Burin v. State

Robert H. Dudley, Justice.

The primary issue in this case is whether the appellant’s confession should have been suppressed because of his mental subnormality. We affirm the trial court’s ruling denying the motion to suppress. We set out the applicable law in some detail, even on points not argued, because there was obvious confusion below about the burden of proof, and the distinction between insanity as a defense and the lack of voluntariness of a confession due to mental subnormality.

I. The Privilege

In Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 467 (1966), the Supreme Court recognized that custodial…