United States v. Guadalupe Rodriguez-Gastelum

WRIGHT, Circuit Judge,

with whom TRASK, CHOY, WALLACE, SNEED and KENNEDY, Circuit Judges, concur:

We took this case en banc to consider whether a suspect in a criminal investigation can waive his right to counsel after having initially made known his desire to have the assistance of counsel. We hold that a per se rule prohibiting such a waiver is neither necessary nor appropriate.

Rodriguez-Gastelum made incriminating statements after he was stopped while driving an automobile loaded with marijuana.1 He was proceeding toward Tucson in a vehicle which had been under customs surveillance in a…