Opinion ID: 1182062
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 10

Heading: Defense Counsel's Failure to Seek a Remedy for Discarding the Envelope

Text: (18a) Defendant argues his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to seek suppression or another appropriate judicial remedy for the actions of police in discarding the envelope found on defendant's person when he was booked. Although two deputies testified defendant was in possession of an envelope containing $208.23 at the time he was booked, the envelope was apparently discarded by the booking officer pursuant to standard procedures that provided for the retention of the cash, but not its paper container. (19) In People v. Douglas (1990) 50 Cal.3d 468, 512-513 [268 Cal. Rptr. 126, 788 P.2d 640], we held the People's duty to preserve evidence, whether grounded in the state or federal Constitution, was to be assessed following Proposition 8 in accordance with the standard articulated in California v. Trombetta (1984) 467 U.S. 479, 488-489 [81 L.Ed.2d 413, 421-422, 104 S.Ct. 2528]: `Whatever duty the Constitution imposes on the States to preserve evidence, that duty must be limited to evidence that might be expected to play a role in the suspect's defense. To meet this standard of constitutional materiality [citations], evidence must possess both an exculpatory value that was apparent before the evidence was destroyed, and be of such a nature that the defendant would be unable to obtain comparable evidence by other reasonably available means....' ( Douglas, supra, at p. 512, italics added.) (18b) The lost envelope was of dubious exculpatory value. Although defendant asserts on appeal the production of the envelope might have shown it was not the type of envelope carried by the victim (windowed with writing on the outside showing the amount of money enclosed), at trial he testified there was no envelope. But assuming the envelope did have some exculpatory value, defendant failed to establish that value was apparent before the evidence was destroyed. The record reveals without contradiction that the envelope was discarded pursuant to standard police procedure; there is no evidence suggesting officers knew or should have known at the time of its disposal that the manner in which defendant carried money on his person would be in issue or of value to the defense.