Niemeyer v. People.

2024 CO 58. No. 23SC117. Criminal Law—Miranda—Custody.

September 9, 2024

The Supreme Court held that Niemeyer was in custody when she was interrogated by the police. The police questioned Niemeyer after her husband suffered a gunshot wound to the head. She was alone, in a closed interrogation room at the police station, late at night; officers restricted her freedom of movement throughout the encounter and affixed bags with zip ties to her hands; and police repeatedly refused her requests to go to the hospital to see her husband.
Thus, despite other facts weighing against custody, under a totality of the circumstances, a reasonable person in Niemeyer’s position would have believed their freedom of movement was restricted to the degree associated with a formal arrest. Therefore, the Court reversed and remanded.