State v. Izaia M. Bullock

SYLLABUS This syllabus is not part of the Court’s opinion. It has been prepared by the Office of the Clerk for the convenience of the reader. It has been neither reviewed nor approved by the Court and may not summarize all portions of the opinion. State v. Izaia M. Bullock (A-34-21) (086196) Argued November 28, 2022 -- Decided May 9, 2023 PIERRE-LOUIS, J., writing for a unanimous Court. In this appeal, the Court considers whether a two-step interrogation in which officers questioned the defendant, obtained admissions, and thereafter advised defendant of his Miranda rights warrants suppression of defendant’s statements. In October 2018, Rutgers University Police were dispatched to a campus residence hall to investigate reports that a student, defendant Izaia Bullock, had threatened to harm his girlfriend’s parents. Upon arriving, Rutgers Police Officer Peter Archibald saw defendant standing in the hallway. Officer Archibald escorted defendant to the courtyard of the building, where they met two other officers. While in the courtyard, defendant was not in handcuffs. The officers were in full uniform and armed. Without administering Miranda warnings, Officer Archibald asked, “why are we here tonight?” Defendant said it was “[b]ecause [he] made a statement” about “want[ing] to harm” his “girlfriend and her family.” After defendant provided his girlfriend’s name, the officers moved him from the middle of the courtyard towards a building. The rest of the courtyard questioning took place with defendant’s back up against the building, with the three officers in front of him. After further exchanges, Officer Archibald told defendant, “[Y]ou are not under arrest. You are not in trouble. I’m going to advise you of your Miranda rights, okay?” He then provided a recitation of the Miranda rights but did not have defendant execute a Miranda waiver form because none were available at that location. Officer Archibald did not ask defendant if he wanted to waive his rights and answer the officers’ questions. Rather, after administering the Miranda rights, asking if defendant understood them, and receiving no audible answer, Officer Archibald immediately resumed questioning, during which defendant stated, when asked what he had said earlier, “I said I would kill my girlfriend’s parents.” The questioning continued until another officer on the scene received a call from the police captain directing the officers to bring defendant to headquarters. Defendant asked, “Do I gotta sit in the back, like I’m getting arrested?” Officer Archibald replied, “No, you’re not getting arrested.” 1  At headquarters, defendant waited in an interview room approximately four hours for the interrogation to begin. Detective Lauren Tredo told defendant that “since you’re here” at the police station she was going to give him his rights. Detective Tredo then told defendant, “I know you spoke with officers prior. But we just have to do it again.” In advising defendant of his rights, Detective Tredo instructed defendant: “after each one, just acknowledge that you understand by saying yes or no, okay?” Detective Tredo then administered defendant’s Miranda rights and defendant verbally affirmed his understanding after each one. Detectives then instructed defendant to read the following statement out loud: “I have be en advised of my rights, and I understand what my rights are.” Defendant then signed and initialed the form as instructed. Throughout the questioning that followed, defendant detailed his potential plan and the steps he had taken thus far. Defendant was charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder. The State moved to admit defendant’s statements from his interrogations. The hearing judge found defendant’s statements in the courtyard inadmissible, reasoning that the State failed to show a proper administration and waiver of defendant’s Miranda rights. The court next found defendant’s statements at police headquarters inadmissible because Detective Tredo similarly failed to ask defendant if he understood his rights and if he was willing to waive his rights and answer the officers’ questions. The trial judge further explained that the officers’ conduct in presenting defendant’s rights relegated Miranda to a mere administrative formality. The Appellate Division affirmed. As to the stationhouse statements, the court relied, in part, on the since-overturned Appellate Division decision in State v. Sims, 466 N.J. Super. 346, 367 (App. Div. 2021), in concluding that the “failure to inform defendant of the charges for which he was being placed under arrest was fatal to eliciting a valid waiver.” The Court granted leave to appeal. 249 N.J. 348 (2021). HELD: Defendant’s statements in the courtyard and stationhouse were both properly suppressed. Under the totality of the circumstances, the courtyard statements must be suppressed because the Miranda warnings given in the courtyard were lacking and could not have apprised defendant of his rights such that any waiver and agreement to speak to police was knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently made. By the time defendant arrived at the police department and was given full Miranda warnings, he had already admitted to the very crime that the officers were investigating. Defendant had “let the cat out of the bag” with his admissions, see State v. Carrion, 249 N.J. 253, 275-76 (2021), so the psychological pressure of having already confessed was not cured by the administration of Miranda warnings prior to the interview at the station. 