Case Name: Stephen SCIPIO, Petitioner, v. STATE of Florida, Respondent
Court: Florida Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 2006-02-16
Citations: 928 So. 2d 1138
Docket Number: No. SC04-647
Parties: Stephen SCIPIO, Petitioner, v. STATE of Florida, Respondent.
Judges: PARIENTE, C.J., and LEWIS and QUINCE, JJ., concur.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 928
Pages: 1138–1162

Head Matter:
Stephen SCIPIO, Petitioner, v. STATE of Florida, Respondent.
No. SC04-647.
Supreme Court of Florida.
Feb. 16, 2006.
Rehearing Denied April 24, 2006.
James S. Purdy, Public Defender, Noel A. Pelella and Larry B. Henderson, Assistant Public Defenders, Seventh Judicial Circuit, Daytona Beach, FL, for Petitioner.
Charles J. Crist, Jr., Attorney General, Tallahassee, FL, and Kellie A. Nielan, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, FL, for Respondent.

Opinion:
ANSTEAD, J.
Stephen J. Scipio seeks review of the Fifth District Court of Appeal's decision in Scipio v. State, 867 So.2d 427 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004), on the basis of conflict with numerous prior decisions of other district courts and this Court, including the decisions in Pender v. State, 700 So.2d 664 (Fla.1997); Williams v. State, 863 So.2d 1189 (Fla.2003); and State v. Schopp, 653 So.2d 1016 (Fla.1995). This Court has jurisdiction pursuant to article V, section 3(b)(3) of the Florida Constitution. Because we find the State has not demonstrated the harmlessness of a discovery violation, we quash the decision of the Fifth District and remand with instructions that a new trial be conducted. We also clarify our holding in Schopp.
PROCEEDINGS TO DATE
Scipio was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. On appeal, he claimed a substantial State discovery violation tainted his conviction. Scipio v. State, 867 So.2d 427, 429-30 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004). The Fifth District described the proceedings and the facts presented at trial in its opinion:
At Scipio's trial, four witnesses identified him as Smith's assailant, but there was no physical evidence connecting Scipio to the crime. Smith was shot four times, and two projectiles were recovered from his body. They were possibly fired from the same pistol, most likely a revolver, but the gun was never recovered.
The testimony adduced at trial was that immediately prior to his death, Smith was shooting pool with Miles Gar-ey in the pool room of the Southside Inn, a Daytona Beach nightclub, which is located in a high crime area. Garey testified that he and Smith had been at the Southside Inn only a short while, and that he was bending over shooting pool, when he heard Smith say "Oh, s — t, he's got a gun." Garey felt a bullet whiz by his ear and he ran outside the bar. Gar-ey could not identify the shooter.
When police arrived, Smith was lying in the parking lot and bystanders were trying to help him. Smith was pronounced dead at the scene. Although police questioned potential witnesses at that time, no one claimed to have seen what happened. Scipio was not questioned by police because he was not in the area. However, three people (Harper, White and Gaines) subsequently gave police information about the crime, and testified at Scipio's trial that they saw him shoot Smith. A fourth witness testified that Scipio admitted shooting Smith to him.
The state's theory of the case was that Smith's murder was in retaliation for his testimony against an individual named Robert Allen. Smith had been the victim of a robbery perpetrated by Allen about a year earlier. Allen had been convicted of the robbery and sentenced to fifteen years imprisonment, based in part on Smith's testimony.
Scipio's defense was that another person had committed the crime. The defense intended to rely, in part, on the testimony of Robert Burch, an investigator for the Medical Examiner's Office. During Burch's deposition, defense showed him a photograph of the crime scene outside the Inn, in the parking lot. Based upon this photograph, Burch said there had been a semi-automatic pistol under Smith's body, and that he had turned it over to law enforcement. Defense believed that this evidence could have created doubt in the mind of the jury as to whether Scipio was the assailant.
Defense counsel met with Burch on the morning of the trial and asked him to review his deposition testimony. Burch did so and said he agreed with it. However, Burch was subsequently approached by the prosecutor and asked about the weapon. Burch told the prosecutor he thought there was a photograph of a weapon.
The prosecutor brought Burch to the State Attorney's Office to review the photographs. Defense asked to accompany them but the prosecutor refused. The prosecutor produced the crime scene photos. When Burch reviewed them, he decided the FDLE photo showed the object he had believed to be a weapon, was in fact a pager. Burch realized that he had been mistaken in his deposition testimony, but this information was not given to defense prior to the commencement of the trial.
