Ray Mitchell Wilkerson, Appellant v. the State of Texas

Summary

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals held that a Child Protective Services investigator is not required to give Miranda warnings unless the investigator is acting in tandem with police to gather evidence for a criminal prosecution. Finding no evidence that the CPS worker was acting in tandem, the Court affirmed the trial court’s admission of the defendant’s statements and reversed the Court of Appeals’ decision. Justice Keller, in a concurring opinion, agreed with the judgment but criticized the majority’s use of “acting in tandem” language for the agency test and the relevance of the defendant’s perceptions.