State Ex Rel. Marsland v. Ames

788 P.2d 1281, 71 Haw. 304, 1990 Haw. LEXIS 25
Hawaii Supreme Court·Decided March 16, 1990·No. NO. 13324·Published·Cited by 16 cases

Opinion

*305 Per Curiam.

The State petitions this court for a writ of mandamus directing Judge Ames to vacate two virtually identical pretrial discovery orders issued in State v. Mafi, wherein Defendant Mafi is charged, inter alia, with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicating Liquor (DUI), pursuant to Hawaii Revised Statutes § 291-4. The government alleges “Judge Ames clearly abused his judicial discretion and exceeded his authority” under Rule 16(d) of *306 the Hawaii Rules of Penal Procedure by permitting Mafi to discover 41 of 45 items he sought by means of a Written Request for Disclosure served on the State and a subsequent motion for discovery filed in district court. We agree that Judge Ames has acted beyond the scope of his jurisdiction pursuant to HRPP Rule 16 in this case and thus invoke our supervisory power over the district court to direct by mandamus that the two discovery orders entered by Judge Ames on September 1, 1988 be vacated.

I.

The extraordinary writ of mandamus is appropriate “to confine an inferior tribunal to the lawful exercise of its proper jurisdiction[.]” State v. Shintaku, 64 Haw. 307, 312, 640 P.2d 289, 293 (1982). See also In re Doe, 67 Haw. 466, 469, 691 P.2d 1163, 1165 (1984). But “mandamus may not be used to perform the office of an appeal.” State v. Shintaku, 64 Haw. at 310, 640 P.2d at 292 (citing Chambers v. Leavey, 60 Haw. 52, 57, 587 P.2d 807, 810 (1978)). Thus, we must at the outset determine whether the State may have a remedy by way of an appeal or any other means of relief from the disputed discovery orders.

“[T]he right of appeal in a criminal case is purely statutory and exists only when given by some constitutional or statutory provision.” State v. Oshiro, 69 Haw. 438, 441, 746 P.2d 568, 570 (1987). See also State v. Shintaku, 64 Haw. at 310, 640 P.2d at 292; State v. Johnson, 50 Haw. 525, 526, 445 P.2d 36, 37 (1968). HRS § 641-13 confers this right on the State in nine instances, which do not, however, include pretrial discovery orders. 1 Thus, the State is without a remedy from the September 1,1988 discov *307 ery orders issued by Judge Ames, unless this court grants its petition for extraordinary relief.

But “[t]he mere fact that other remedies are not available has never in itself been sufficient justification for mandamus.” State v. Shintaku, 64 Haw. at 311, 640 P.2d at 293 (citing In re Application of Liverpool, 14 Haw. 481, 488 (1902)). And “[w]here the trial judge has discretion to act,... mandamus clearly will not lie to interfere with or control the exercise of that discretion, even where the judge has acted erroneously,... unless ... the judge has exceeded his jurisdiction, has committed a flagrant and manifest abuse of discretion,... or has refused to act on a subject properly before the court where it was under a legal duty to act.” Id. at 312-13, 640 P.2d at 293-94. See, e.g., In re Doe, 67 Haw. 466, 691 P.2d 1163 (1984); State ex rel. Marsland v. Town, 66 Haw. 516, 668 P.2d 25 (1983).

*308 Upon review of the instant petition, we are persuaded that Judge Ames “has exceeded his jurisdiction” by issuing the dual discovery orders in this case and that our intervention is necessary to correct persistent misapplication of HRPP Rule 16(d) in DUI cases heard in our district courts and to establish parameters of permissible discovery in misdemeanor DUI cases. We therefore invoke our supervisory jurisdiction over the district court by authority of HRS § 602-4 2 and exercise our discretionary power to issue a writ of mandamus pursuant to HRS § 602-5(4) and (7). 3

II.

Disclosure in criminal cases is governed by HRPP Rule 16, which limits discovery “to cases in which the defendant is charged with a felony,” HRPP Rule 16(a), except as provided in HRPP Rule 16(d). HRPP Rule 16(d) reads:

*309 Upon a showing of materiality and if the request is reasonable, the court in its discretion may require disclosure as provided for in this Rule 16 in cases other than those in which the defendant is charged with a felony, but not in cases involving violations.

Thus, discovery in a misdemeanor DUI case may be permitted by the trial judge “[u]pon a showing of materiality and if the request is reasonable,” but only to the extent authorized by HRPP Rule 16 for felony cases. HRPP Rule 16(b) enumerates the items the State must disclose upon request of a defendant who is charged with a felony. It provides in relevant part:

(1) Disclosure Upon Written Request of Matters Within Prosecutor’s Possession. Upon written request of defense counsel, the prosecutor shall disclose to him the following material and information within the prosecutor’s possession or control:
(i) the names and last known addresses of persons whom the prosecutor intends to call as witnesses, in the presentation of the evidence in chief, together with their relevant written or recorded statements, provided that statements recorded by the prosecutor shall not be subject to disclosure;
(ii) any written or-recorded statements and the substance of any oral statements made by the defendant, or made by a co-defendant if intended to be used in a joint trial, together with the names and last known addresses of persons who witnessed the making of such statements;
(iii) any reports or statements of experts, which were made in connection with the particular case or which the prosecutor intends to introduce, or which are material to the preparation of the defense and are specifically designated in writing by defense counsel, including results of physical or mental examinations and of scientific tests, experiments, or comparisons;
*310

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State Ex Rel. Marsland v. Ames, 788 P.2d 1281, 71 Haw. 304, 1990 Haw. LEXIS 25 (haw 1990).

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