When Burch testified at trial that he had not seen a gun at the scene, but rather he had seen only a pager, the defense was completely surprised. Defense counsel made a motion for a mistrial based on Burch's changed testimony, but it was denied. The defense was permitted to impeach Burch, but Burch stuck to his story, explaining that he had made a mistake.
Scipio, 867 So.2d at 428-30. As noted, Scipio was convicted and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
On appeal, the Fifth District Court of Appeal rejected all issues raised except for Scipio's claim that a harmful discovery violation had occurred during trial by reason of the State's failure to disclose Burch's changed testimony to the defense. The district court held that a "failure to disclose a significant change in a witness's testimony is as much a discovery violation as a complete failure to disclose a witness." Id. at 430 (citing State v. Evans, 770 So.2d 1174, 1182 (Fla.2000)). The court concluded that the State had "actively procured the defense witness's recantation" while "knowing that defense counsel intended to rely on [the witness's earlier] deposition." Id. The court declared that this "type of 'dirty pool' " is "exactly the type of conduct the discovery rules were designed to prevent." Id. The Fifth District nevertheless held that the discovery violation was not sufficiently harmful to require reversal. Id. at 431. Scipio now seeks review, claiming that the Fifth District misapplied the harmless error standard enunciated by this Court in Schopp.
DISCOVERY VIOLATION
The State first asserts that the Fifth District erred in finding any misconduct by the State, let alone a discovery violation, thereby making any harmless error assessment moot. However, we conclude that the Fifth District was correct in its determination that the State's discovery violation was a flagrant case of "dirty pool" that is "exactly the type of conduct the discovery rules were designed to prevent." Scipio, 867 So.2d at 430.
Not surprisingly, Scipio agrees with the Fifth District's assessment. Further, he asserts that the prosecutor's actions constituted a violation of the spirit and purpose of the discovery rules, as well as a violation of the prosecutor's ethical and professional responsibilities. He claims that the prosecutor's action constituted the "trial by ambush" that this Court has consistently condemned.
, The Fifth District relied upon case law concerning discovery issues from this Court and the district courts, as well as an analysis of Florida's criminal discovery rules, to demonstrate the prosecution's discovery violation for failing to disclose the substantial change in testimony by the medical examiner's investigator. The criminal rules that codify the prosecutor's obligation to provide discovery include Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.220(b) (prosecutor's discovery obligation) and 3.220(j) (continuing duty to disclose). These rules of criminal procedure provide:
(b) Prosecutor's Discovery Obligation.
(1) Within 15 days after service of the Notice of Discovery, the prosecutor shall serve a written Discovery Exhibit which shall disclose to the Defendant and permit the defendant to inspect, copy, test, and photograph the following information and material within the state's possession and control:
(B) The statement of any person whose name is furnished in compliance with the preceding subdivision. The term "statement" as used herein includes a written statement made by the person and signed or otherwise adopted or approved by the person and also includes any statement of any kind or manner made by the person and written or recorded or summarized in any writing or recording....
(j) Continuing Duty to Disclose. If, subsequent to compliance with the rules, a party discovers additional witnesses or material that the party would have been under a duty to disclose or produce at the time of the previous compliance, the party shall promptly disclose or produce the witnesses or material in the same manner as required, under these rules for initial discovery.
Fla. R.Crim. P. 3.220(b)(1)(B), (j)- The "preceding subdivision" referred to in rule 3.220(b)(1)(B) requires the State to provide the defense "a list of names and addresses of all persons known to the prosecutor to have information that may be relevant to any offense charged or any defense thereto." Fla. R.Crim. P. 3.220(b)(1)(A).
Under these rules, it is apparent that the medical examiner's investigator, who examined the crime scene and the body of the victim, was a person whom the State had an obligation to disclose as having information relevant to the case. That obligation is not in dispute here, and is comparable to the State's obligation to disclose the identity of an investigating police officer who has gathered evidence of the crime. Further, since the medical examiner's investigator actually gave a statement by deposition that he possessed relevant information of the crime scene, the State also had an obligation to disclose any material change in that statement. See Fla. R.Crim. P. 3.220Q). The form in which the statement was provided, i.e., a recorded deposition versus a written statement, does not affect that obligation. Of course, we now know by hindsight that the investigator first gave a statement helpful to the defense, and then, at trial, gave testimony contrary to the initial statement and harmful to the defense while helpful to the State.
