Opinion ID: 776954
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Patrick's false allegation about Benn

Text: 59 There is one specific lie of Patrick's that, standing alone, would be sufficient to constitute a Brady violation. The prosecution failed to disclose that Patrick approached the police a week before trial claiming that he had a videotape showing that Benn was involved in a killing that was part of a notorious unsolved murder case (the Green River murders) unrelated to the Dethlefsen-Nelson killings. The prosecution also failed to disclose that Patrick was given $150 to produce the tape, that he never did so, and that the detectives concluded that he was lying about the tape's existence and about Benn's involvement in the other murders. This evidence could have been used to show that Patrick was willing to lie about Benn and even to accuse him falsely of murder, if doing so would result in even a minimal benefit to him. In Bernal-Obeso, 989 F.2d at 336, we described the difference between general evidence of untrustworthiness and specific evidence that a witness has lied as follows: All the other evidence used by the defense to punch holes in [the informant's] credibility amounted only to circumstantial reasons why[the informant] might alter the truth to continue to feather his own nest. A lie would be direct proof of this concern, eliminating the need for inferences. 60 The evidence regarding the non-existent videotape would have seriously impeached Patrick in a way that the evidence presented at trial could not, and even that the evidence of other lies could not. It provided direct proof that Patrick was willing to lie specifically about Benn's involvement in a murder and to accuse him falsely of a capital offense. Patrick, when confronted with his lies at the state habeas evidentiary hearing, confessed that I would lie — I would always lie about me. I would always do that. I was a liar. The jury, however, never heard that Patrick had lied about anything. The evidence regarding Patrick's tale of the videotape was direct proof of his lack of credibility, and the failure to disclose his fabrication was prejudicial.