Statement Taken by Prison Guard Beating Was Not Involuntary

US v. Purks: Purks was serving a sentence in Florida state prison when he was investigated, and eventually charged, in the Western District of Virginia with conspiracy and numerous substantive counts of distribution of methamphetamine. As part of the investigation, Purks was interviewed by a DEA agent while in state prison. Having been read his Miranda rights, Purks engaged in a “cordial” and “respectful” discussion with the agent, during which he declined to discuss particular topics. He was in a wheelchair and “would grimace and moan,” the result, he said, of a recent assault by prison guards. Purks later moved to suppress his statement as involuntary. The district court denied the motion, crediting the agent’s testimony that Purks never asked for a lawyer (Purks said he did) and concluding that the assault (assuming it happened as Purks described) did not involve any federal agents and thus could not taint his statement to the DEA agent. Purks was convicted at trial on all counts and sentenced to 300 months in prison.

On appeal, the Fourth Circuit affirmed Purks’ convictions. As to the statement, the court agreed with the district court, holding that the DEA agent complied with Miranda (assuming it applied in the first place) and that while Purks was “still recovering from the alleged beating” he “testified that he was not in so much pain that it clouded his understanding of what was happening.” In addition, no federal agents were involved in the beating and the statement itself showed they “did not grill Purks for hours attempting to wear down his will,” as evidenced by the fact that when he declined to discuss particular matters the DEA agent didn’t press the matter. The court also rejected Purks’ argument that venue was not proper in the Western District of Virginia, given that he was in Florida during the alleged offenses. Concluding that distribution of drugs is a continuing offense, the court concluded venue was proper in the locale where the drugs were eventually distributed or seized – here, the Western District of Virginia.