Opinion ID: 2007705
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Speedy Trial Delay in Prosecution

Text: Patterson claims she was denied speedy trial and due process of law because she was arrested and tried twenty years after Rita's death. The Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial does not apply here, as the delay did not occur after arrest or indictment. U.S. v. Marion (1971), 404 U.S. 307, 92 S.Ct. 455, 30 L.Ed.2d 468. Generally, statutes of limitations operate as the primary guarantee that stale criminal charges will not be pursued. In Indiana, a prosecution for murder may be commenced at any time. Ind. Code § 35-41-4-2(a). Nonetheless, even where a charge is brought within the statute of limitations, the particulars of the case may reveal that undue delay and resultant prejudice constitute a violation of due process. However, the mere passage of time is not presumed to be prejudicial, and it is the defendant's burden to prove that undue prejudice arises from the delay. Scott v. State (1984), Ind. App., 461 N.E.2d 141. Events from trial may shed light upon the claim of prejudice. U.S. v. Marion, 404 U.S. 307, 92 S.Ct. 455. Patterson claimed in her motion to dismiss that the passage of time had prejudiced her because the police records of her polygraph examination were missing. However, there is no dispute between the parties as to the results of the test, which were not admissible anyway. She claims Patty gave a statement to authorities in 1963 which is now missing. The evidence most favorable to the judgment below was that no such statement was taken. Patterson argues she was prejudiced because the doll which she claims the girls fought over is missing, as is Rita's clothing, and because the house itself has been torn down. We are unconvinced that the doll would have been of much import. As the State points out, any damage apparent on the doll would not necessarily prove Patterson's claim. There was little dispute about how Rita was attired when she died, to the extent it was important at all. And, several witnesses for each party testified about the layout of the house and the structure of the stairs, including the fact they were dangerous and dimly lit. Patterson argues the defense was prejudiced because of the death of friends, family, neighbors, and the county coroner. Appellant has not sustained her burden of demonstrating how the absence of these witnesses harmed her. None were alleged to have been eye witnesses to the death. For first-hand accounts, the testimony of the State's chief witness, Patty, was completely contradicted by another sister, Debra. Furthermore, another defense witness testified that she was talking with Patterson on the phone just before Rita supposedly fell. Virgil was on hand to bolster the theory that he inflicted some of Rita's injuries. Moreover, several witnesses joined in the substantial effort which the defense made to impeach Patty as a witness. Despite the death of the coroner, it was undisputed that his opinion was that Rita's death was an accident. Patterson's claim that memories have become vague was contradicted by the specific nature of most testimony, including her own. Moreover, Patterson has not shown that the delay in her prosecution was a deliberate attempt by the State to gain unfair advantage. In 1963, the State's investigation of Rita's death was halted in light of the coroner's ruling and the favorable polygraph results. It was only when Patty pursued the matter that her step-mother was prosecuted. The interest of society in finding the truth about the death of a fellow human being is considerable. Patterson was not denied due process when she was prosecuted twenty years after the commission of the murder.