1. A confession or incriminating statement obtained during a custodial interrogation may not be admitted in evidence unless a defendant has been advised of his or her 2 constitutional rights through the Miranda warnings. After an individual is given Miranda warnings and apprised of the rights, that person “may waive effectuation of [those] rights, provided the waiver is made voluntarily, knowingly and intelligently.” Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444 (1966). To establish that an individual waived the Miranda rights under New Jersey law, the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the suspect’s waiver was knowing, intelligent, and voluntary in light of all the circumstances. The Court has held that police should scrupulously avoid making comments that minimize the significance of the suspect’s waiver of the Miranda rights. (pp. 25-28) 2. At issue in this appeal is a two-step “question-first, warn-later” interrogation, where police elicit incriminating statements from a defendant before administering Miranda warnings. State v. O’Neill, 193 N.J. 148, 180-81 (2007). In O’Neill, the Court held that when police elicit incriminating information during a custodial interrogation and only afterwards administer Miranda warnings, “the admissibility of post-warning statements will turn on whether the warnings functioned effectively in providing the defendant the ability to exercise his state law privilege against self - incrimination.” Ibid. And the Court adopted a non-exhaustive list of five factors for courts to consider when assessing whether the warnings provided in the second interrogation functioned effectively. Id. at 181. “In a two-step interrogation case, courts must view the totality of the circumstances in light of the relevant factors and then determine whether the unwarned questioning and admissions rendered the Miranda warnings ineffective in providing a defendant the opportunity to exercise the privilege.” Id. at 181-82. The Court reviews its application of the O’Neill factors in Carrion. (pp. 28-32) 3. As to the courtyard statements, with three uniformed, armed officers surrounding defendant and asking him questions about the alleged threats in the courtyard, it is hard to imagine that a reasonable person in defendant’s position would have felt free to leave. Defendant was in custody as the officers questioned him in the courtyard, and he should have been read his Miranda rights prior to Officer Archibald asking questions that were reasonably likely to elicit an incriminating response. But it was not until after defendant admitted that he had stated that he “want[ed] to harm someone,” specifically, “[his] girlfriend and her family,” that Officer Archibald advised defendant of his right to remain silent in an abridged version of the Miranda rights. There was no Miranda form available to the officers at the time, so the warnings were not a full recitation of the advice of rights Miranda requires. Furthermore, prior to providing defendant with the inadequate Miranda rights, Officer Archibald undermined those rights by telling defendant, who was at that point in police custody and a suspect in an attempted murder investigation, that he was “not in trouble” -- an affirmative misrepresentation. (pp. 32-35) 3 4. As to the stationhouse statements, application of the O’Neill factors weighs in favor of suppression. Although the pre-Miranda questioning in the courtyard did not last long, the substance of defendant’s admissions was significant. The first factor -- the extent of questioning prior to being informed of Miranda and the nature of any admissions -- therefore weighs in defendant’s favor. The second and third factors, the proximity in time and place between the pre- and post-warning questioning and whether the same law enforcement officers conducted both statements, weigh in favor of admitting the statements. Regarding factor four, the detectives did not inform defendant that his prior statements could not be used against him, so this factor weighs in defendant’s favor. Defendant was still operating under the psychological and practical disadvantages of having confessed prior to the stationhouse interrogation. This factor weighs heavily against admission. The final factor -- whether the post-warning questioning was a continuation of the pre- warning questioning -- likewise weighs in favor of suppression. Prior to the start of the police station interrogation, Detective Tredo stated that she was aware defendant previously spoke to the other officers, “[b]ut we just have to do it again.” Detective Tredo further noted that “patrol took a statement” regarding the comments defendant made. Linking the pre- and post-warning statements together in that manner and giving defendant the impression that the statement at the police station was a repeat of the statements he already made certainly could have given defendant the impression that the post-warning statement was simply a continuation of the first. It is also important to acknowledge defendant’s lack of familiarity with the