Opinion ID: 232000
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Accessibility of Records.

Text: 5 Appellant asserts that the trial court erred in denying the defense access to certain books, papers and documents in the possession of the Government. The following facts are pertinent to consideration of this contention. 6 Long prior to the filing of the criminal indictment in April of 1951, appellant knew that the Government was investigating his income tax liability. The Bureau of Internal Revenue issued 90-day letters in 1949 and prior to February of 1950 a federal income tax lien in excess of $800,000 was placed against his property. Numerous conferences were had subsequent to January 11, 1950, with various attorneys and accountants representing appellant in tax matters. Power of attorney was executed by appellant to counsel of record in the present litigation as early as March 10, 1950, for the purpose of representing appellant in tax conferences with the government. Other attorneys and accountants have represented appellant with the Treasury Department since early in 1949, powers of attorney filed with that department disclose. 7 During the course of its investigation, the Government acquired voluntarily from third parties certain books, papers and documents pertaining to businesses in which it was alleged that appellant had an interest. 4 Being advised, in the course of conferences, that an audit of appellant's affairs was being conducted, the Government gave appellant's accountants complete access to the aforementioned records in its possession. An affidavit executed by one of these accountants stated that the material consisted of a 'mass of original documents' and that 'this material filled a packing box of approximately fifty cubic feet in volume plus several other smaller cartons.' Although the accountants surveyed the material at this time, spring of 1950, no complete analysis of the records is said to have taken place since appellant did not make sufficient funds available for the task. At another time prior to the filing of the indictment in this case, accountant Lawrence Semenza sought permission to examine these records in connection with work he was doing for appellant in computing his civil tax liability subsequent to issue of the 90-day letters. Semenza was not only allowed to examine the business records in the possession of the Government, but was allowed to select any records he desired for use in his own office. 8 After the filing of the indictment, no request was made by appellant's counsel for examination of the records not previously selected by Semenza until October 22, 1951, more than six months after the filing of the indictment. The Government agreed to allow inspection of these records only on the compliance with certain conditions: a sufficient showing of appellant's interest and consent of the third parties who had originally given the records to the Government. 9 Appellant first sought a court order on November 14, 1951, when a motion was made to inspect and take copies pursuant to the provisions of Rule 16, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. 5 In conjunction with this motion, appellant also sought a continuance of his trial until April 1, 1952, to enable sufficient time for examination of the requested records. In this regard it should be noted that trial was set for November 28, 1951. The motions to inspect and take copies and for a continuance were denied by the trial court after a hearing. 10 The District Court properly exercised its discretion in denying these motions. As has been observed, at no time prior to the filing of the indictment was the freedom of appellant to examine the records in the possession of the Government in any way limited. At least three accountants representing appellant did in fact survey the material in question and one accountant was allowed to take all records he thought necessary for the computation of appellant's tax liability. 6 Although it is true that accounting analysis of these records was at that time only for the purpose of settling appellant's civil tax liability, based on net income alleged by the Government in its 90-day letters to be $136,718.94 for 1944 and $265,661.78 for 1945, analysis of the materials for that purpose would of necessity cover the same ground and consider the same sources of income as would analysis for the purpose of the present criminal proceedings where the Government alleged lesser sums as income: $67,469.21 for 1944 and $75,865.19 for 1945. The opportunity afforded appellant to examine the records in question was sufficient to enable him to prepare an adequate defense. Furthermore, there is no adequate explanation as to why appellant waited more than six months after filing of the indictment to request permission of the Government to examine the records and first made his motion under Rule 16 two weeks before the trial was due to commence. The affidavits supporting the motion to produce and take copies conceded that accounting analysis of the records would probably take two or three months. One of appellant's counsel averred in his supporting affidavit that he first learned in October of 1951 that the Government had possession of various books and records of some of the business in which appellant had an interest. 7 But the facts to which we have already referred show that other representatives of appellant knew of the existence of the records, and at the very least had surveyed the material, many months earlier. The motion to produce and take copies therefore was not timely. To refuse to continue the trial until April 1, 1952, as requested, was not an abuse of the court's discretion in view of appellant's tardiness in bringing his motion. 