Man wants murder confession tossed out

Hours after Tyler Michael Miller allegedly shot and killed his ex-girlfriend and her teenage daughter on Christmas Day, he confessed to the murders during interviews with Flathead County Sheriff’s Office detectives.

Now, his attorneys say his statements were that of a meth-addled man who had not slept or eaten in days, and therefore should not be admissible at trial.

The recently filed defense motion is based on Montana and U.S. constitutions, both of which say that no one can be compelled to witness or testify against themselves in a criminal proceeding.

Citing case law, Miller’s attorneys Noel Larrivee and Edmund Sheehy Jr. wrote that a statement is involuntary “unless it was given freely, voluntarily and without compulsion or inducement of any sort.”

The 11-page document cites recorded interviews with Miller on Dec. 25, 26 and 27.  The attorneys wrote that the video footage proves that he was still under the influence of methamphetamine at the time of the first interview, thereby voiding subsequent admissions as well.

“In other words, at the point Miller made the statements, the cat was clearly out of the bag and there was no reason to think that merely repeating those statements would change anything,” Miller’s attorneys wrote.

According to court documents filed by the Flathead County Attorney’s Office, Miller not only admitted gunning down 35-year-old Jaimi Hurlbert and her 15-year-old daughter Alyssa Burkett, but appeared to take pleasure in their deaths.

“I probably pulled off the most evil, manipulative pathetic thing today, but I feel good about it,” he said after his arrest, according to court documents. “I wish I felt bad. I wish to God I (expletive) felt bad, but I am (expletive) happier than hell. I prayed to God I could pull off something like this.”

Miller allegedly made similar statements and confessions in the days that followed, both to detectives and detention officers in the county jail. He said he wanted the death penalty, which the Flathead County Attorney’s Office is pursuing.

“Clearly, Miller’s continuous requests regarding the death penalty and wishing himself dead highlights the hopelessness  of the situation Miller was in,” Larrivee and Sheehy wrote.

A hearing is expected to be scheduled on Miller’s motion. His attorneys also have requested that a gag order be placed on legal counsel preventing them from speaking about the case to the media.

District Judge Stewart Stadler said at a recent omnibus hearing that such a move also would require an evidentiary hearing.

Miller, who legally changed his last name from Cheetham in 2009, was arrested on the afternoon of Dec. 25, 2010, after allegedly gunning down Hurlbert and Burkett in the driveway of his mother’s home west of Kalispell.

A trial had been scheduled for July but now is tentatively scheduled to begin in November.

Reporter Eric Schwartz may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at eschwartz@dailyinterlake.com.