criminal justice system. Under those circumstances, the Miranda warnings administered at the police station did not give defendant “a meaningful opportunity to exercise his rights,” so defendant’s waiver prior to the second interrogation was not made knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently. See O’Neill, 193 N.J. at 180. (pp. 36-38) 5. In light of the Court’s holding in State v. Sims that when neither a complaint nor an arrest warrant has been issued, law enforcement officers are not required to inform an arrestee of what charges the arrestee may be facing prior to conducting an interrogation, see 250 N.J. 189, 217 (2022), the appellate court’s partial reliance on the now-reversed Appellate Division holding in Sims is no longer viable. In its ruling, however, the Appellate Division noted that the factors cited by the trial court under the totality of the circumstances analysis “also support the conclusion that there was no valid waiver,” as the Court now holds. (pp. 38-39) AFFIRMED AS MODIFIED. REMANDED to the trial court. CHIEF JUSTICE RABNER; JUSTICES PATTERSON, WAINER APTER, and FASCIALE; and JUDGE SABATINO (temporarily assigned) join in JUSTICE PIERRE-LOUIS’s opinion. JUSTICE SOLOMON did not participate. 4  SUPREME COURT OF NEW JERSEY A-34 September Term 2021 086196 State of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Izaia M. Bullock, Defendant-Respondent. On appeal from the Superior Court, Appellate Division . Argued Decided November 28, 2022 May 9, 2023 Patrick F. Galdieri, II, Assistant Prosecutor, argued the cause for appellant (Yolanda Ciccone, Middlesex County Prosecutor, attorney; Patrick F. Galdieri, II, of counsel and on the briefs). Rochelle Watson, Deputy Public Defender II, argued the cause for respondent (Joseph E. Krakora, Public Defender, attorney; Rochelle Watson, of counsel and on the briefs, and Michele E. Friedman, Assistant Deputy Public Defender, on the briefs). Frank Muroski, Deputy Attorney General, argued the cause for amicus curiae Attorney General of New Jersey (Matthew J. Platkin, Attorney General, attorney; Frank Muroski, of counsel and on the brief). 1  John McNamara, Jr., argued the cause for amicus curiae County Prosecutors Association of New Jersey (Jeffrey A. Sutherland, President, County Prosecutors Association, attorneys; John McNamara, Jr., of counsel and on the brief). Janie Byalik argued the cause for amicus curiae Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Jersey (Pashman Stein Walder Hayden, attorneys; Janie Byalik, on the brief). Christina Monica François, of the New York bar, admitted pro hac vice, argued the cause for amicus curiae Centurion Ministries, Inc., d/b/a Centurion (Centurion, attorneys; Paul Casteleiro and Christina Monica François, on the brief). JUSTICE PIERRE-LOUIS delivered the opinion of the Court. In this appeal, we must determine whether a two-step interrogation in which officers questioned the defendant, obtained admissions, and thereafter advised defendant of his Miranda1 rights warrants suppression of defendant’s statements. In October 2018, Rutgers University Police received a report that defendant Izaia Bullock had made some concerning statements to another student about harming his girlfriend’s parents. When Officer Peter Archibald arrived to speak to the other student, he encountered defendant in the hallway 1 Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966). 2 of a campus residence hall. After a brief discussion, Officer Archibald escorted defendant out of the building into the adjacent courtyard where they were met by two additional uniformed, armed Rutgers Police officers. Before advising defendant of his Miranda rights, Officer Archibald asked defendant why the officers were there, and defendant stated that he made a statement about wanting to hurt someone, specifically “[m]y girlfriend and her family.” After defendant made that admission, Officer Archibald advised defendant that he was “not in trouble” and then recited a cursory version of the Miranda warnings to defendant. Although it is unclear whether defendant affirmatively waived his rights, Officer Archibald immediately resumed the questioning and defendant made further admissions, including an admission that he “said he would kill [his] girlfriend’s parents.” After being transported to police headquarters, detectives administered Miranda warnings and defendant signed a waiver form. Two Rutgers Police detectives subsequently conducted a video-taped interrogation. Prior to the interrogation, one of the detectives stated that she was aware defendant already spoke to the officers and stated, “[b]ut we just have to do it again.” Defendant made additional incriminating statements, including details of his plan to kill his girlfriend’s parents. 3  Prior to trial, the trial court suppressed all of defendant’s statements, finding that he was in custody in the courtyard and should have been properly advised of his rights, which did not occur. The trial court also suppressed the statements defendant made at the police station because of improper administration and waiver of Miranda rights. The Appellate Division affirmed, agreeing with the trial court that defendant’s statements in the courtyard must be suppressed. The Appellate Division also held that defendant’s statements at the police station must be suppressed, relying in part on the now-overruled Appellate Division decision in State v. Sims to find that defendant’s Miranda waiver was invalid because he was not advised of the potential charges against him for which the officers had probable cause to arrest. See 466 N.J. Super. 