State of Indiana v. M.P. (mem. dec.)

• Court: Indiana Court of Appeals
• Decided: May 13, 2015
• Docket: 49A02-1411-JV-777
• Status: Published

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION May 13 2015, 10:05 am Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision shall not be regarded as precedent or cited before any court except for the purpose of establishing the defense of res judicata, collateral estoppel, or the law of the case.

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE Gregory F. Zoeller Ruth Johnson Attorney General of Indiana Matthew D. Anglemeyer Marion County Public Defender Agency Jodi Kathryn Stein Indianapolis, Indiana Deputy Attorney General Indianapolis, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

State of Indiana, May 13, 2015

Appellant-Petitioner, Court of Appeals Case No. 49A02-1411-JV-777 v. Appeal from the Marion Superior Court M.P., The Honorable Marilyn A. Moores, Judge Appellee-Respondent. The Honorable Geoffrey A. Gaither, Magistrate Cause No. 49D09-1406-JD-1642

Kirsch, Judge.

[1] In a delinquency proceeding against M.P., a witness essential to the State’s case

failed to appear at two scheduled depositions. The juvenile court granted

M.P.’s request to exclude the witness’s testimony, and, thereafter, the juvenile

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 1 of 12 court granted the State’s motion to dismiss without prejudice. The State now

appeals, asserting the following restated issue: whether the juvenile court

abused its discretion when, as a discovery sanction, it excluded the witness’s

testimony.

[2] We affirm.

Facts and Procedural History [3] In June 2014, the State filed a petition alleging that M.P. was a delinquent child

for committing battery,1 which would be a Class A misdemeanor if committed

by an adult. The petition stemmed from an alleged altercation with N.D., who

prior to that time had been M.P.’s girlfriend. M.P. filed a notice of his intent to

rely upon self-defense. At the pre-trial hearing, M.P. requested a copy of the

police report that contained witness information, including N.D.’s address.

Over the State’s objection, the magistrate ordered that the police report be

released to M.P. Appellant’s App. at 35. The State filed a motion to reconsider

and rescind the magistrate’s discovery order, and following a hearing, the

juvenile court vacated the discovery order to produce the police report, and, on

August 8, 2014, it ordered the State to produce a redacted copy of the police

report and to make N.D. available for deposition or interview upon reasonable

notice. Id. at 56.

1 See Ind. Code § 35-42-2-1.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 2 of 12 [4] On that same date, counsel for M.P. arranged to take the taped statement of

N.D. on August 26, 2014, and she emailed the prosecutor with the scheduled

date of the taped statement. Id. at 72. On the following business day, August

11, M.P.’s counsel delivered a file-stamped copy of the notice and subpoena to

the State. M.P.’s counsel requested that the State provide her with proof of

service, pursuant to Indiana Trial Rule 4.1; however, the State sent the

subpoena by mail. Id. at 77. The planned August 26 taped statement was

confirmed at the August 25 pretrial hearing. Id. at 65.

[5] The next day, N.D. did not appear for her taped statement. Her explanation

was that she forgot the subpoena at home and did not know the address for the

deposition. On September 8, M.P. filed a motion to exclude N.D.’s testimony

based upon her failure to appear, and the State objected. On September 10, the

trial court set the matter for a pretrial hearing, and it scheduled the denial

hearing for September 22, 2014. At the September 17, 20142 pretrial hearing,

the juvenile court took M.P.’s motion to exclude testimony under advisement

and reset the denial from September 22 to October 21, 2014. Id. at 83.

[6] The next day, September 18, M.P.’s counsel arranged for the deposition of

N.D. to take place on October 9, 2014, and M.P.’s counsel emailed the State

2 We note that the September 17 pretrial was originally set for September 15, 2014. On September 15, the prosecutor was present, and although M.P.’s counsel was not, another attorney from the public defender’s office was there in her place. Witness N.D. and her mother were also present in court. M.P. moved for a continuance, which the juvenile court granted and reset the pretrial to September 17. Appellant’s App. at 79- 81.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 3 of 12 with that information. The State sent N.D. a subpoena, notifying her of the

