People v. Drew

Edward L. Drew appeals on leave granted from his 1958 conviction of first-degree murder. Among other issues, he challenges the trial judge’s determination, following a post-conviction Walker 2 hearing, that his pretrial confessional statements, admitted in evidence at his trial, were voluntary. In concluding his bench-dictated statement of his findings of fact, the judge said:

“In fact, there is quite a bit of repetition in the statement materially consistent to the fact, in the court’s opinion, that the defendant indeed did commit the shooting, commit the killing.

“Accordingly it is the ruling…