Opinion ID: 1442597
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The court's finding of willful fabrication of evidence.

Text: The court's finding of willful fabrication is supported by substantial evidence. Based on chemical and microscopic examination of the two sets of diary notations, JRBI's forensic expert Albert Lyter testified that it was his opinion, to a reasonable scientific probability, that Young had written the entries in question with a different pen than the one used to make the original entries. Lyter further concluded that Young had added the entries during discovery soon before turning over the diaries to JRBI. Additionally the highlighter which Young had used to call JRBI's attention to the entries smeared only the words which Lyter found to have been added during discovery. The words which were part of the original entries were not smeared. Young testified in deposition that he generally made the entries in the diaries nearly contemporaneously with the reported events and he denied having added any entries during discovery. If true, this testimony would greatly increase the probative value of the diaries. Coupled with Young's deposition testimony, the late-added diary entries constitute fabrication of evidence. The court further had substantial evidence on which to conclude that the fabrication was willful. Given the rather strong evidence that the entries were belatedly added, Young's failures to recant his denials and to clarify his other patently misleading testimony regarding the timing of the entries in the face of the court's admonition to do so are strong indications of willfulness.