun trafficking.

Before the meeting, the officers discovered an outstanding warrant for Robinson for retail theft.

Present at the meeting was Robinson's attorney, who informed the officers that Robinson would not talk to them about the gun investigation. At...

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