People v. Bladel

Defendant appeals his jury conviction of three counts of first-degree murder, MCL 750.316; MSA 28.548.

Initially, defendant asserts that his confession, in which he admitted killing the victims because "they were stealing his job”, was not voluntary. The trial court ruled the confession was voluntary and admissible into evidence following a Walker 1 hearing._

In reviewing the findings of a Walker hearing, this Court is required to examine the whole record and make an independent determination of the ultimate issue of the voluntariness of defendant’s statement. People v Robinson, 386 Mich 551,…