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American Morning
Lee Malvo Hearing Today
Aired April 28, 2003 - 08:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go ahead and focus now on the sniper case. There's a court hearing today in Fairfax County, Virginia. It's going to determine if sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo's own words can be used against him.
Defense attorneys claim that Malvo's six-hour interrogation by police last November was illegal, and that his statements should be thrown out of court.
Patty Davis is there in Virginia, and she is following the case for us.
Patty -- good morning.
PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.
Well, this hearing gets under way in a little less than two hours. The outcome very important to both sides.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVIS (voice-over): Defense lawyers are asking a Virginia judge to throw out allegedly incriminating statements made by sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo.
MICHAEL ARIF, MALVO'S ATTORNEY: Depending upon what happens at that time that will set the tenor for the balance of the trial.
DAVIS: The statements took place during six-and-a-half hours of questioning by a Fairfax County police detective and an FBI agent. Malvo, who was then 17 years old, had been transferred from federal custody in Maryland to Virginia to stand trial. Authorities believed he'd have a greater chance of getting the death penalty there, if convicted.
Prosecutors say Malvo admitted to participating in some of the sniper shootings in the Washington, D.C. area, and to firing the shot that killed FBI analyst Linda Franklin outside this Home Depot in Falls Church, Virginia.
The big question: Were those statements obtained legally? Malvo's lawyers claim they were not.
According to court records, Malvo asked, "Do I get to see my attorney?" Fairfax County Detective June Boyle (ph) said, "Yes."
Malvo said his lawyers had told him not to talk to police until they got there.
The detectives said there were "new charges" in Virginia, and "that the police wanted to get some information about him. He said OK."
Malvo started talking and was advised of his rights.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Now, Malvo's lawyers say that that interrogation was illegal, because he invoked his right to an attorney at the beginning of that conversation with police. But prosecutors say, "do I get to see my attorney," the question that he asked was a question and not a request.
And, Daryn, we're hearing for the first time in these motions today something we have not heard before, and that is an incident Malvo apparently laughed about. A bullet fired, whizzing by a child's head, missed the child, went into the -- went into apparently the window, we're hearing, of the Michael's store in Aspen Hill, Maryland, an apparent reference to that shooting. No one was injured in that, but he laughed about that, and apparently that was another attempted shooting that narrowly missed a child.
Back to you -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Well, whether or not these words end up in court, that's for the judge to decide. They are chilling when you get a chance to look at them, however.
Where are we, Patty, on the timeline of this is actually going to trial?
DAVIS: Well, interesting. Muhammad -- John Muhammad, his alleged accomplice, goes on trial first, and that happens in October. And then, Malvo is up in November, although Malvo's attorneys have been arguing that they need more time -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Patty Davis in Fairfax County Virginia, thank you so much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired April 28, 2003 - 08:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go ahead and focus now on the sniper case. There's a court hearing today in Fairfax County, Virginia. It's going to determine if sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo's own words can be used against him.
Defense attorneys claim that Malvo's six-hour interrogation by police last November was illegal, and that his statements should be thrown out of court.
Patty Davis is there in Virginia, and she is following the case for us.
Patty -- good morning.
PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.
Well, this hearing gets under way in a little less than two hours. The outcome very important to both sides.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVIS (voice-over): Defense lawyers are asking a Virginia judge to throw out allegedly incriminating statements made by sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo.
MICHAEL ARIF, MALVO'S ATTORNEY: Depending upon what happens at that time that will set the tenor for the balance of the trial.
DAVIS: The statements took place during six-and-a-half hours of questioning by a Fairfax County police detective and an FBI agent. Malvo, who was then 17 years old, had been transferred from federal custody in Maryland to Virginia to stand trial. Authorities believed he'd have a greater chance of getting the death penalty there, if convicted.
Prosecutors say Malvo admitted to participating in some of the sniper shootings in the Washington, D.C. area, and to firing the shot that killed FBI analyst Linda Franklin outside this Home Depot in Falls Church, Virginia.
The big question: Were those statements obtained legally? Malvo's lawyers claim they were not.
According to court records, Malvo asked, "Do I get to see my attorney?" Fairfax County Detective June Boyle (ph) said, "Yes."
Malvo said his lawyers had told him not to talk to police until they got there.
The detectives said there were "new charges" in Virginia, and "that the police wanted to get some information about him. He said OK."
Malvo started talking and was advised of his rights.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Now, Malvo's lawyers say that that interrogation was illegal, because he invoked his right to an attorney at the beginning of that conversation with police. But prosecutors say, "do I get to see my attorney," the question that he asked was a question and not a request.
And, Daryn, we're hearing for the first time in these motions today something we have not heard before, and that is an incident Malvo apparently laughed about. A bullet fired, whizzing by a child's head, missed the child, went into the -- went into apparently the window, we're hearing, of the Michael's store in Aspen Hill, Maryland, an apparent reference to that shooting. No one was injured in that, but he laughed about that, and apparently that was another attempted shooting that narrowly missed a child.
Back to you -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Well, whether or not these words end up in court, that's for the judge to decide. They are chilling when you get a chance to look at them, however.
Where are we, Patty, on the timeline of this is actually going to trial?
DAVIS: Well, interesting. Muhammad -- John Muhammad, his alleged accomplice, goes on trial first, and that happens in October. And then, Malvo is up in November, although Malvo's attorneys have been arguing that they need more time -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Patty Davis in Fairfax County Virginia, thank you so much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
