Defendant appealed the decision of the trial magistrate sustaining the violations of R.I.G.L. 1956 §§ 31-27-2.1 (refusal to submit to a chemical test) and 31-14-3 (conditions requiring reduced speed). Defendant argued that his due process rights were violated when the State failed to deliver in discovery copies of the Officer’s initial recorded statements or initial written narrative because the statements had a material bearing on his guilt or innocence. The Panel explained that, in order to demonstrate a due process violation based on the destruction of exculpatory evidence under the “tripartite” test adopted by the Rhode Island Supreme Court in State v. Garcia, 643 A.2d 180, 185 (R.I. 1994), a defendant must show: (1) the evidence possessed exculpatory value that was apparent before the evidence was destroyed; (2) the Defendant would be unable to obtain comparable evidence by other reasonable means; and (3) the failure to preserve the exculpatory evidence amounted to bad faith on the part of the state. Id. The Panel explained that the Defendant failed to satisfy all three prongs of the test because: 1) there had been no showing that the evidence would exonerate or cast any doubt on the credibility of Officer’s trial testimony; 2) the final written report differed only in grammatical changes and revisions indicating the type of medication the defendant was regularly taking at the time of arrest; and 3) there was no showing of bad faith because the police regularly destroy initial field notes before submitting their final reports. Accordingly, the Panel held that the trial magistrate’s decision did not prejudice the due process rights of the Defendant and sustained the charged violations.
State of Rhode Island v. James Estey, Jr., C.A. No. T10-0029 (June 9, 2010) Discovery
Case Index
- Refusal to Submit
- Anonymous Tips
- Arrest
- Availability of a Breathalyzer Machine/ Operator
- Burden of Proof
- Coercion by Officer
- Collateral Estoppel
- Constitutional Issues
- Constructive Refusal to Submit
- Credibility Determinations
- Default Judgment
- Deficient Sample
- Discovery
- Dismissal
- Double Charging
- Evidence
- Fellow-Officer Rule
- Field Sobriety Tests
- Identifying the Defendant
- Inability to Cure a Refusal by Subsequently Submitting
- Jurisdiction of Police Officers
- Knowing and Voluntary Decision
- Missing or Incomplete Transcript
- Motion to Vacate
- Operation of Motor Vehicle
- Penalty
- Physical Inability to Submit to a Chemical Test
- Preliminary Breath Test
- Preliminary Suspension
- Procedure
- Reasonable Grounds/Probable Cause
- Reasonable Suspicion to Stop
- Right to an Independent Medical Examination
- Right to Appeal
- Right to Counsel
- Rights for Use at Station
- Rights for Use at the Scene
- Summons
- Sworn Report
- Telephone Call
- Trial Judge's Findings of Facts
- Traffic Violations
- Aggressive Driving
- Airport Regulations
- Appellate Procedure
- Axle Restriction
- Bailee Plates
- Bolstering
- Burden of Proof
- Care in Starting from Stop
- Clearance for Overtaking
- Colin B. Foote Act
- Collateral Estoppel
- Commercial Motor Vehicle Violation
- Conditions Requiring Reduced Speed
- Constitutional Issues
- Cost and Fees
- Credibility
- Crosswalk Violation
- Default Judgment
- Discovery
- Dismissal
- Double Jeopardy
- Due Care by Drivers
- Evidence
- Failure to Maintain Control
- Failure to Prosecute
- Good Driving Statute
- Hearsay
- Identification
- Immediate Notice of Accident
- Inspection Laws
- Interval between Vehicles
- Issuance of License
- Judicial Notice
- Jurisdiction
- Jurisdiction of Police Officers
- Laned Roadway Violation
- Leaving the Scene
- License on Person
- Manner of Turning
- Newly Discovered Evidence
- Obedience to Devices
- Obedience to Police Officers
- Open Container
- Operating an Unregistered Vehicle
- Operating without Insurance
- Operation by person other than Lessee
- Overtaking on Right
- Overtaking on the Left
- Parking or Stopping Prohibited
- Parties to an Offense
- Passing
- Pedestrians on Freeways
- Penalties
- Places Where U-Turns Prohibited
- Procedure
- Salvage Laws
- School Bus Violations
- Scituate Town Ordinance 7.2(a)
- Seat Belt Use
- Speeding
- Stop sign
- Summons
- Text Messaging While Driving
- Toll Violation
- Traffic Control Signals
- Transporting Animals
- Turn Signal Required
- Unauthorized Practice of Law
- Venue
- Visibility of Plates
- Weight Restrictions