October 9 deposition. Id. at 100-02. On October 6, N.D. appeared for the

deposition, three days early, and she was informed that she had appeared on

the wrong day. On October 8, the prosecutor confirmed with M.P.’s counsel

that N.D. was aware of and “knew she needed to attend” the October 9

deposition. Id. at 89. On October 9, counsel for M.P was at the predetermined

location for the deposition, but N.D. did not appear. The prosecutor notified

M.P.’s counsel at 9:02 a.m. that the State had received word from N.D. and/or

her mother that their car had run out of gas or was unable to get them to the

deposition. The State arranged for a taxi to pick them up and get them to the

deposition, and the prosecutor notified M.P.’s counsel that it anticipated N.D.

to arrive by 10:00 a.m. M.P.’s counsel replied that the delay was not

acceptable. She later explained to the juvenile court, and asserts to this court,

that she had other legal commitments that day that precluded her from waiting,

and, further, she was ill and in pain on the day in question and later sought

medical attention.

[7] On October 10, the day after N.D. failed to appear, M.P.’s counsel filed a

second motion to exclude N.D.’s testimony. At the subsequent attorneys-only

pretrial hearing on October 14, 2014, the State maintained that there was no

deliberate conduct or bad faith on the part of the State, and, in fact, it had done

everything in its power to comply and have N.D. appear at the dates for her

taped statement and deposition. Tr. at 4-5. Therefore, the State urged,

excluding N.D.’s testimony would be an extreme, and not a proper, remedy.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 4 of 12 M.P. argued that for months he had repeatedly sought, but had been unable to,

obtain a statement from N.D., initially because the State would not provide a

police report with her address, and later when N.D. failed to appear for two

scheduled depositions of which she had notice. M.P. asserted that he suffered

prejudice by having his denial hearing set outside sixty days.3 Id. at 2-3, 7.

[8] The juvenile court granted M.P.’s motion to exclude N.D.’s testimony, which

effectively precluded the State’s prosecution, and the State filed a motion to

dismiss the delinquency petition without prejudice, which the juvenile court

granted. The State now appeals.

Discussion and Decision [9] The State contends that the trial court “clearly erred” by granting M.P.’s

motion to exclude witness testimony, which was essential to the State’s

prosecution. Appellant’s Br. at 6. Trial courts have broad latitude with respect

to discovery matters, and their rulings receive great deference on appeal. Cain v.

State, 955 N.E.2d 714, 718 (Ind. 2011). We will affirm a trial court’s rulings

absent clear error and resulting prejudice. Id. As the conduct and equities will

vary with each case, we generally leave the determination of proper sanctions to

the sound discretion of the trial courts. Wright v. Miller, 989 N.E.2d 324, 330

3 M.P. was referring to what is sometimes called “the Sixty-Day Rule” found in Indiana Code section 31-37- 11-2(b), which provides, in relevant part, that when the child alleged to be delinquent is not in detention, either a fact-finding hearing or a waiver hearing must be commenced within sixty days after the petition is filed, excluding weekends and legal holidays. A.S. v. State, 929 N.E.2d 881, 889 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010).

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 5 of 12 (Ind. 2013). Because of the fact-sensitive nature of discovery issues, a trial

court’s ruling is cloaked with a strong presumption of correctness. Hill v.

Fitzpatrick, 827 N.E.2d 138, 141 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005).

[10] The State contends that the exclusion of N.D.’s testimony was an extreme

remedy, and not warranted, because there was no evidence that the State

engaged in deliberate or bad faith behavior that prejudiced M.P. Therefore, it

claims, we must reverse. We recognize that in Wiseheart v. State, 491 N.E.2d

985 (Ind. 1986), where the trial court excluded four defense witnesses for failure

to disclose them prior trial, our Supreme Court had occasion to address the

exclusion of a witness as a discovery sanction, and it stated that “the primary

factors which a trial court should examine are whether the breach was

intentional or in bad faith and whether substantial prejudice has resulted.” Id.

at 988; see also Cain, 955 N.E.2d at 718-20 (where co-defendant reached last-

minute plea agreement with State and State had listed him as potential witness,

trial court was within its discretion to deny defendant’s motion to exclude co-

defendant’s testimony because there was no showing that State’s actions were

deliberate or reprehensible and that defendant was prevented from receiving fair

trial). Because the exclusion of defense witnesses raises Sixth Amendment

concerns, the Wiseheart Court then articulated a nonexclusive list of factors

from which trial courts should evaluate the exclusion of witnesses for discovery

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 6 of 12 violations, noting that some of the factors would be inapplicable to a certain set

of facts or other factors might be relevant in a given case.4 Id. at 991.

