United States v. Johnson

314 F. Supp. 3d 248
Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit·Decided July 18, 2018·No. Criminal No. 18-99 (JDB)·Published·Cited by 11 cases

Opinion

JOHN D. BATES, United States District Judge

Before the Court is [5] the government's motion for a protective order governing the disclosure and use of body-worn camera footage in this case. For the reasons that follow, the government's motion will be denied, and the parties will be directed to confer and submit a proposed order that is consistent with this Opinion.

BACKGROUND

Defendant Jimmy Lee Johnson, Jr., was arrested in April 2018 and charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g). See Indictment [ECF No. 1]; Arrest Warrant [ECF No. 2]. Video footage pertinent to Johnson's case, including footage of his arrest, was captured on at least one body-worn camera worn by an officer of the District of Columbia's Metropolitan Police Department. See Government's Mot. for Protective Order Governing Body Worn Camera Materials ("Gov't's Mot.") [ECF No 5.] at 3.1 According to the government, the footage at issue here also depicts "the arrest of another related individual" and "numerous civilian witnesses unrelated to this investigation." Id. All told, the footage spans nearly twelve hours. See Tr. of Mot. Hr'g [ECF No. 12] at 16:21-25.

Several weeks after Johnson's arrest, the government moved for a protective order relating to the body-worn camera footage. See Gov't's Mot. at 1; Proposed Protective Order Governing Discovery of Body Worn Camera Materials ("Proposed Order") [ECF No. 5-1]. Under the government's proposed order, all of the footage would be immediately turned over to Johnson's counsel, see Tr. of Mot. Hr'g at 6:6-16, but counsel's ability to use it and to disclose it to third parties would be restricted in various ways. For example, Johnson's counsel could use the footage only in the defense of Johnson's case-including any appeals or postconviction *251proceedings2 -and not in any other litigation. See Proposed Order ¶ 1. Unless otherwise authorized by the Court, the footage could be shown only to Johnson and his "legal defense team"-that is, his counsel of record, that attorney's immediate supervisor, and any investigators, paralegals, or support staff members working on his case. Id. ¶¶ 2-3. Moreover, if Johnson's counsel were to show the footage to Johnson or any other court-authorized person, she would have to ensure that any footage containing certain categories of sensitive information-pertaining largely to witnesses-was redacted. See id. ¶ 5. The order would also impose limitations on copying the footage, see id. ¶ 6, and would require defense counsel to return or destroy all the footage produced if Johnson were ultimately acquitted or if the case against him were dismissed, see id. ¶ 9.

Johnson opposes the motion on several grounds. See Def.'s Opp'n at 5-10. Primarily, Johnson objects that the proposed protective order would "shift[ ] an enormous burden onto defense counsel" to identify and redact sensitive witness information before showing the footage to Johnson. Def.'s Opp'n at 9-10; see Tr. of Mot. Hr'g at 12:21-14:2. In Johnson's view, the government should be required to review and redact the footage before turning it over to the defense. See Tr. of Mot. Hr'g at 13:9-15. Johnson also argues that his counsel should be allowed: (1) to use the body-worn camera footage in connection with other cases-particularly those involving the same police officers-without first seeking the Court's permission, see Def.'s Opp'n at 5-6; (2) to show the footage to her colleagues in the Federal Public Defender's Office, see id. at 6; (3) to show the footage to potential witnesses without first seeking the Court's permission, see id. at 8; (4) to share witness information with Johnson absent a particularized justification for withholding that information, see id. at 8-9; and (5) to retain the body-worn camera footage in Johnson's case indefinitely, regardless of the outcome of his case, see id. at 10. The Court held a hearing on the government's motion on June 6, 2018, and the motion is now ripe for decision.

DISCUSSION

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