Opinion ID: 1207145
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: The Failure to Furnish Copies of the Indictments and Warrants

Text: Although the appellant alleges at one point in his brief that he has never received copies of these documents, it is clear from the record and from other assertions of the appellant that he was provided with copies of both the indictments and arrest warrants in August 1979. The appellant asserts that the eight-month delay in furnishing him these documents constitutes reversible error. W.Va.Code § 62-3-1 [1977], which was in effect at the time, provides, in pertinent part: A copy of the indictment and of the list of jurors selected or summoned for his trial ... shall be furnished him, upon his request, at any time before the jury is impaneled.  (Emphasis added) The record reveals that the appellant did not request copies of the indictments until August 1979 and that production of those documents was promptly ordered and accomplished. Our research reveals no similar statute or constitutional provision requiring that a defendant in a criminal case be provided with copies of the warrants for his arrest. However, in view of the fact that the appellant's request for copies of the arrest warrants was honored some eight months before his trial, and since no discrepancy or irregularity in the warrants is alleged, we find no error in the failure to provide the appellant copies of the warrants before August 1979.