346, 367 (App. Div. 2021), rev’d and remanded, 250 N.J. 189, reconsideration denied, 250 N.J. 493, cert. denied, 143 S. Ct. 409 (2022). The Appellate Division also noted that the totality of the circumstances supported suppression. For the reasons below, we affirm as modified the holding of the Appellate Division suppressing all of defendant’s statements. 4  I. A. The following facts are derived from the record developed at the suppression hearing. On October 29, 2018, at approximately 8:30 p.m., Rutgers University Police were dispatched to a campus residence hall to investigate an incident involving a student, defendant Izaia Bullock. Someone informed Rutgers Police that another student, M.C., had a recording of defendant threatening to harm his girlfriend’s parents, and other students had reported overhearing a statement about someone “harming someone’s parents.” Upon arriving at the residence hall, Rutgers Police Officer Peter Archibald went to meet with M.C. while his two partners looked for the other students who had called in the reports. As Officer Archibald walked down the hallway of the residence hall, he saw defendant, whom he recognized from photographs, standing in the hallway outside of M.C.’s room. Officer Archibald’s body-worn camera captured the events that followed. Officer Archibald approached defendant, addressed defendant by his first name, and advised defendant that he was there to investigate “an incident.” Defendant confirmed that he was Izaia Bullock. 5  Officer Archibald testified that defendant “appeared surprised” by the police presence in the dorm. Officer Archibald told defendant that “some concerns . . . have been raised,” and defendant acknowledged that he “already talked to [his] coach” about what happened. Officer Archibald responded, “Well, we got to, we got to figure this out, okay? . . . [S]omething was said, and we’re now involved.” Officer Archibald asked defendant for his driver’s license, which defendant provided. Officer Archibald testified that at this point, though defendant was not under formal arrest, he was not free to leave. Officer Archibald radioed for his fellow officers to meet him in the dorm, but when the other officers could not find his location, Officer Archibald escorted defendant to the courtyard of the building, where they met the two officers. While in the courtyard, the officers spoke with defendant. Defendant was not in handcuffs. The officers were in full uniform and armed. Without administering Miranda warnings to defendant, the following questioning occurred: OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Okay. So, hang that right here, man, right here. So, why are we here tonight? DEFENDANT: Because I made a statement. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: What statement did you make? DEFENDANT: Like, I want to harm someone. 6 OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Okay. DEFENDANT: How are you doing? OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Who is the person? DEFENDANT: My girlfriend and her family. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Okay. DEFENDANT: But, it was just like, I was stressed out earlier in the day. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Hold on. Let me just start with, what’s your girlfriend’s name? DEFENDANT: Are you reporting this to her? OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Not right now, but we have to investigate what was said, okay, because something was told -- DEFENDANT: (inaudible) OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Look, we’re, we’re a little past that right now, okay? This has gone way above my head, way above your head. There are people that are much bigger than all of us involved in this right now. DEFENDANT: Right. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Okay. (Multiple conversations on audio) 7 At this point, the officers moved defendant from the middle of the courtyard towards a building. The rest of the courtyard questioning took place with defendant’s back up against the building, with the three officers in front of him. UNIDENTIFIED [OFFICER]: (inaudible) We got to get through this, all right? I’m going to ask you a bunch of questions (inaudible). .... OFFICER ARCHIBALD: So, this is, this is above our heads. So, -- DEFENDANT: Okay. I’m sorry. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: I have to follow my procedure, (inaudible) happened here. Okay? DEFENDANT: Yeah. Officer Archibald proceeded to ask defendant for his girlfriend’s biographical information, such as her name and address. The conversation continued as follows: DEFENDANT: This is not going to be cool -- (inaudible). OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Okay. I understand you may not -- DEFENDANT: I’m just having a (inaudible). 8  OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Okay. DEFENDANT: I’m just speaking out loud. