United States v. Beech

307 F.R.D. 437, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 72329, 2015 WL 3514192
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedJune 4, 2015
DocketNo. 2:13cr214
StatusPublished

This text of 307 F.R.D. 437 (United States v. Beech) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Beech, 307 F.R.D. 437, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 72329, 2015 WL 3514192 (W.D. Pa. 2015).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

DAVID STEWART CERCONE, District Judge.

On July 31, 2013, a grand jury returned a two-count indictment charging Steven Beech (“defendant”) at count one with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana, from in and around 2006 to in and around May, 2012, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846 and at count two with conspiring to launder monetary instruments, from in and around 2008 to in and around May 2012, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1956(h). Presently before the [440]*440court are defendant’s motions for Information Favorable to the Defense, Disclosure of Agreements Between the Government and Its Witnesses, Expert Disclosure/Discovery, Notice of Government’s Intention to Use Similar or Related Act Evidence, Early Disclosure of All Jencks Act Material and motion to have law enforcement Retain Rough Notes. For the reasons set forth below, defendant’s motions will be granted in part and denied in part.

A number of defendant’s motions seek various forms of “discovery.” Defendant’s motion for information favorable to the defense and motion for agreements between the government and its witnesses seek a litany of exculpatory and impeachment information falling within the doctrine set forth in Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963), and its progeny. This information includes any exculpatory information from any source, all evidence of transactions not charged in the indictment that might be offered to prove intent, mode of operation, course of conduct and so forth, the names and addresses of all witnesses the government intends to call and any promises made or inducements offered to them, any episodes of criminal conduct by any government witness, any information pertaining to a witness’s cooperation, any information about services provided to any such witness, any evidence tending to negate the existence of a conspiracy, any expressed or implied promise or assurance of favorable treatment offered or extended to such witnesses, any expressed or implied consideration offered or extended to such witnesses, any expressed or implied threat, coercion or intimidation aimed at or advanced to any such witness, and so forth. The motion for Early Disclosure of Jencks Act material seeks an order directing the government to produce such materials prior to trial in order to preserve defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to “a fair trial.” Defendant’s motion for expert disclosure seeks the substance and foundation for all expert testimony which the government intends to use at trial.

The government has filed a response acknowledging its obligations under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 12 and 16, Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963) and Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150, 92 S.Ct. 763, 31 L.Ed.2d 104 (1972), and the Jencks Act. It asserts that its primary obligation to produce discovery is governed by Rule 16 and it need only produce Brady impeachment material in time for it to be used effectively at trial. It highlights that the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held in United States v. Higgs, 713 F.2d 39 (3d Cir.1983), that a defendant’s right to a fair trial was fully protected where the government disclosed Brady impeachment material the day the government’s witness testified. Id. at 44. It claims that it is unaware of any Brady exculpatory material at this time and it has produced extensive Rule 16 material to date. It intends to disclose all Jencks Act material and all Brady impeachment material two weeks prior to trial. Beyond these areas, it asserts that defendant is not entitled to a list of the government’s witnesses, the minutia of the evidence it will introduce at trial, or information outside the scope of Rule 16.

To the extent defendant’s motion seeks the disclosure of statements, information and things beyond (1) that which the government has made or has agreed to make available and (2) the dictates that flow from Rule 16 and Brady, the motion will be denied for a number of reasons. First, the government has acknowledged its obligations under Rule 16 and indicated it has complied and will continue to comply with those obligations fully. Rule 16 was not designed to provide a defendant with a vehicle to discover the government’s ease in detail or the strategy it intends to pursue at trial. United States v. Fioravanti, 412 F.2d 407, 410 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, 396 U.S. 837, 90 S.Ct. 97, 24 L.Ed.2d 88 (1969). Nor is the rule designed to provide a defendant with verification that the use of anticipated evidence at trial by the defense is not vulnerable to attack by evidence within the government’s possession. United States v. Randolph, 456 F.2d 132, 136 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, 408 U.S. 926, 92 S.Ct. 2507, 33 L.Ed.2d 337 (1972). In fact, in sharp contrast with these propositions, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has recognized that discovery in criminal cases is limited to those areas delineated [441]*441in Rule 16, “with some additional material being discoverable in accordance with statutory pronouncements and the due process clause of the Constitution.” United States v. Ramos, 27 F.3d 65, 67-68 (3d Cir.1994). As a general matter these other areas are limited to the Jeneks Act and materials available pursuant to the so-called “Brady doctrine.” Id. at 68.1

Second, the government has no obligation to produce an outline of the evidence it will offer at trial. A defendant is not entitled to conduct a wholesale review of the government’s investigation. See Weatherford v. Bursey, 429 U.S. 545, 559, 97 S.Ct. 837, 51 L.Ed.2d 30 (1977) (there is no general constitutional right to discovery in a criminal case). Nor is a defendant entitled to obtain a list of the government’s witnesses through discovery. See United States v. DiPasquale, 740 F.2d 1282, 1294 (3d Cir.1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 1228, 105 S.Ct. 1226, 84 L.Ed.2d 364 (1985). Similarly, there is no authority to support a defendant’s request for the specifics of each government witness’ proposed testimony. See Fioravanti, 412 F.2d at 410 (a defendant has no right to discover the minutia of the government’s evidence or the manner in which it will be used). And even assuming arguendo that this court has some residual discretion to order the pretrial disclosure of the government’s evidence in appropriate circumstances, the current record falls woefully short of presenting sufficient grounds to justify such an extraordinary measure.

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Related

Brady v. Maryland
373 U.S. 83 (Supreme Court, 1963)
Giglio v. United States
405 U.S. 150 (Supreme Court, 1972)
United States v. Agurs
427 U.S. 97 (Supreme Court, 1976)
Weatherford v. Bursey
429 U.S. 545 (Supreme Court, 1977)
United States v. Jack Kaplan
554 F.2d 577 (Third Circuit, 1977)
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562 F.2d 275 (Third Circuit, 1977)
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United States v. William Bocra
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United States v. Starusko, John
729 F.2d 256 (Third Circuit, 1984)
United States v. Blackwell
954 F. Supp. 944 (D. New Jersey, 1997)
United States v. Alex
791 F. Supp. 723 (N.D. Illinois, 1992)
United States v. Giampa
904 F. Supp. 235 (D. New Jersey, 1995)
United States v. Evangelista
813 F. Supp. 294 (D. New Jersey, 1993)

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Bluebook (online)
307 F.R.D. 437, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 72329, 2015 WL 3514192, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-beech-pawd-2015.