In establishing a discovery violation by the State, the Fifth District also relied upon this Court's analysis of a similar discovery issue in State v. Evans, 770 So.2d 1174 (Fla.2000). See Scipio, 867 So.2d at 430. The witness' in Evans provided a statement to police and a pretrial deposition, and in both statements asserted that she "didn't see anything" pertaining to the crime. Evans, 770 So.2d at 1176. The same witness subsequently testified as a witness for the State at trial, asserting, contrary to her police deposition and statement, that she actually saw the defendant shoot the victim. Id. On cross-examination the witness disclosed that she had provided her changed statement to the State a month before trial. Id. However, the State did not notify the defendant of the change and that it would be relying on this important new evidence at trial. Id. This Court found that the State had committed a discovery violation by failing to disclose that the witness had changed her original statement "to such an extent that the witness is transformed from a witness who 'didn't see anything' into an eyewitness who observed the material aspects of the crime charged" and that this was "tantamount to failing to name a witness at all." Id. at 1182. This Court concluded:
Finally, we determine that the State's failure in this case to disclose both the substance of the oral statement allegedly made by Evans and the transformation of Green into an eyewitness was harmful because we cannot say beyond a reasonable doubt that the defense was not procedurally prejudiced by the violation. See State v. Schopp, 653 So.2d 1016, 1021 (Fla.1995) ("[Ojnly if the appellate court can say beyond a reasonable doubt that the defense was not procedurally prejudiced by the discovery violation can the error be considered harmless.").
Id. at 1183 (modification in original).
Like the Fifth District, other district courts have also found discovery violations when a witness's subsequent statement to the State materially alters an existing written or recorded statement provided by the State to the defense. In Jones v. State, 514 So.2d 432 (Fla. 4th DCA 1987), for example, the Fourth District Court of Appeal concluded that when a witness informs the State of his intention to materially alter information provided in a sworn statement, rule 3.220(f) (the predecessor to rule 3.220(j)) imposes a continuing duty upon the State to disclose such information to the defense. Id. at 435. Similarly, the Fourth District has held that the State committed a discovery violation by furnishing a defendant with misleading and inaccurate information regarding the testing of a victim's clothing, when in fact the laboratory report provided by the State actually reflected the testing of the defendant's clothing. McArthur v. State, 671 So.2d 867, 870 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996). The court concluded that furnishing such discovery was "tantamount to providing no discovery at all." Id.; see also Neimeyer v. State, 378 So.2d 818, 821 (Fla. 2d DCA 1979) (State had duty to disclose change in testimony by medical examiner who had given prior statement and deposition); Alfaro v. State, 471 So.2d 1345, 1345-46 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985) (State violated discovery rules by not informing the defense that the medical examiner performed last-minute reconstruction analysis).
PURPOSE OF DISCOVERY
Importantly, this Coúrt has consistently held that "Florida's criminal discovery rules are designed to prevent surprise by either the prosecution or the defense. Their purpose is to facilitate a truthful fact-finding process." Kilpatrick v. State, 376 So.2d 386, 388 (Fla.1979). In Kilpatrick we explained:
Florida's criminal discovery rules are designed to prevent surprise by either the prosecution or the defense. Their purpose is to facilitate a truthful fact-finding process. Discovery under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.220 is commenced by service of a demand for discovery by the defense on the State. The rule imposes a continuing mandatory duty on the prosecution to disclose certain specifics, including the names of prospective witnesses. Once having invoked this procedure, the defense must also affirmatively respond by disclosing certain information to the prosecution including the names of prospective witnesses. Both sides are entitled to rely on full and fair compliance with the rule in preparing their cases for trial.
Id. This Court has held that the chief purpose of our discovery rules is to assist the truth-finding function of our justice system and to avoid trial by surprise or ambush. See, e.g., Evans, 770 So.2d at 1182.
