Posted on 10/29/2005 5:30:27 PM PDT by Born Conservative
SUNBURY — Fredil Omar Fuentes testified in court Friday that if he'd realized he had a right to remain silent, he wouldn't have told police he stabbed Carly Snyder to death.
Mr. Fuentes, said that when he was taken to the Milton Police station a few hours after Carly's body was found in her 130 Upper Market St. apartment, he was given papers to sign but he didn't realize that those papers explained he had a right to remain silent or speak to an attorney. Mr. Fuentes, 23, has been charged with an open count of homicide in connection with the June 10 death of his 20-year-old neighbor, and prosecutors have filed notice that they will seek the death penalty if he's convicted of first-degree murder.
Mr. Fuentes and Milton Police Cpl. Ken Royer testified Friday. Much of the testimony in the two-and-a-half-day pre-trial hearing — which began Sept. 8, continued on Sept. 29 and concluded Friday — focused on how well Mr. Fuentes can understand English. The Honduras native's wife, Bobbi Jo Rodriguez, testified earlier that she and her husband speak to each other in English. But throughout the proceedings, the defense has had a translator in court to help Mr. Fuentes understand the discussion. Friday, Mr. Fuentes said he's lived in the U.S. for more than five years.
The police corporal testified that the Milton police have a form explaining the so-called Miranda rights in Spanish but he couldn't find it when Mr. Fuentes was being questioned. The police department had recently been renovated and many items, including the Spanish-language Miranda form, were still packed up, he said. As a result, a translator who was present for the interview, read the form to Mr. Fuentes in Spanish.
But on the witness stand, Mr. Fuentes said he didn't understand those rights. All he can remember police telling him is: "Tell the truth," he said, speaking through a translator.
Mr. Fuentes testified that during the interview, Cpl. Royer was so agitated he began plucking hairs out of his own arm.
Asked by defense attorney Ed Greco to describe the tone he used when speaking to Mr. Fuentes during the almost five-hour interview, Cpl. Royer responded, "It wasn't a nice tone ... I could tell he was being deceitful."
Watsontown Police Chief Dennis Derr was the officer who did most of the questioning during the interview, but Cpl. Royer entered and left numerous times, he said. "I was there when he made his confession," Cpl. Royer said.
The defense attorney is seeking to get the trial moved and trying to get the confession, as well as a statement given by Ms. Rodriguez to police, suppressed. The defense has also filed a writ of habeas corpus, which alleges that the prosecution didn't present enough evidence implicating Mr. Fuentes to justify a district judge's decision that the case should go to trial. President Judge Robert B. Sacavage didn't make any immediate rulings on those requests. On the move to suppress the statement, the judge gave the defense a month to file additional legal briefs and the prosecution will then have 15 days after that to file a response.
Carly's parents, Alice and Terry Snyder of New Columbia, sat through the entire two-and-a-half day hearing. Friday, they were surrounded by Carly's siblings, Traci Messinger, Catina Bingaman, Chris Clayton and Clinton Snyder, and about two dozen other family members.
"We need to see that things are carried through the way they should, for Carly," her mother said after the court session adjourned Friday morning.
Speaking to reporters for the first time since her second youngest child was murdered, Alice Snyder said the crime took away "one of the five loves of my life."
She described Carly as "always bubbly, friendly and determined to make it on her own."
"She's an angel now," Carly's older sister, Tina Bingaman added.
After Carly's boyfriend, Josh Enterline, moved out about a month before her death, Alice Snyder begged her daughter to move back home. Instead, Carly was adamant that she retain her independence, her mother said.
The murder was discovered after a co-worker at the Holiday Inn Express in New Columbia called police because Carly didn't show up for work when she was scheduled to be there, police said in June.
"She was strong, strong-willed," Alice Snyder said. "She just wanted to do it on her own."
And while prosecutors have indicated that they will seek the death penalty in the case, Alice Snyder said that if Mr. Fuentes is found guilty, she hopes he is sentenced to life in prison. "The death penalty is too good for him," she said. "I think he should have to sit in prison and think about what he did to my beautiful young lady and let it torment him for the rest of his life."
Police: Accused murderer in U.S. illegally (left knife in victim's chest)
Neighbor charged in slaying (left knife in victim's chest)
Milton man faces trial in homicide (ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT-left knife in victim's chest)
What's there to understand and he isn't even a citizen of the United States?
Great... now cops will have to read the Miranda rights in 42 different languages.
The U.S. Constitution does not distinguish between citizens and non-citizens, except in a few strictly defined instances, such as eligibility for the Office of the President.
Nuff said. The court has never found that a suspect must sign a document saying he understood. Its common practice, but not required.
***Omar***
hmmmmm
See Number 5.
I once went to court with a friend and we were sitting in there with mostly Latinos around us. Each time their case was called, the person would rise and say they could not speak or understand English. I was getting furious, since while we were sitting there waiting, they all were conversing with each other in English! I was so tempted to stand up and tell the judge! I have a feeling this is the same thing.
I read this earlier tonight. I cruise the Daly Item online periodically but don't subscribe since it's such a liberal rag.
This murdering scum didn't come up with this on his own. Some vile NYU or Harvard "LAW-yer" came up with this scam.
And by the way, a true Castilian Spanish speaker would be almost incoherent to this Honduran gutter dweller. There are gross dialect problems that make many of these riff raff incomprehensible even to spanish speakers.
It's his obligation to know English in America just as it would be my obligation to know German if I were living in Germany.
It's not our obligation to accomodate his linguistic preferences and excuse his unwillingness to assilimate.
"they were all conversing in English"
That happened to me a few times in France. The French pretended not to know English when, in fact, they did. Dishonest people.
His wife testified that they conversed with each other in English, so I would have to agree with you, that he is giving the court a line of Barbra Streisand.
It serves the Lewisburg area, home of Bucknell, Moveon.org peace rallies, etc., so I'd have to agree with you on "liberal rag" status. I don't subscribe either.
For ping's sake?
If you get away from Bucknell, the rural areas around here are pretty conservative, but the Daily Item's idea of conservative balance is to run one George Will column a week versus liberal columnists every day.
"Great... now cops will have to read the Miranda rights in 42 different languages." They have had to do Miranda in a language the defendant understands for decades.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.