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Yeah. DEFENDANT: Like I, like I understand what you’re saying. It’s just like, (inaudible) -- .... OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Okay. Look before any of this goes anywhere else right now, you are not under arrest. You are not in trouble. I’m going to advise you of your Miranda rights, okay? DEFENDANT: Yes. [(emphasis added).] Officer Archibald then provided the following recitation of defendant’s Miranda rights: OFFICER ARCHIBALD: You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be taped in a court of law. DEFENDANT: Can I put, I -- OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Yeah, absolutely, man. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you before any questioning if you wish, okay? You can decide at any time to exercise your rights and not answer any 9  questions or make any statements.[2] Do you understand the rights? DEFENDANT: (No audible answer). Officer Archibald was asked at the suppression hearing whether he “executed a Miranda waiver form at the time of the statement,” and he replied, “Not at the time, because there was none available, given our current location.” Additionally, Officer Archibald did not ask defendant if he wanted to waive his rights and answer the officers’ questions. Rather, after administering the Miranda rights, asking if defendant understood them, and receiving no audible answer, Officer Archibald immediately resumed questioning: OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Okay. What did you say tonight? DEFENDANT: I said, that, like, I would definitely harm my girlfriend’s parents. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: What, what, did you say kill? Like, how, what was the exact phrase you said? DEFENDANT: (inaudible) That exact phrase that you just said. 2 As to the underlined portion, due to a discrepancy between the bodycam video and the transcript of those conversations, after oral argument, the parties reached general agreement as to what the officer said in the video. We rely on the generally agreed upon language in this opinion. 10  OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Please say it to me. DEFENDANT: I said I would harm my girlfriend’s parents, as in, like, kill them. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Exactly. Phrase as exactly as you said it. DEFENDANT: Like, that’s what I said. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: Just say it. DEFENDANT: I just said, I would (inaudible). OFFICER ARCHIBALD: You will harm? Or you will kill? DEFENDANT: I said I would kill my girlfriend’s parents. OFFICER ARCHIBALD: That’s what you said. DEFENDANT: Yes. The questioning continued until another officer on the scene received a phone call from the police captain, directing the officers to bring defendant to Rutgers University police headquarters. Officer Archibald then told defendant, “You got to come with us, okay? So, we’re going to take a ride.” Defendant responded, “All right.” From the time Officer Archibald first encountered defendant inside the dorm hallway to the point where they left for headquarters, approximately 10 minutes had elapsed. 11  As defendant and Officer Archibald were walking to the police car, defendant asked, “Do I gotta sit in the back, like I’m getting arrested?” Officer Archibald replied, “No, you’re not getting arrested.” While driving to headquarters, Officer Archibald and defendant casually discussed matters unrelated to the investigation. Defendant told him he had never been in a police car before. During the drive, defendant asked, “When I get in there, what is the process?” Officer Archibald responded that he did not know yet, but that defendant was not under arrest and that people higher up than him wanted to speak to defendant. Defendant asked if he could just “walk in” to the police station when they got there. Officer Archibald again reassured defendant, “you’re walking in with us, you’re not under arrest . . . others want some reassurance given the incident.” Upon arriving at police headquarters, defendant waited in an interview room while police interviewed M.C. and listened to his recording of defendant’s statements. Defendant waited approximately four hours for the interrogation to begin. At approximately 12:45 a.m., Detective Lauren Tredo and Detective-Sergeant Carlos Rodriguez of the Rutgers Police Department 12 entered the interrogation room. 3 The detectives introduced themselves, and Detective Tredo told defendant that “since you’re here” at the police station she was going to give him his rights. Detective Tredo then told defendant, “I know you spoke with officers prior. But we just have to do it again.” (emphasis added). In advising defendant of his rights, Detective Tredo instructed defendant: “after each one, just acknowledge that you understand by saying yes or no, okay?” Detective Tredo then administered defendant’s Miranda rights and defendant verbally affirmed his understanding after each one: DETECTIVE TREDO: You have the right to remain silent. DEFENDANT: Uh hum. DETECTIVE TREDO: Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. DEFENDANT: Correct. DETECTIVE TREDO: You have the right to talk to a lawyer and have a lawyer present while you’re being questioned. Yes or no? DEFENDANT: Yeah. Sorry. 