Because full and fair discovery is essential to these important goals, we have repeatedly emphasized not only compliance with the technical provisions of the discovery rules, but also adherence to the purpose and spirit of those rules in both the criminal and civil context. See Binger v. King Pest Control, 401 So.2d 1310, 1314 (Fla.1981). This Court has explained that the rules of discovery are intended to avoid surprise and "trial by 'ambush.' " Binger, 401 So.2d at 1314. In Binger, we emphasized that the "search for truth and justice can be accomplished only when all relevant facts are before the judicial tribunal. Those relevant facts should be the determining factor rather than gamesmanship, surprise, or superior trial tactics." Id. at 1313 (quoting Dodson v. Persell, 390 So.2d 704, 707 (Fla.1980)). Moreover, in Binger, this Court declared:
The argument that the possibility of being ambushed by an unlisted impeachment witness encourages truthful testimony reflects an outdated methodology for ascertaining the truth at trials. It lacks the solid foundation on which courts should alone build exceptions to general discovery principles. Moreover, the logic of the proposition is fairly disputable. The listing of contradictory witnesses whose impeachment testimony can be discovered by interrogatory or deposition provides equal assurance that trial testimony will be accurate and truthful.
Id. at 1314. Following our lead, the district courts of appeal have also interpreted Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.360(b), which requires disclosure of the reports of expert witnesses, to also require the disclosure of a substantial reversal of such an opinion. For example, even when no explicit duty to supplement discovery existed under the rules of civil procedure, this Court and the district courts have repeatedly emphasized that "litigation should no longer proceed as a game of 'blind man's bluff.' " Jones v. Seaboard Coast Line R.R. Co., 297 So.2d 861, 863 (Fla. 2d DCA 1974). As the Second District noted in Jones:
[Ijt's now rudimentary that the primary purpose of pretrial discovery is twofold: (1) to "discover" evidence relevant and pertinent to the triable issues pending before the court, and (2) if in written form to serve, of itself, as evidence at trial if otherwise admissible.
Jones, 297 So.2d at 863.
Similarly, as this Court concluded in Evans, the Fourth District has pointed out, in finding error in a litigant's failure to disclose a change in an expert's opinion, "[a] party can hardly prepare for an opinion that it doesn't know about, much less one that is a complete reversal of the opinion it has been provided." Office Depot, Inc. v. Miller, 584 So.2d 587, 590 (Fla. 4th DCA 1991). The Fourth District concluded:
While judicial economy may have been served by adhering to the decision made at trial to deal with the problem, justice is ultimately better served even if a new trial must be held to insure fairness to the litigants. The trial court's action here sends out a strong message to those who do not adhere to the code of fair play advanced by Binger. Serious violations of the pretrial disclosure rules may result in the exclusion of important evidence, and may, in extreme circumstances, lead to the grant of a new trial.
Id. at 591. Moreover, the Fourth District in Office Depot emphasized, relying on Binger, "[pjarties who fail to make such disclosure do so at their peril, depending on the circumstances of the particular case." Id.
Of course, the policy of avoiding trial by ambush or surprise has even greater application in the criminal context, where the stakes are much higher and the obligation of the State to see that justice is done is much greater than that of the private litigants in a civil dispute. Indeed, the United States Supreme Court long ago made clear:
The [prosecutor] is the representative not of an ordinary party to a controversy, but of a sovereignty whose obligation to govern impartially is as compelling as its obligation to govern at all; and whose interest, therefore . is not that it shall win a case, but that justice shall be done.... He may prosecute with earnestness and vigor — indeed, he should do so. But, while he may strike hard blows, he is not at liberty to strike foul ones.
Berger v. United States, 295 U.S. 78, 88, 55 S.Ct. 629, 79 L.Ed. 1314 (1935). These words seem especially appropriate to the circumstances before us today.
Under our discovery rules and our case law, we conclude that the Fifth District was correct in its determination that the State committed a discovery violation when it failed to disclose to Scipio a material change in the State investigator's deposition statement. Further, the Fifth District's reliance on our decision in Evans is consistent with our case law stressing disapproval of trial by ambush.
The State's calculated failure to inform the defense of the important and dramatic change in testimony of its medical examiner's investigator not only violated the prosecutor's duty not to strike "foul" blows, but undermined the very purpose of the discovery rules as set out by this Court in Kilpatrick and Evans, since the State was fully aware that the defense intended to rely heavily on the testimony of the State's investigator and would be completely sur prised by the witness's changed testimony at trial.
HARMLESS ERROR
Although we agree with the Fifth District's assessment of the discovery issue, we find the court's decision on harmless error in conflict with this Court's decision in Schopp. However, it is also apparent that there is some conflicting language in our Schopp opinion that was responsible for the district court's holding and that requires clarification.
