Oneida ruling details emerge; Judge White decided Clark wasn't impaired, Hahn acted properly
By Shannon Green, Daily Register
A judge's decision this week that allows statements made by Candace Clark to be used in her murder trial came down to two issues: She was not impaired by a lack of food, sleep or medication, and her questioning by a Portage police detective was proper.
Judge Alan White said the "totality of circumstances" surrounding statements Clark provided to police during the initial hours after her arrest in the Oneida Street case prompted his denial of a motion to suppress the statements in the jury trial.
White's decision Wednesday was detailed in an eight-page written statement obtained by the Daily Register. The decision was in response to a motion to suppress Clark's information she provided to Lt. Mark Hahn of the Portage Police Department in the days after her arrest last June.
Clark, 24, is charged, along with Michael Sisk, 26, in the death last June of Tammie Garlin and the abuse and torture of Garlin's then-11-year-old son. Garlin was found buried behind 304 W. Oneida St. on June 14.
None of Clark's statements "were involuntary," White wrote.
Audio tapes totaling about eight hours of the conversation between Clark and Hahn about what had happened at the Oneida Street house were taped June 15, 16 and 17. The tapes were reviewed by White before he made his decision. What exactly is in the tapes has not been made public.
Clark testified at a motion hearing in April that because she was not given diabetes medication, food or water, she was too confused to understand her rights and that the information she provided during the three interviews was not freely given.
During the hearing, Clark said that she was "still kind of foggy" and confused during the interviews, and said at times she had to ask Hahn to stop yelling at her.
White wrote that Clark also was yelling at him during the interviews.
"The tapes reveal that the decibel level on the part of Detective Hahn and (Clark) rose a number of times," he wrote.
During the interviews, Clark did not sound as if she were in a weakened condition and did not complain of feeling ill, White wrote.
"Indeed, (Clark) appeared quite anxious to tell Detective Hahn what had gone on at the Oneida Street residence," he wrote.
White wrote that Clark was not intimidated physically or emotionally by Hahn, and that Hahn did not "over-reach" in questioning her.
During the interviews, Hahn did accuse her of lying and told her that, if it were up to him, she would not see her children again. Hahn also said he would not make any promises to Clark about leniency, White wrote.
Hahn's tactics during his sessions with Clark were not coercive, White wrote.
"(Clark) appeared to be quite capable of handling herself in each session," he wrote. "She did not appear to be at any disadvantage whatsoever in her discussions with Detective Hahn."
In fact, Clark herself requested to speak with Hahn after the first interview, White wrote. He also noted that although she did appear distraught during the third session, she had specifically requested to speak with Hahn.
"She was most certainly upset about being tied to the alleged homicide of Tammie Garlin and went into a quite lengthy explanation of why that simply wasn't the case," White wrote.
Hahn did not wish to comment further about the ruling Thursday. Clark's attorney, David Geier of Madison, did not return a phone call seeking comment.
Clark and Sisk face 11 charges, including first-degree intentional homicide, hiding a corpse and child abuse. They both face life in prison if convicted of homicide.
A jury trial for Clark is scheduled to begin July 7.
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