Can the prosecution use a defendant's involuntary confession?

The Fourteenth Amendment to the federal Constitution and article I, section 15, of the state Constitution bar the prosecution from using a defendant's involuntary confession. [Citation.] The federal Constitution requires the prosecution to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that a defendant's confession was voluntary. [Citation.] The same is now true under California law as a result of an amendment to the state Constitution enacted as part of Proposition 8, a 1982 voter initiative. (See Cal. Const, art. I,

[127 Cal.Rptr.2d 567]

28, subd. (d); ...) ... [] Under both state and federal law, courts apply a `totality of circumstances' test to determine the voluntariness of a confession. [Citations.] Among the factors to be considered are `"the crucial element of police coercion [citation]; the length of the interrogation [citation]; its location [citation]; its continuity" as well as "the defendant's maturity [citation]; education [citation]; physical condition [citation]; and mental health."` [Citation.] On appeal, the trial court's findings as to the circumstances surrounding the confession are upheld if supported by substantial evidence, but the trial court's finding as to the voluntariness of the confession is subject to independent review. [Citations.] In determining whether a confession was voluntary, `[t]he question is whether defendant's choice to confess was not "essentially free" because his will was overborne.' [Citation.]" (People v. Massie (1998) 19 Cal.4th 550, 576, 79 Cal.Rptr.2d 816, 967 P.2d 29.)

[127 Cal.Rptr.2d 567]