People v. Celestine

In People v. Celestine (1992) 9 Cal.App.4th 1370, Sheriff's deputies executed a search warrant, and placed appellant and his girlfriend on the couch, guarded by one of the deputies, while they searched their apartment for approximately 30 minutes, without giving them Miranda warnings. (9 Cal.App.4th at pp. 1373-1374.) After finding cocaine, money, a gun, and narcotic "pay and owe" sheets, a deputy told them both that they were under arrest for possession of rock cocaine for sale, to which appellant's girlfriend replied, "'they don't sell rock cocaine, it was for their personal use.'" ( Id. at p. 1374.) Division Seven of this district held that the deputy's statement amounted to "'words or actions normally attendant to arrest'" and therefore not "'interrogation'" requiring Miranda warnings. (Ibid.)