Can a police officer investigating an individual who is not currently charged with certain crimes obtain evidence of new or anticipated crimes from that individual?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from Wilson, In re, 13 Cal.Rptr.2d 269, 3 Cal.4th 945, 838 P.2d 1222 (Cal. 1992):

Although recognizing that law enforcement officers investigating an individual already charged with certain crimes may have a legitimate interest in investigating new or anticipated crimes, the court held that the government's investigative powers, in seeking evidence relating to the pending charges, were limited by the Sixth Amendment rights of the accused. Consequently, incriminating statements pertaining to pending charges were held to be inadmissible at the trial of those charges, even though obtained incident to an investigation of other suspected criminal activity for which no charges were pending, if in obtaining this evidence the government improperly circumvented the accused's right to the assistance of counsel. (Maine v. Moulton, supra, 474 U.S. at pp. 179-180, 106 S.Ct. at pp. 488-489.) The court noted that incriminating statements pertaining to the other uncharged criminal activity would be admissible at a trial of such other crimes. (Id., at p. 180, fn. 16, 106 S.Ct. at p. 489, fn. 16.)

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