He was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on January 4, 2001, and was held in the Lane County jail in Eugene until March 23, when a lawyer paid his $10,000 bail. During his incarceration, he was hospitalized three times due to his failing health. He remained in Oregon, appealing the process through a public defender. His lawyer advanced several arguments against his extradition, including the argument that Burns, having been brought to Oregon as prisoner, had not left California voluntarily in the first place. Phillips later argued that returning Burns to California would effectively be "a death sentence" because of his health concerns. Phillips suggested that Burns would not be eligible for immediate compassionate release, and it would be at least six months before a parole hearing would be held, during which he was likely to die. Burns said that he did not expect to live past those six months, and would prefer to die with his family. He expressed remorse for the murder, stating "What happened on that highway was a tragedy. That poor officer lost his life, and a lot of other lives were devastated too. I think about it every day. And I've apologized in every way I know how."