3 Defendant initially waited in a room used for victims of domestic violence, which Detective Tredo described as a “nice setting, with couches and two cushion chairs.” At some point during the four hours, defendant was moved to a traditional interview room. 13  DETECTIVE TREDO: If you cannot afford to hire a lawyer, one will be appointed to represent you before for any questioning, if you wish. DEFENDANT: Yeah. DETECTIVE TREDO: You can decide at any time to exercise these rights and not answer any questions or make any statements. DEFENDANT: True. Yes. Detectives then instructed defendant to read the following statement out loud: “I have been advised of my rights, and I understand what my rights are.” Defendant then signed and initialed the form as instructed by Detective Tredo. Detective Tredo informed defendant that he was at the police station “because of comments” that he made and informed him that “patrol took a statement.” Detectives Tredo and Rodriguez then asked defendant to walk them through the whole incident, and defendant made several inculpatory statements. Defendant stated that he was “stressed out” and admitted that he made comments earlier that day that he would kill his girlfriend’s parents. Throughout the questioning, defendant detailed his potential plan, the steps he had taken thus far, and his discussions with M.C.. Defendant admitted that he planned to drug his girlfriend’s mother with Tylenol, kill her father, and that he asked M.C. to be his getaway driver. Defendant described 14 physical evidence -- work gloves and a bag of crushed-up Tylenol pills -- that he had put in his car earlier that day but had since removed and placed in his dresser at home. Defendant also admitted to using his cell phone to search for his girlfriend’s parents’ address to see if the house had any cameras. Detective Rodriguez asked defendant if he would provide the police with consent to search his car and cell phone, and defendant responded that he would need to talk to his parents first. Defendant expressed confusion as to why he wasn’t getting his phone back, and Detective Tredo informed him that “while we were speaking before, you said there’s now evidence on that phone. . . . So, what I’m saying is, you can consent to [the search], and I will do the forensic examination, or I will apply for a search warrant.” Defendant then consented to the search of his car and cell phone, expressing that he did not want to “end up being here 15 hours longer.” A little over an hour into the interrogation, defendant asked the detectives, “[s]o, I can go to jail for making comments?” to which Detective Rodriguez responded, “yeah, you could.” Defendant asked how much longer he would be held, and the detectives explained that they could not provide him a definite answer. Defendant then asked how long police usually hold someone for questioning and apologized, noting that the experience was “all 15 new to [him].” Detective Rodriguez replied that he did not know. The interrogation concluded around 2 a.m. Defendant remained in the interview room from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. At 7 a.m., Detectives Tredo and Rodriguez returned to the interview room. Detective Rodriguez stated, “We’re back in here. We’re going to ask you a few more questions, and I got to read your rights, okay?” Detective Rodriguez read defendant his Miranda rights and defendant verbally acknowledged that he understood. Again, defendant was instructed to read the following statement out loud: “I have been advised of my rights, and I understand what my rights are.” Defendant again signed and initialed the form as instructed. In the brief interrogation that followed, defendant told detectives that he spoke with his coach on the phone about the statements he made. Later that day, a complaint-warrant was issued against defendant charging him with two counts of first-degree attempted murder and two counts of first-degree conspiracy to commit murder. The attempted murder charges alleged that defendant “acquir[ed] gloves, crush[ed] up Tylenol, possess[ed] a mask, look[ed] up the location of the victim[s’] residence and solicit[ed] the assistance of another in the commission of the crime[s].” The conspiracy to commit murder charges alleged that defendant “ask[ed] another to be the getaway driver and lookout.” 16  B. A Middlesex County grand jury later returned a four-count indictment, charging defendant with two counts of first-degree attempted murder and two counts of first-degree conspiracy to commit murder. The State moved to admit defendant’s statements from his interrogations, and the court conducted a hearing to determine the admissibility of those statements. At the hearing, Officer Archibald and Detective Tredo testified. The State played Officer Archibald’s body-cam footage from the time he first encountered defendant in the residence hall up to, but not including, the drive to police headquarters. The State also played the footage of defendant’s interrogations at the police station. The defense did not produce any witnesses at the hearing but cross-examined the officers. The hearing judge issued an oral decision and found defendant’s statements inadmissible, reasoning that the State failed to show a proper administration and waiver of defendant’s Miranda rights. Regarding defendant’s interaction with Officer Archibald in the courtyard, the court found that defendant was “clearly” in custody, despite Officer Archibald advising defendant that he was not under arrest. The court found that the officers’ questioning of defendant before administering Miranda warnings “resulted, and . . . elicited incriminat[ing] responses from [defendant].” The 17 court ultimately suppressed all of defendant’s statements in the courtyard because Officer Archibald “never asked, do you understand the rights, [and] are you willing to waive them and answer my questions.” 