[11] More recently, our Supreme Court observed in Wright, where the Court

reviewed the trial court’s discovery sanction in a medical malpractice action

that struck the patient’s expert witness, that the Wiseheart factors “can be a

valuable guide,” but cautioned against “a formulaic application of these

factors” as that could “deemphasize[] the general discretion of the trial court.”

Wright, 989 N.E.2d at 329. In analyzing the issue, the Wright Court observed,

Indiana’s trial courts decide over 1.5 million cases per year statewide, and have done so consistently for the past decade. 1 Ind. Jud. Serv. Rep. 2011: Jud. Year Rev. 97 (2012). Managing such a heavy volume demands robust court docket management and insistence upon compliance with the discovery rules, which are specifically intended to minimize the need for judicial involvement.

4 Although we do not have Sixth Amendment claims before us, we nevertheless note the five Wiseheart factors as follows: (1) Whether the nature of defendant’s violation was trivial or substantial. The trial court should consider when the witness first became known to defense counsel. (2) How vital the potential witness’ testimony is to the defendant’s case. The trial court should determine the significance of the proffered testimony to the defense. Is the testimony relevant and material to the defense or merely cumulative? (3) The nature of the prejudice to the State. Does the violation have a deleterious impact on the case prepared by the State? (4) Whether less stringent sanctions are appropriate and effective to protect the interest of both the defendant and the State. (5) Whether the State will be unduly surprised and prejudiced by the inclusion of the witness’ testimony despite the available and reasonable alternative sanctions (e.g., a recess or a continuance) which can mitigate prejudice to the State by permitting the State to interview the witnesses and conduct further investigation, if necessary. Wiseheart v. State, 491 N.E.2d 985, 991 (Ind. 1986).

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 7 of 12 [12] Id. at 327. The Wright Court was clear that sanctions should not be imposed

when circumstances make sanctions unjust, but it was mindful that

[t]rial judges stand much closer than an appellate court to the currents of litigation pending before them, and they have a correspondingly better sense of which sanctions will adequately protect the litigants in any given case, and likewise what sanctions are appropriate toward maintaining its dignity, securing obedience to its process and rules, rebuking interference with the conduct of business, and punishing unseemly behavior[.] Id. at 330 (internal citations and quotations omitted). While continuing to

emphasize the importance of deference to a trial court’s discovery decisions, the

Wright Court ultimately reversed the trial court’s exclusion of the patient’s

expert, because even though the patient failed to include the expert on any

witness list, the record reflected that defendants were well aware that the patient

intended to use that expert at trial and were attempting to secure a new one due

to health issues suffered by the expert. Id. at 331.

[13] The underlying purposes of the Trial Rules’ discovery provisions are to provide

for a minimum of court involvement in the discovery process and to allow for a

liberal discovery procedure. Id. at 327 (discovery rules intended to minimize

judicial involvement); Gonzalez v. Evans, 15 N.E.3d 628, 634 (Ind. Ct. App.

2014), trans. denied. However, Indiana Trial Rule 37 provides trial courts with

mechanisms to ensure compliance with trial rules and obedience to its order.

Wright, 989 N.E.2d at 327. For instance, Indiana Trial Rule 37(B) permits the

trial court to “make such orders . . . as are just,” including “prohibiting [the

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 8 of 12 disobedient party] from introducing designated matters into evidence[.]” Id.

We have observed,

Rules 26(C), 30(D), 37, and the appellate review criteria that are used when reviewing a trial court’s discretion or order, give the Indiana trial court [] almost plenary power over the pre-trial and trial of a case insofar as discovery is concerned. Hill v. Fitzpatrick, 827 N.E.2d 138, 140 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005) (quoting 2A W.

Harvey, Indiana Practice § 30.11 at 441-442 (2000)).