Initially, it is important to note that prior to this Court's decision in Schopp, a trial court's failure to conduct a Richardson inquiry as to discovery violations was considered to constitute such substantial harm as to mandate automatic reversal without any consideration of harmless error. See Smith v. State, 500 So.2d 125, 126 (Fla.1986). However, while we decided in Schopp that it was possible that a Richardson violation could be harmless, we retained the strict procedural prejudice standard set out in Smith as the standard to be utilized in determining prejudice or harm. Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1021.
In Schopp this Court went to great lengths to explain and repeatedly reaffirm our adherence to the procedural prejudice standard:
We reasoned [in Smith ] that an appellate determination as to whether a Richardson violation is harmless is impossible in light of the fact that "[t]he purpose of a Richardson inquiry is to ferret out procedural, rather than substantive, prejudice." 500 So.2d at 126 (quoting Wilcox [v. State], 367 So.2d [1020] at 1023 [(Fla.1979)]). We explained:
The certified question in [Smith ] misapprehends the very purpose of a Richardson hearing, which is precisely to determine if a violation is, in fact, harmless. One cannot determine whether the state's transgression of the discovery rules has prejudiced the defendant (or has been harmless) without giving the defendant the opportunity to speak to the question. We repeat what the court made clear in Wilcox. A reviewing court cannot determine whether the error is harmless without giving the defendant the opportunity to show prejudice or harm. 367 So.2d at 1023. In Wilcox, . this Court explained that the question of "'prejudice'' in a discovery context is not dependent upon the potential impact of the undisclosed evidence on the fact finder but rather upon its impact on the defendant's ability to prepare for trial [.]
500 So.2d at 126.
This distinction between substantive and procedural prejudice in the context of discovery violations continues to be a valid one. However, this case demonstrates that there are cases in which a reviewing court can determine that a discovery violation is harmless beyond a reasonable doubt, absent an adequate Richardson inquiry at the trial level. Here, we can say beyond a reasonable doubt that neither the discovery violation nor the trial court's failure to inquire into whether corrective sanctions were warranted materially hindered the defendant's trial preparation or strategy-
Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1019-20 (emphasis supplied) (footnote omitted). Indeed, we repeatedly emphasized throughout our Schopp opinion that when reviewing a claim of error based upon a Richardson violation, the reviewing court's focus should be on procedural and not substantive prejudice:
In determining whether a Richardson violation is harmless, the appellate court must consider whether there is a reasonable possibility that the discovery violation proeedurally prejudiced the defense. As used in this context, the defense is proeedurally prejudiced if there is a reasonable possibility that the defendant's trial preparation or strategy would have been materially different had the violation not occurred. Trial preparation or strategy should be con-
sidered materially different if it reasonably could have benefited the defendant. In making this determination every conceivable course of action must be considered. If the reviewing court finds that there is a reasonable possibility that the discovery violation prejudiced the defense or if the record is insufficient to determine that the defense was not materially affected, the error must be considered harmful. In other words, only if the appellate court can say beyond a reasonable doubt that the defense was not proeedurally prejudiced by the discovery violation can the error be considered harmless.
We recognize that in the vast majority of cases it will be readily apparent that the record is insufficient to support a finding of harmless error. We also recognize that where the defendant's trial preparation or strategy reasonably could have been affected by the discovery violation it will be difficult to determine whether the verdict could have differed had the violation not occurred or had the trial court acted to avert the prejudice. However, the mere fact that there is a high probability that a given error will be found harmful does not justify categorizing the error as per se reversible. [State v.] DiGuilio, 491 So.2d [1129] at 1137 [(Fla.1986)]. Thus, we recede from Smith, Cumbie [v. State, 345 So.2d 1061 (Fla.1977)], Wilcox, and their progeny to the extent that they require per se reversal, and we hold that the harmless error analysis set forth above should be applied where a trial court fails to conduct an adequate Richardson inquiry.
Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1020-21 (emphasis supplied).
Even the dissent in Schopp, authored by Justice Harding, recognized the Court's continued adherence to the procedural prejudice standard:
While the majority opinion correctly notes that the prejudice at issue in the discovery context is procedural rather than substantive [653 So.2d at 1019-20], it focuses solely upon a single aspect of the prejudice, whether the discovery violation prevented the defendant from properly preparing for trial. As this Court explained in Wilcox, there are two separate but interrelated aspects of prejudice in the discovery context: 1) whether the discovery violation prevented the defendant from properly preparing for trial; and 2) what is the proper sanction to invoke for the discovery violation. 367 So.2d at 1023. Granted, if a court determines that a defendant was not prejudiced in trial preparation or strategy by a discovery violation, it may also determine that no sanction is warranted. Smith, 500 So.2d at 126. But without an adequate Richardson inquiry the court cannot determine if a discovery violation was willful and warrants a sanction on that basis.
Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1023 (Harding, J., dissenting) (footnote omitted).
Hence, our decision in Schopp formulated a strict procedural standard for proving harmless error in place of an even stricter per se rule of reversal. Id. at 1020. It placed the burden on the State and emphasized that a finding of harmless error should be "the exception rather than the rule." Id. The decision further noted that "the vast majority of cases" will not have a record sufficient to support a finding of harmless error and that there is a "high probability" that any given error will be found harmful. Id. at 1021.
Unfortunately, however, included among all of our statements in Schopp affirming the rule of procedural prejudice, there is one statement that appears inconsistent with that rule:
This analysis recognizes the procedural prejudice inherent in discovery violations. It also takes into account the fact that errors that reasonably could affect trial preparation or strategy are "prejudicial," and therefore harmful for appellate purposes, only when a change in trial tactics reasonably could have benefited the defendant by resulting in a favorable verdict.
Id. (emphasis supplied). In this case, the Fifth District focused on this brief and inconsistent passage from Schopp in concluding the State's discovery violation was harmless in this case. See Scipio, 867 So.2d at 431. We now conclude, however, that this isolated statement is inconsistent with the extensive analysis in Schopp preceding the statement, adopting a procedural, not substantive prejudice analysis. See Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1020. We now take this opportunity to clarify our opinion in Schopp and recede from this inconsistent language. One cannot consistently say, as we did clearly and repeatedly in Schopp, that the test for prejudice does not concern the impact of the undisclosed evidence on the fact-finder, and yet apply a test that does consider that impact.
In contrast to the Fifth District's opinion below, this Court in Evans correctly applied the Schopp standard of procedural prejudice when concluding:
Finally, we determine that the State's failure in this case to disclose both the substance of the oral statement allegedly made by Evans and the transformation of Green into an eyewitness was harmful because we cannot say beyond a reasonable doubt that the defense was not procedurally prejudiced by the violation. See State v. Schopp, 653 So.2d 1016, 1021 (Fla.1995) ("[O]nly if the appellate court can say beyond a reason able doubt that the defense was not proeedurally prejudiced by the discovery violation can the error be considered harmless.").
Evans, 770 So.2d at 1183. Further, in Pender v. State, 700 So.2d 664 (Fla.1997), this Court also noted that the district court's analysis of harmless error in that case was in direct contravention of our holding in Schopp because it had considered the impact of a discovery violation on the fact-finder instead of the impact on the defendant's trial preparation. Id. at 666. Similarly, in Cox v. State, 819 So.2d 705 (Fla.2002), this Court began its harmless error analysis by stating, "[W]here the State commits a discovery violation, the standard for deeming the violation harmless is extraordinarily high." Id. at 712. Then, in analyzing whether the discovery violation was harmless, this Court reiterated the procedural prejudice analysis of Schopp: "[Ojnly if the appellate court can say beyond a reasonable doubt that the defense was not proeedurally prejudiced by the discovery violation can the error be considered harmless." Id. (quoting Pomeranz v. State, 703 So.2d 465, 468 (Fla.1997)); see also Irish v. State, 889 So.2d 979, 981 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004) (holding that a prior statement made by the defendant to the police that was withheld from the defense attorney undermined the defense's theory and therefore was harmful); Suda v. State, 838 So.2d 665, 666 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003) (concluding that the State's nondisclosure of its intent to call a witness prior to trial was harmful because it may have affected the defense's trial strategy); Portner v. State, 802 So.2d 442, 446 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001) (holding that the prosecutor's unannounced use of a prior deposition by the defendant was harmful).
On the other hand, and in contrast to the procedural prejudice analysis discussed above, this Court in Pomeranz v. State found no harmful error because we concluded that the potential change in trial tactics would not have "resulted in a more favorable outcome." 703 So.2d at 469.
It is apparent from the Fifth District's decision and this Court's opinions, including the opinion in Pomeranz, that there is a need to clarify our opinion in Schopp. Importantly, in Schopp, we approved the following language from Smith:
[T]he question of "prejudice" in a discovery context is not dependent upon the potential impact of the undisclosed evidence on the fact finder but rather upon its impact on the defendant's ability to prepare for trial[.]
Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1019 (quoting Smith, 500 So.2d at 126) (emphasis added). As this Court explained at great length in its opinions in Smith and Schopp, although related, procedural prejudice and substantive prejudice are not the same. See Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1019-1021; Smith, 500 So.2d at 126. An analysis of procedural prejudice does not ask how the undisclosed piece of evidence affected the case as it was actually presented to the jury. Rather, it considers how the defense might have responded had it known about the undisclosed piece of evidence and contemplates the possibility that the defense could have acted to counter the harmful effects of the discovery violation. Evans, 721 So.2d at 1210. By contrast, an analysis of substantive prejudice would ask whether it was possible that the error affected the jury's verdict. Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1021. While this standard itself is a high one for the State to overcome, it is of an entirely different quality than a procedural prejudice analysis. Id. at 1019.
We now clarify that Schopp's harmless error standard does not focus on whether the discovery violation would have made a difference in the verdict. Such an analysis would make the standard for pro cedural prejudice identical to substantive prejudice. Instead, we reaffirm our statements in Schopp that the inquiry is whether there is a reasonable possibility that the discovery violation "materially hindered the defendant's trial preparation or strategy." Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1020. Under Schopp, only if the appellate court can determine beyond a reasonable doubt that the defense was not procedurally prejudiced by the discovery violation can the error be considered harmless. Id. at 1021.
THIS CASE
This case stands in sharp contrast to the facts of Schopp, both as to the nature of the discovery violation and its impact on the defense. Here, the prosecution committed a discovery violation by its purposeful failure to inform the defense that the medical examiner's investigator had recanted his prior statement about the gun under the body. In the final portion of his closing statements, the prosecutor essentially ridiculed the attempt at a defense presented by defense counsel based on the investigator's now-changed testimony. The prosecutor asserted that the defense theory was based on "imaginary things" and called it "ridiculous," reminding the jury that the investigator testified there was no gun under the body. The jury found Scipio guilty of first-degree murder, and the court sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Of course, because of the State's misconduct, we are essentially left to speculate as to what strategy the defense would have adopted had it been made aware of the State investigator's recantation of testimony. If the defense attorney had known about the recantation, the defense could have sought a continuance since the medical investigator's testimony was critical to the defense's case, or the defense could have chosen not to call the witness and to avoid the surprise and humiliation that took place. It is even possible that the defense would have chosen to call and impeach the investigator and to present the jury with his prior inconsistent testimony, although that would appear to have been highly unlikely. What is certain is that the State's misconduct directly prevented the defense from considering these options and instead forced the defense into a humiliating scenario of having its witness turn against the defense. It is precisely because we are left to speculate that we conclude here that the State has not demonstrated harmless error under the procedural prejudice analysis of Schopp.
What we do know is that the State not only committed the discovery violation, but also completely turned the tables on the defense by this surprise "gotcha" tactic. This is precisely the kind of procedural harm of which we were fearful in Schopp, placing the defense in the impossible position of simply being unable to prepare for such a devastating event. Under these circumstances, we simply cannot conclude that the State carried its heavy burden under Schopp to demonstrate the procedural harmlessness of its misconduct. As the Fourth District concluded in Office Depot, Inc.:
While judicial economy may have been served by adhering to the decision made at trial to deal with the problem, justice is ultimately better served even if a new trial must be held to insure fairness to the litigants. The trial court's action here sends out a strong message to those who do not adhere to the code of fair play advanced by Binger. Serious violations of the pretrial disclosure rules may result in the exclusion of important evidence, and may, in extreme circumstances, lead to the grant of a new trial.
584 So.2d at 591. We reach a similar conclusion today.
Indeed, as emphasized by the Fifth District, the circumstances presented here constitute a classic case of "trial by ambush." See Binger, 401 So.2d at 1314. When the State's investigator provided the defense with testimony that he had not only observed a gun under the victim's body, but had also taken possession of the gun and turned it over to the police, he provided the defense with a substantial basis to dispute the State's theory of the case, i.e., that the defendant had shot an unarmed victim without provocation. As the Fifth District emphasized, when the State deliberately prevented the defense from learning of the changed testimony, the rug was completely pulled out from underneath the defense's theory of the case. See Scipio, 867 So.2d at 430. Not only was the only available defense evidence removed, in the process the defense was made to look utterly foolish, as later pointed out and emphasized by the State in its closing argument to the jury. Hence, not only did the State improperly ambush or pull a "gotcha" on the defense, it then used its improper ambush as a hammer to humiliate the defense before the jury.
