Paul's estranged wife and her new boyfriend have been killed. He maintained that he discovered the bodies when he visited his former home to collect belongings. But the police arrested Paul on suspicion of murder.
At the start of the police interview, Paul asked for a solicitor. Detective Miranda told him, 'Come on, you know the ropes, you don't want to be waiting hours for your solicitor to arrive. Let's get this over with.' Paul soon became very emotional. He cried and shook. He was sweating profusely. He said that his heart was racing, and he felt very ill. He asked to contact his therapist with whom, he claimed, he was working on his panic attacks. Detective Miranda thought that Paul was playing for time and refuses the request, saying that 'anyone guilty of double murder is bound to be in a state.' Paul then confessed to the killings.
The following day, a second, properly conducted, interview was held in the presence of Paul's solicitor. The solicitor was not informed that Paul had been denied access to legal advice in the first interview. Paul repeated his confession.
The defense intends to argue at trial that the two confessions should be ruled inadmissible.
Advise on the admissibility of confession evidence.

 

use case law and statutory and a the IRAC method

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

Issue The admissibility of Pauls confessions in the police interviews Rule The admissibility of confessions is determined by considering the voluntari... View the full answer