a mother leaves two toddlers with a stranger for over two hours officers question her for 11 minutes before reading her rights two legal problems one incident what the law says about both may not be what you expect what's uh what's going on yeah hi good evening uh I'm your driver uh huh so I have a request I took a the lady with the with her 2 kids uh huh yes from where in Rock Hill in Tamarac I don't know exactly the other really but on the other yeah not over here but no no no no no because across the across commercial because the ladies are giving me too many trouble around oh hey let me let me what's up guys so and say no no no on the right no no Leo the address the going going going going going Leo no no the GPS say at the left no no on the right no please lady you are wrong uh huh please no no no no please cancel 6 one I give you I give you a I give you some money call this Spanish speaker give me some money yeah give me 10 10 bucks give me uh bring me to this house where did you bring her here where is she she went to a I don't know she was walking over there uh huh I think it all all this warehouse she just walked over there she won't answer me answer me I'm okay I'm back I'm coming I'm coming I'm coming also um look how many calls 12 calls what does she what does she look like it's a pity girls OK like like a Spanish OK Spanish people have a the dress is like a like a brown one beige OK both so also I send a message to Claire and you've been here for how long more than 2 hours right here yes I don't know because I have a have a yeah so Emily please come to pick up your children they're asking for you I send the I send the because she has wrong address so maybe she don't know where yeah Emily I will call the police I have to leave please answer the phone nothing nothing look and you saw her walk this way yeah in the park behind the trucks oh no I don't move her here because yeah no but where you saw her walk yeah I think in that way yes and then you didn't you didn't see her when she yeah and you didn't see nothing nothing nothing nothing you said you think you think she was drunk she was drunk OK what's up guys she she left it smell it's wrong see what's wrong I saw I saw him hey can you look what's wrong let me take you home yeah no no no please let me take you home with your babies yeah oh no no no no please cancel cancel cancel cancel he's able to explain it to me but uh about 2 hours ago or a little bit more now he picks some he picks some lady up out of out of Tamarac yeah because I took the 3 maybe a a 20 yeah she gave me an address um she kept telling him turn you know deviating from what the GPS was saying she goes just cancel the ride I'll give you extra cash give him like 10 bucks and tells him pretty much ends up here she gets out of her car walks through the lot disappears appears to be intoxicated she was drinking out of a cup we smell remnants of rum um no clue where she is right now just left the kids obviously she doesn't know this gentleman he's just an Uber driver and walked off so he said he was able to call her yeah but she stopped uh she stopped answering yeah that's the problem let's hit this hard she's gotta be somewhere she's walked in and he lost he's like what am I gonna do like I got the kids he says he drove over didn't see anybody he's like calling her she was initially answering yeah and stop answering but he's like she was telling he was telling her like you're drunk um where did you pick her up from yeah from her house you take her no no no it's a no it's a restaurant like a plaza with bars in it yeah so start a I mean I'm not gonna game ball you know game plan but canvas yeah start canvassing take take it by sectors and figure out what we got um let me start hitting too let me drive you guys staying you're staying staying here right with the kids did you want to see if I have a 6 2 no I'll make my own 4 4 4 count four take your hands out your pockets for me do you have two kids were you just in an Uber with your two kids yeah 5 I'm 2 5 with her just east of the McDonald's in the public's Plaza off not doing commercial just do me a favor sit down there sit down because you just left your kids with an Uber and we're all over town looking for you my phone died it doesn't matter do me a favor and sit down what's in the backpack any weapons or anything like that okay do me a favor take it off and just set it to the side don't go in it just set it to the side you left your kids for 2 hours it's been over two hours do you know where you left them at you know where did you leave them at where were your plan where were you going huh so you're just gonna leave the Uber and walk home not walk home but I understand that but your number one priority should be your kids my children absolutely 100% oh my God I don't listen I'm not a criminal girl I'm here I'm sorry I will cooperate whatever it is what it is my bad I'm sorry this is crazy what's your name my name is Evan how you doing yeah it's alright what's going on I don't have a car OK we're 25 minutes we're 25 minutes I don't have a car what else I like to be honest bro like it is what it is I don't talk to us my my kids were with me earlier I I got a ride they did karate over here OK I came back the ride was waiting for me I'm here now so where your kids with the Uber is there any reason why you just left them I didn't leave them so explain to me so your kids were at karate here from here you guys got in the Uber right do you remember what color with the car what do you not remember the body style of the car white car no listen like I I get a whole bunch of Ubers this OK so you guys leave here in the Uber where was the destination from here home did you at a at any point tell the Uber driver to go somewhere else a different route my phone died okay but that's not answering my question at any point did you tell the Uber driver to deter your route out away from your house somewhere else no just my my phone was just fucking dead to be honest with you I don't mean to like be an asshole or be like mean but like yeah my phone was dead but what does that have to do with Uber getting you to your home if he already had your address cause I don't have my actual phone I don't have my car I don't like I'm not in control of my situation and I'm with my kids oh my God hi how you doing you alright yeah baby girl I am I don't know what's going on right now what's going on is you deserted your kids for two hours that's what's going on I'm sorry you deserted your kids for two hours that's what's going on that Uber driver's been sitting with your kids waiting for you to come back for the past two hours you know what that sounds like honestly like what probably happened because I don't have my phone I just fixed my phone why did you get out of the Uber no no response no answer for that I don't care I love you I'm like a human like listen but you're not answering my question why did you get out of the Uber asking me my love