Opinion ID: 1173371
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Instruction on lost or destroyed evidence

Text: Prior to trial, the safety deposit box key which gave access to the money introduced at trial was disposed of by the evidence custodian. The defendant moved for a mistrial, which was denied, and then, relying on State v. Willits, 96 Ariz. 184, 393 P.2d 274 (1964), asked the court to instruct the jury that: If you find that the State of Arizona has failed to produce evidence from any source that is peculiarly within its power to provide and the contents, nature or quality of that evidence is crucial to the defense, you may presume that because the evidence was not produced, its results would have been unfavorable to the State of Arizona. The court refused the instruction, and the defendant claims this was error. The defendant does not claim there was any bad faith or connivance on the part of the state, and bad faith or connivance was not indicated by the evidence. In order for a Willits instruction to be appropriate, a defendant must show the evidence might have tended to exonerate or exculpate him. See e.g. State v. Perez, 141 Ariz. 459, 463, 687 P.2d 1214, 1218 (1984). Whether the necessary prejudice was shown is a question for the trial court which will not be reversed absent an abuse of discretion. Id. at 464, 687 P.2d at 1219. At trial, the defendant admitted the existence of the key and the money, and he admitted he gave the key to his employer. The police found the money but through an inadvertent error the key itself was discarded. We do not conceive of any exculpatory use the key could have been put to. Indeed, if anything, it would have been inculpatory. We do not think the trial court abused its discretion in not giving the instruction. We find no error. See also State v. Soloman, 125 Ariz. 18, 22, 607 P.2d 1, 5 (1980); State v. Watkins, 126 Ariz. 293, 301-02, 614 P.2d 835, 843-44 (1980).