Opinion ID: 3028935
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Ex Parte Practice

Text: Wecht first asserts that the District Court Judge improperly engaged in ex parte communications with the government about the Orsini records and otherwise inappropriately handled motions regarding the records. It is important at the outset to clarify what these “communications” are. Wecht has not alleged that the Judge met with government attorneys or otherwise discussed matters in the case with them outside the presence of defense counsel. Instead, Wecht complains that the government filed an ex parte motion and that the District Court issued an ex parte ruling. Wecht is correct that, in general, ex parte proceedings are disfavored. However, there are a number of circumstances where ex parte applications to the court are appropriate, and Wecht appears to overlook our previous statements endorsing the in camera inspection of materials that may need to be turned over to the defense. We have, for example, stated that “[t]he submission of discovery materials to the court for an in camera inspection and decision as to which materials are discoverable is commonly used when the Government’s need for preserving confidentiality over the materials must be balanced with the defendant’s constitutional right to evidence material to his defense.” Bocra, 623 F.2d at 285. And in United States v. Dent, 149 F.3d 180, 191 (3d Cir. 1998), we held that “[t]he district court’s in camera inspection of [a police officer’s] personnel files fully satisfied Brady’s due process requirements.” To be fair, much of Wecht’s frustration is directed at the process the District Court Judge followed in evaluating and ruling on the Orsini records. Although the government filed its application for permission to submit an “underlying motion” under seal, Wecht was provided with no information about the content of the motion. When defense counsel asked at a status conference the next day how he was to respond to the motion, the Court replied 31 “[y]ou are not.” JA 262. Later that day, the Court issued an ex parte ruling that appears on the docket as only an order on the government’s sealed motion without indicating the disposition. Certainly, the District Court could have provided Wecht with more information about the process without revealing the contents of the documents. But we fail to see any evidence of bias in the Court’s failure to provide that information. Two other facts undercut any suggestion of bias in the Judge’s treatment of the Orsini records. First, the Judge rejected the government’s argument that it need not turn over the Orsini records to the defense. Wecht argues that because the records were relevant to his April 7 suppression motion, the Judge should have ordered their immediate disclosure instead of allowing the government to move for a protective order. Perhaps the government should have applied for the protective order more quickly or the Judge should have required it,23 but defense counsel received the documents in plenty of time to supplement the suppression motion or use the records at the June 8 suppression hearing.24 Defense counsel would not have been able to use the information in their initial April 7 motion even had the Judge ordered immediate disclosure. Second, the Judge discussed at some length the ex parte and sealing process with the parties at the May 12 status conference. The Judge listened to defense counsel’s complaint that the “cursory descriptions” of motions to seal on the docket provided insufficient information. The Judge encouraged the government and the 23 Wecht also faults the Judge for inviting the government to apply for a protective order and for allegedly preordaining that it would be granted. The government’s sealed motion, however, requests that the Judge issue a protective order if the government was required to disclose the records. The Judge’s April 7 ruling orders the government to consult with defense counsel—presumably in hopes of agreement—and then formally apply for a protective order. 24 Whether the defense was precluded from using the documents at the suppression hearing is a separate issue that we discuss below. 32 defense to confer and come up with an agreed upon protocol for sealing motions going forward. Later in the hearing, the Judge listened to the arguments of the media and expressed his willingness to improve the process. On May 17, the Judge issued an order establishing a new protocol that accounted for all of the parties’ concerns. For these reasons, we discern no bias in how the Judge handled the government’s motion regarding the Orsini records.25