4 The court found that because the officers never asked those two questions, the State could not show beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant waived his Miranda rights. The court next found defendant’s statements to Detectives Tredo and Rodriguez at police headquarters inadmissible because Detective Tredo similarly failed to ask defendant if he understood his rights and if he was willing to waive his rights and answer the officers’ questions. The court again found that the State could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant waived his rights because of this deficiency in the administration of the warnings and waiver of rights. In a written amplification of his oral decision, the trial judge further explained that the officers’ conduct in presenting defendant’s rights relegated Miranda to a mere administrative formality. The court explained that Detective Tredo’s references to defendant’s prior conversation with Officer 4 Officer Archibald did ask defendant if he understood his rights, but defendant did not provide an audible answer. Though Officer Archibald testified that defendant “shook his head up and down,” the trial court judge did not make a factual finding as to whether defendant nodded his head. In a footnote, the Appellate Division noted that “defendant appeared to nod his head very slightly.” 18 Archibald presented itself as a gateway into further discussion about that conversation, and the detectives “engaged in discussion as if they were simply continuing that prior conversation with Officer Archibald.” Regarding the physical evidence seized pursuant to defendant’s consent to search, the trial court found that the State failed to prove that defendant’s consent was voluntary and suppressed the evidence. C. The State appealed, arguing that the trial court erred in suppressing defendant’s statements and the physical evidence. The Appellate Division found no error in the suppression of defendant’s statements and affirmed their suppression in an unpublished decision. The Appellate Division reversed as to the physical evidence, finding that the State had demonstrated that defendant knowingly and voluntarily consented to the search, but remanded for a determination of whether the physical evidence should instead be dismissed as “fruit of the poisonous tree” in light of the illegal interrogation.5 The Appellate Division first found that defendant’s pre-Miranda statements to Officer Archibald in the courtyard were correctly suppressed 5 Defendant did not cross-move for leave to challenge the Appellate Division’s determination regarding the physical evidence, so that issue is not before this Court. On remand, the trial court will consider whether the physical evidence must be suppressed as fruit of the illegal interrogation. 19 because defendant was subjected to custodial interrogation at that time and had not yet been Mirandized. The appellate court next found that defendant’s post- Miranda statements to Officer Archibald were also properly suppressed because Officer Archibald “never asked defendant if he wished to waive his rights and speak to the police . . . and thereby conducted an incomplete inquiry on the question of waiver.” Moreover, the court found that, because police gave the Miranda warnings “mid-stream,” failed to mention the inadmissibility of defendant’s prior incriminating statements, and advised defendant that he was “not under arrest” and “not in trouble,” the officers impermissibly undermined the efficacy of the Miranda warnings. The Appellate Division agreed with the trial court that the totality of the circumstances did not support a finding of waiver as to defendant’s courtyard statements to Officer Archibald. The Appellate Division also found defendant’s statements to Detectives Tredo and Rodriguez inadmissible. The court relied, in part, on the since- overturned Appellate Division decision in Sims in concluding that the “failure to inform defendant of the charges for which he was being placed under arrest was fatal to eliciting a valid waiver.” The court noted that the totality of the circumstances also supported a finding of no valid waiver, given that 20 defendant had no prior contact with the criminal justice system and expected to go home at the end of the interrogation. We granted the State’s motion for leave to appeal. 249 N.J. 348 (2021). We granted the applications of Centurion Ministries, Inc., the County Prosecutor’s Association of New Jersey, the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Jersey (ACDL), and the Attorney General to appear as amici curiae. II. A. The State argues that the Appellate Division erred in affirming the suppression of defendant’s statements, arguing that defendant validly waived his Miranda rights. As to defendant’s statements in the courtyard, the State asserts that Mirand