like I get it 100% listen like it's like from morning to night time like I have to make shit happen for all of that cause right now I don't have a car okay and it sucks it's not an excuse but that's me being fucking rude to be honest with you and it sucks it sounds fucking stupid cause I should have a car but yeah like I don't know what else to tell you to be honest with you I'm not trying to I'm not trying to be anything I'm like I'm okay so you're saying the reason you left them in the Uber is because you don't have a car it's not that I don't have a car it's just my phone died okay there was multiple stops they were here at the Karate Place and then they saw me okay I don't know how to even reach over by or whatever I okay so I I understand and I get that but I'm I'm having a hard time understanding why you got out of the Uber in the first place and you're not answering that question for me I'm listen I'm not being an asshole these are just these are legit these are legit answers that we need no those are legit like questionnaires that you should be asking but listen I signed them up for karate I was here I don't have a car I I requested an Uber OK okay we were transit to go home my phone died there was multiple stops and unfortunately yes my kids stayed in the car with the Uber person were the multiple stops for you or was he the Uber was multiple stops as in like no like innocent fucking stops bro you mean like stops that like stop signs and a red lights or like he was makes destination stops where he was picking somebody up or something up I'm trying to be an asshole but bro I wouldn't be multiple stops at an Uber I'm just it I'm still trying to get to the answer of why you got out of the Uber I got it I get it I get it 100% and which way is home it's that way isn't it commercial and university how did you guys end up all the way over there at 1:08 and 50th that's the complete opposite way of where your home is so if he had no other destinations what brought you guys over there I'm like feeling like listen I have not done anything wrong I have no idea what is going on I'm sorry I get what you I get your job I get your whole persona I get it I feel you 100% I'm just a mom I just wanna say like I wanna go home to be honest with you and yes I felt very vulnerable not knowing where the hell my kids were at cause my phone was dead I couldn't reach the guy that was giving me a ride and it is what it is that's the truth that is the honest truth like that is like as real as I could fucking get to be honest with you I don't mean to curse but it is what it is bro I have Learned to be honest with my shit and you know what yes it sucks and I know where my kids are at my kids are everything to me my life I signed them up for karate I don't have a fucking car I fucking got picked up from my job fucking rides here there drop them off fucking sucks um it's really around here yeah I'm off alright the law requires that you be advised of these rights prior to answering any questions or making a statement you have the right to remain silent anything you say can be used against you in a court of law I'm just reading you your rights OK wait am I am I am I being arrested you're not you're not in handcuffs nobody's pulled them out I just have to read you your rights don't don't don't you're not you're not going anywhere you're not free to go that's okay no I just sit back down well that's just let me finish and then I just we'll get to it right now I feel very vulnerable for not like I don't know what just let me finish and then we can get to talking OK you're very like you're very intimidating would you like her to read them this footage presents two distinct constitutional questions first does the conduct meet the statutory threshold for child neglect second was the extended pre Miranda questioning legally permissible the answers carry real consequences for the prosecution of this case under Florida Statute 827 dot 3 subsection 3 a child neglect is committed when a caregiver willfully or by culpable negligence neglects a child without causing great bodily harm permanent disability or permanent disfigurement this offense is a third degree felony carrying up to five years imprisonment Florida courts define culpable negligence as conduct demonstrating reckless disregard for human safety it requires more than carelessness but does not require intent to harm the intoxication evidence and the deliberate route deviation bear directly on this element The Supreme Court held in Miranda v Arizona 384 US 436 1,966 custodial interrogation requires prior advicement of the right to remain silent the right to counsel and the warning that statements may be used in court the constitutional trigger is custody not formal arrest Berkimer v Mccarty 468 US 421,984 established the controlling custody standard would a reasonable person in the subject position feel free to terminate the encounter and leave officers directed the subject to sit surrounded her with uniformed personnel and confirmed she was not free to go custody likely attached well before that confirmation Missouri v Cybert 542 US 600 2004 directly address the two step interrogation pattern question first to obtain admissions then administer Miranda then rely on prior statements courts applying cybert have held this sequence may render all obtained statements inadmissible including those made after the rights advicement is finally given the Fifth Amendment Protection against self incrimination attaches at the moment custodial interrogation begins not at formal arrest 11 minutes of substantive questioning before any rights advisement including a direct admission that children remained in the vehicle creates a suppression motion with substantial constitutional basis on physical detention Graham v Conner 490 US 386 1,989 requires courts to evaluate the objective reasonableness of force from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene three controlling factors are severity of the offense immediate threat and level of resistance the lesson for law enforcement is procedural timing Miranda advisement must occur the moment a reasonable person would no longer feel free to leave for citizens the right to remain silent exists before handcuffs are applied invoking that right at the earliest opportunity is always the safest legal course of action were these statements admitted at trial or suppressed by the court did the sequence constitute a cyber violation was neglect charged as wilful or culpably negligent conduct none of multivitamin none of these questions are answered in the available public record at the time of this analysis what the court ultimately decided about these charges what happened to these children and whether this case ended in conviction or dismissal remains an open question if you have verified information about the outcome of this case the comments are open the rest of the story is still out 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