CONCLUSION
Accordingly, we approve the district court's holding that the State committed a discovery violation, clarify our holding in Schopp, and disapprove of the district court's opinion to the extent that it conflicts with our analysis of harmless error under Schopp. We quash and remand for further proceedings consistent herewith.
It is so ordered.
PARIENTE, C.J., and LEWIS and QUINCE, JJ., concur.
CANTERO, J., dissents with an opinion, in which WELLS and BELL, JJ., concur.
. At the outset, it is important to note that this case concerns the most serious crime and the most severe penalty, short of death, provided for under Florida's criminal laws.
. In Evans, we also discussed and qualified our earlier holding in Bush v. State, 461 So.2d 936 (Fla.1984), finding no discovery violation by the State in a similar situation. We explained:
To the extent that our determination here may be interpreted as being inconsistent with our "changed testimony" statements in Bush, we clarify that our statements in Bush do not control in situations where the State provides the defendant with a witness's "statement" — as that term is defined in rule 3.220(b)(1)(B) — and thereafter fails to disclose to the defendant that the witness intends to change that statement....
Evans, 770 So.2d at 1182. In Bush, a state investigator stated in his deposition that a witness had not identified a photograph of the defendant in a photographic lineup, but at trial testified that a witness had identified the photograph during the lineup. 461 So.2d at 938. The investigator testified that the inconsistency in his testimony was explained by the fact that defense counsel had asked two different questions. Id. This Court found that under those circumstances the prosecution's failure to inform the defense of the change in the investigator's testimony did not constitute a discovery violation. Id.
Neither Evans nor Bush presents circumstances identical to those presented here. Whereas the witness who changed his testimony in Bush was a designated State witness and was subject to impeachment by the defense on the basis of inconsistent statements, the witness in the instant case was a State investigator but was called by the defense in the reasonable and good faith belief that the investigator would provide substantive evidence helpful to the defense. Furthermore, while the changed testimony in Bush may have resulted from differences in questioning by the defense rather than a mistake or clear change in testimony by the witness, the changed testimony in the instant case was directly contrary to the testimony given earlier, and occurred after "the state actively procured the defense witness's recantation of his earlier deposition testimony." Scipio, 867 So.2d at 430.
. See, e.g., Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 87, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963) (holding that the State must disclose material information within the State's possession or control that tends to negate the guilt of the defendant); Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150, 154, 92 S.Ct. 763, 31 L.Ed.2d 104 (1972) (concluding that where the prosecutor knowingly uses perjured testimony, or fails to correct what the prosecutor later learns is false testimony, the false evidence is material if there is any reasonable likelihood that the false testimony could have affected the judgment of the jury).
. Richardson v. State, 246 So.2d 771 (Fla.1971).
. In Schopp, this Court held that in applying the Smith standard of procedural prejudice, there could be instances where some discovery violations could be found harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1021. Indeed, we held that Schopp represented that rare instance of harmless error since, in essence, Schopp had "won" his case because his defense strategy was to admit commission of a lesser offense while denying guilt of the charged crime. Id. at 1022. The jury apparently accepted this defense in acquitting him of the charged crime but finding him guilty of the lesser offense:
Because it is clear in this case that the State's failure to include the officer on its original witness list could not have materially hindered the defense, the trial court's failure to adequately inquire into what, if any, corrective measures should have been taken was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. During discovery, defense counsel was given the police report, which was consistent with the officer's testimony at trial. The challenged testimony was cumulative to other testimony, including that of the defendant. And, even if the officer had been listed as a witness and the defense had deposed him, there would have been nothing in the officer's testimony that could have supported a strategy different from that taken — to admit that Schopp committed burglary but maintain that he was unarmed and did not know that he was stealing a firearm. Moreover, because Schopp effectively "won" his case, there is no reasonable possibility that a change in trial tactics could have benefited him.
Schopp, 653 So.2d at 1021-22.
. Viewing such conduct by the State, whose obligation is not only to prosecute but to see that justice is done, might make this Court wonder whether all its efforts to stress ethical and professional conduct are in vain. We are confident, however, that this is not typical of Florida's prosecutors.