Lawyer: Miranda rights violated

The attorney for a Tennessee man accused of killing and sexually assaulting a Shoals waitress in Knoxville is seeking to quash a statement the suspect gave police after his arrest in 2008.

At a court hearing Thursday, defense attorney Joseph Fanduzz asked Knox County Circuit Court Judge Bob McGee to suppress a statement Valentino Vasquez Miranda provided to police as they questioned him about the death of Jennifer Lee Hampton.

Miranda, 20, is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated rape and abuse of a corpse in connection with the Sept. 20, 2008, strangulation death of Hampton, 21, who was on a business trip in Knoxville to help open a Mama Blues Buffet restaurant. She was a waitress at the former Mama Blues restaurant in Florence.

Investigators have accused Miranda, who is not a legal resident of the United States, of using a pass key for the Days Inn where he worked to enter Hampton's motel room to sexually assault, beat and kill her before dumping her body in a nearby lake. Hampton's nude body was found in the lake a week after she was reported missing from the motel on Knoxville's west side.

Fanduzz contends Miranda, a native of Mexico who does not speak English, did not understand he had a constitutional right to refuse to answer the questions without having his attorney present. Knoxville police officials testified at Thursday's hearing that Miranda was advised of his right to remain silent before the questioning began and that he replied he understood his rights.

Miranda said in the statement that he did not know Hampton nor had he ever met her.

Fanduzz also contends that Miranda did not understand his rights when he agreed to provide a DNA sample to investigators.

At a preliminary hearing in October 2008, Phil Morton, assistant Knox County district attorney general, read a report from forensic investigators that traces of Miranda's DNA were found beneath Hampton's fingernails during an autopsy and that her blood was found on Miranda's clothing.

McGee is expected to announce his ruling on the request to quash the statement at a Dec. 15 hearing. Miranda's trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 9. First-degree murder is punishable by death in Tennessee. Prosecutors have not announced whether they will seek the death penalty.

McGee is expected to rule at the December hearing on a request by Fanduzz to not allow any evidence collected from Miranda's motel room to be used during the trial. Knoxville police have said they did not collect any evidence from the motel room.

Matthew Cook, a Knoxville attorney who represents Hampton's mother, Cynthia Senn, called the efforts to suppress the evidence typical for a first-degree murder trial.

"They have a laundry list of motions that have been filed. Most of them are useless motions," Cook said. "It would be nice if they can get his statement entered as evidence during the trial, but even if they can't, there will still be plenty of strong evidence to use in securing a conviction."

In May, a settlement was reached in a lawsuit Senn and Hampton's father, Michael Peeden, filed against the motel and its parent companies, Days Inn Worldwide and Wyndham Hotels and Resorts. Details of the settlement were not disclosed. The original lawsuit sought $25 million in compensatory damages and $75 million in punitive damages. Among the allegations of the lawsuit was that the motel, which is now an AmeriStays Hotel and Suites, was negligent for hiring illegal immigrants without conducting background checks and provided them access to the guests' rooms.

Miranda is being held in Knox County Jail. His bail is $1 million.

Dennis Sherer can be reached at 740-5746 or dennis.sherer@TimesDaily.com.