[14] We are aware that, generally, the preferred remedy for a discovery violation is a

continuance or some preliminary sanction. Cain, 955 N.E.2d at 718. However,

that already happened here. Early in the proceedings, M.P. attempted to obtain

witness contact information – needed to prepare for the final fact-finding

hearing – by asking the State for the police report. The magistrate permitted the

release of it, but the State opposed that order and asked that it be rescinded. A

hearing followed, which delayed the case, and the juvenile court ordered the

State to produce a redacted police report but make N.D. available for taped

statement or deposition. On August 8, 2014, M.P. arranged for N.D.’s taped

statement to take place on August 26; notice was provided to N.D., but she did

not appear. She told the State that she forgot the subpoena at home and,

therefore, did not know where to appear for the statement. The denial hearing

date was continued, from the original date of September 22, 2014 to October

21, 2014. On September 18, M.P. scheduled the deposition of N.D. to take

place on October 9. Despite having notice, N.D. did not appear for that

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 9 of 12 deposition either, contacting the State at the scheduled deposition time to report

that her mother’s car was out of gas or otherwise inoperable.5

[15] At the hearing on M.P.’s motion to exclude N.D.’s testimony, M.P.’s counsel

argued that M.P. had been prejudiced due to the State’s failure to present its

witness for deposition as ordered twice by the juvenile court, and because of

delays and N.D.’s failure to appear, M.P. did not receive his denial hearing

within sixty days. M.P.’s counsel said, “[T]he State wants to say that I am not

being flexible however I keep setting them, I keep showing up and they keep

not appearing,” and she queried, “[H]ow many times do we need to keep

setting these . . . and appearing and sitting there waiting.” Tr. at 2, 6. She then

added, “And you know it is common that after two no shows that witnesses are

excluded.” Id. at 6. The State responded that none of the failures to appear

were deliberate or in bad faith, and it urged the juvenile court that excluding

N.D. would not be the proper remedy. Having heard the arguments and

reviewed the pleadings, the juvenile court determined the appropriate remedy

was to exclude N.D.’s testimony. Given the great deference that we extend to

our trial court colleagues in ruling on discovery matters, and understanding the

5 We note that some portions of the record indicate that on the morning of the October 9 deposition, the State received a telephone call from N.D.’s mother stating that the car was out of gas, Appellant’s Br. at 4, 8, 11; Appellant’s App. at 106, and that the State sent a taxi cab to transport them. However, the hearing transcript indicates that the State went looking for N.D.: “[T]heir car broke down, they ran out of gas and couldn’t get here. When the State went down there, she was at her neighbor’s house attempting to call the State at that time and called the State’s office number.” Tr. at 4; see also id. at 2 (public defender stating that prosecutor told her that because there was no answer on the phone when he called, he and detective went to N.D.’s house but she was not there).

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 10 of 12 necessity of requiring parties to follow trial court’s deadlines and orders, we

cannot say that the decision to exclude N.D.’s testimony was clearly against the

logic and effect of the facts and circumstances, and we find no abuse of

discretion occurred in this case. See Hatfield v. Edward J. DeBartolo Corp., 676

N.E.2d 395, 400 (Ind. Ct. App. 1997) (no abuse of discretion where trial court

dismissed case after witness failed to appear at two noticed depositions), trans.

denied; see also Wright, 989 N.E.2d at 332 (David, J. dissenting) (rejecting

formulaic adherence to Wiseheart factors and finding no abuse of discretion in

trial court’s decision to, as discovery sanction, exclude plaintiff’s expert

witness).

[16] Even assuming that the juvenile court’s decision to exclude N.D.’s testimony

constituted error, which effectively precluded prosecution, the ensuing dismissal

was without prejudice. Appellant’s App. at 115. Therefore, the State may refile

its delinquency petition, if desired. See e.g., Ind. Code § 35-34-1-13 (granting of

prosecutor’s motion to dismiss does not bar subsequent trial of defendant on

offense charged if defendant’s substantial rights not violated); State v. I.T., 4

N.E.3d 1139, 1141 (Ind. 2014) (noting that trial court gave State ten days to

refile delinquency petition, after trial court had granted juvenile’s motion to

dismiss delinquency petition because State had relied upon statements that

juvenile had made to therapist during court-ordered treatment, but State chose

to appeal); Hollowell v. State, 773 N.E.2d 326, 331 (Ind. Ct. App. 2002) (after

having previously dismissed charges due to missing essential witness, State

refiled information with additional charges, but defendant was not prejudiced

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 11 of 12 and not entitled to dismissal of charges). Accordingly, in this case, any error in

excluding N.D.’s testimony was harmless.

[17] Affirmed.

Vaidik, C.J., and Bradford, J., concur.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1411-JV-777 | May 13, 2015 Page 12 of 12