11 Subsequent to denial of his motion to inspect and take copies under Rule 16, appellant on November 23, 1951 filed a motion for production and inspection under the provisions of Rule 17(c), Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. 8 A subpoena duces tecum was served on Government counsel, which they thereupon moved to quash. After a hearing on the day before the trial was to commence, the trial court granted the Government's motion and denied appellant's motion. Because of the circumstances already discussed, the court did not err in determining that compliance with the subpoena would be unreasonable and oppressive. 12 The case of Bowman Dairy Co. v. United States, 1951, 341 U.S. 214, 71 S.Ct. 675, 95 L.Ed. 879, is not authority for the proposition that the trial court's denial of the motion under Rule 17(c) was an abuse of discretion, as appellant has argued. The Supreme Court in that case held that the trial court had the power to order the Government to produce certain documents. It did not hold that a refusal to grant the motion to produce would have been an abuse of discretion. 13 We think it important to stress, in considering whether denial of appellant's motions should be upheld, that the purpose of motions of this type is to expedite the proceedings and enable a defendant adequately to prepare his defense. No specific showing has been made by appellant as to how the denial of these sweeping motions calling generally for production of all records in the possession of the Government pertaining to businesses in which it was alleged appellant had an interest prejudiced the defense during the course of the trial. The court stated that appellant's counsel would be given ample opportunity during the trial to examine any document offered by the Government. Only once during the trial did appellant seek the production of particular papers, certain daily poker sheets from the 186 Club, and the request was granted. 14 We have referred to certain books, papers and documents given voluntarily by third parties to the Government, which were selected by appellant's accountant Semenza prior to the indictment and taken by him to his own office for use in computing appellant's tax liability. These records were given to Semenza upon the condition that he return them to the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Semenza later gave the records to Friedman, another accountant employed by appellant, who in turn gave the records to appellant's counsel. When subpoenaed before the grand jury, and later during the trial, Semenza said he was unable to produce the records because appellant's counsel would not return them to him. The District Court then ordered appellant's counsel to deliver these records to the clerk of the court, the records to be available to both Government and defense counsel during the trial. Appellant thereupon made a motion under Rule 41(e), Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, 9 for return of these records and suppression of their use as evidence. The motion was denied. 15 Appellant contents that the trial court's order violated the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States. We do not agree. The records given to Semenza were obtained by the Government from third parties rather than from appellant. Use of such records by the prosecution would not violate appellant's constitutional rights, even were it true that the third parties originally obtained the records from appellant illegally. 10 See Lustig v. United States, 1949, 338 U.S. 74, 78-79, 69 S.Ct. 1372, 93 L.Ed. 1819; Feldman v. United States, 1944, 322 U.S. 487, 492, 64 S.Ct. 1082, 88 L.Ed. 1408; Symons v. United States, 9 Cir., 1949,178 F.2d 615. Since the Government's possession was such as properly to entitle it to use of the records as evidence, the condition that the records be returned was lawfully imposed when Semenza's request to select certain records for accounting analysis was granted. Such a promise to return the records was enforceable. Cf. Greenbaum v. United States, 6 Cir., 1922, 280 F. 474, 478. Appellant's counsel took the records subject to the imposed condition and therefore could not retain them by asserting so-called constitutional rights of appellant. As the Supreme Court said in Hale v. Henkel, 1906, 201 U.S. 43, at pages 69-70, 26 S.Ct. 370, at page 377, 50 L.Ed. 652: 'The right of a person under the 5th Amendment to refuse to incriminate himself is purely a personal privilege of the witness. It was never intended to permit him to plead the fact that some third person might be incriminated by his testimony, even though he were the agent of such person.' (Emphasis added.) Nor was appellant in a position to assert constitutional rights, because appellant never acquired personal possession of the records after they were given by the Government to Semenza. 'A party is privileged from producing the evidence, but not from its production.' Johnson v. United States, 1913, 228 U.S. 457, 458, 33 S.Ct. 572, 57 L.Ed. 919. 16 The case of People v. Minkowitz, 1917, 220 N.Y. 399, 115 N.E. 987, referred to for the first time by appellant during oral argument is distinguishable. That case involved papers originally in the possession of the defendant which had been given to his attorney in the course of an attorney-client relationship. The court held that under those circumstances the possession of the attorney was the possession of the defendant, and the attorney therefore could not be compelled to produce the papers. In the present case, however, the records were not acquired by appellant's counsel from appellant in the course of an attorney-client relationship, but were instead received from the Government subject to the condition that they be returned. 17