Opinion ID: 1257787
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Defense Was Meaningfully Impaired

Text: Through a proffer by counsel, Petitioner argued that his ability to establish an alibi with reference to some of the offenses has been hampered by the fading of memories, including his own. He further suggests that the destruction of medical and legal records has affected his ability to successfully defend against the charges at issue. These vague, conclusory allegations that Petitioner raised below do not suffice to meet the burden of actual substantial prejudice that we adopt today. To demonstrate that preindictment delay violates the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Article III, Section 10 of the West Virginia Constitution, a defendant must introduce substantial evidence of actual prejudice which proves he was meaningfully impaired in his ability to defend against the state's charges to such an extent that the disposition of the criminal proceeding was or will be likely affected. Discussing what is required to meet the burden of showing actual substantial prejudice, the South Carolina Supreme Court elucidated recently that the defendant must identify the evidence and expected content of the evidence with specificity, as well as show that he made serious efforts to obtain the evidence and that it was not available from other source[s]. State v. Lee, 375 S.C. 394, 653 S.E.2d 259, 261 (2007). In Lee, the defendant was charged with sexually abusing his two stepdaughters twelve years earlier. Because the alleged victims had been removed by the Department of Social Services after the initial reports of abuse but then returned to the home within a matter of several months, the defendant argued that evidence of the state agency's investigation was critical to his defense. Lee, at 261. In concluding that the defendant had established actual substantial prejudice from the preindictment delay, the appellate court found the following facts determinative: Lee had no record of the previous DSS investigation into the alleged abuse. He could not gain access to evidence concerning the Department of Juvenile Justice investigating officer or records from the family court proceedings. Because Lee never had access to these records, it was admittedly difficult for him to accurately identify specific pieces of evidence that would have exonerated him. Nonetheless, the absence of any contemporaneous evidence prejudiced Lee's ability to defend himself, as he had no ability to cross-examine the State's witnesses nor obtain items of exculpatory evidence. The missing evidence, although possibly damaging, on balance would have likely benefited [sic] Lee because it would have revealed the State's justification for placing the stepchildren back in the home with Lee and revealed why the State did not prosecute him in 1988 or 1989. Id. at 261 (emphasis in original). While Petitioner argued that the Lee case is on all fours with his case, that remains to be seen as he has yet to offer anything but conclusory allegations regarding the prejudice that he has suffered due to the delay involved in this case.