United States v. Raymond Charles Keine, United States of America v. Louis John Kregas, United States of America v. William Charles Wilson

436 F.2d 850
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
DecidedFebruary 3, 1971
Docket125-70, 126-70, 127-70
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 436 F.2d 850 (United States v. Raymond Charles Keine, United States of America v. Louis John Kregas, United States of America v. William Charles Wilson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Raymond Charles Keine, United States of America v. Louis John Kregas, United States of America v. William Charles Wilson, 436 F.2d 850 (10th Cir. 1971).

Opinion

SETH, Circuit Judge.

These are three consolidated appeals by the defendants from convictions after trial to a jury in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. All three appellants were convicted of conspiracy to manufacture narcotics as proscribed by 21 U.S.C. § 331 (q) (1). The evidence adduced at trial presented a complex intermesh of various conversations, sales of drugs, and purchases of chemicals. The jury found appellants guilty of conspiring to manufacture a drug commonly referred to as “speed.” Most significant to this appeal are certain rulings and events which occurred at the trial; these are set out below with the several allegations of error and the arguments. The two most substantial points which were raised by all three of the appellants are first considered.

The Jencks Act:

All three of the appellants have urged error in connection with a statement they assert was required to be produced under 18 U.S.C. § 3500. The document in question is a two page “Report of Investigation,” prepared by Special Agent John P. Martsh after an interview with Richard R. Maas who subsequently became a Government witness. The report is dated March 17, 1969, some three days after Maas was interviewed. This report does not appear or purport to be a substantially verbatim recital of the conversation with Maas, nor is there any indication or assertion that the statement was adopted or approved by Maas. A few days subsequent to this same interview, Maas executed two affidavits for the agent, in which he related his role in the events from which this case arose. These two affidavits, containing the substance of Maas’ testimony, were available and used by the defense when Maas was on the stand. The report of Agent Martsh which is in issue here was made available to the defense when Agent Martsh took the stand on the day following the conclusion of Maas’ testimony.

The material in the report of Agent Martsh that the defense argues should have been available to them when cross-examining Maas on the previous day concerned Maas’ motives for contacting the narcotics agents, reported by Martsh as follows:

“Maas further stated that he was aware of the arrests of Kregas and Keine on March 11, 1969 (Denver Case No. Nl-69-0023) and was afraid that he would be implicated with them since they had ordered chemicals through his firm.”

Appellants urge that the credibility of Maas could have been more impressively impugned on cross-examination had they been aware of this statement. The attorneys for defendants knew in advance of trial that Maas was to appear as a witness for the Government.

When the defense was given a copy of Agent Martsh’s report they moved for a *853 mistrial or, alternatively, to strike Maas’ testimony, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3500(d). Both motions were denied. At this time the trial judge ordered that the witness Maas be made available for further cross-examination if the defense so desired. The defense refused the re-tender of Maas for further questioning.

After the trial there were motions made for a new trial and this question was again considered. The trial judge denied the motion for a new trial, but he did find that the statement in question was a section 3500 statement that the defense was entitled to examine. However, he held that the failure of the Government to produce the report at the time Maas testified was cured by the opportunity to reexamine Maas at a later time.

The question presented is unusual in that typically cases of this nature concern an absolute refusal of the Government to produce, or the trial court to order production of, a particular statement. The issue often is whether or not a particular writing is in fact a “statement” as defined by 18 U.S.C. § 3500(e). The rule in such cases is that the finding of the trial judge will not be disturbed unless clearly erroneous. Campbell v. United States, 373 U.S. 487, 83 S.Ct. 1356, 10 L.Ed.2d 501 (1963); see 18 U.S.C. § 3500, Note 107. In our case there is considerable doubt that the report in question was in any sense “approved" or "adopted” by the witness. It was not signed by Maas and it does not appear to be a verbatim recitation of the interview with Maas under section 3500(e) (2). However, the trial judge found the report to be a section 3500 statement but it is not necessary to consider the trial court’s finding. Nor is it necessary to consider whether or not the failure to produce the statement was cured by subsequent production and re-tender of the witness.

The appellants contend that the question here is whether or not the failure to produce Martsh’s report when Maas testified could be cured by subsequent retender of the witness. However, appellants overlook certain language in the statute. Under subsection (b), the defense is required to move the court for production of a statement after direct examination. It has been held that, while the statute is not to be construed hypertechnically, this section places some burden on the defense. In Ogden v. United States, 303 F.2d 724 (9th Cir. 1962), the court said (at 733) :

“* * * [I]t would be equally destructive to permit the statute to be used as a device for creating inadvertent error. The responsibility for fairly directing the attention of the Court to the precise demand submitted for the Court’s determination is appropriately placed upon the Defendant, who seeks the statute’s benefits.”

See also, United States v. Hilbrich, 341 F.2d 555 (7th Cir.).

During the trial the Government was apparently presenting section 3500 statements without specific request by the defense, and furthermore only omitted the statement in question through inadvertence. Even so, there is no statutory requirement that the Government offer everything in its files on every witness. In view of the fact that the portion of the report in question is quite arguably not a section 3500 statement, the Government cannot be said to have caused a reversible error in not producing it when Maas appeared. Nor can the trial court be said to have erred. There was no request by the defense, and giving the defense the benefit of all doubts as to the applicability of section 3500 to this report, the trial court attempted to cure the omission. We find no error in the refusal to order a mistrial or strike the testimony of witness Maas. The facts in this case appear to be similar to those in Badon v. United States, 269 F.2d 75 (5th Cir. 1959). In that case, too, a statement was inadvertently not produced and the witness in quests was later tendered for further ’ examination.

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Bluebook (online)
436 F.2d 850, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-raymond-charles-keine-united-states-of-america-v-louis-ca10-1971.