Opinion ID: 2976796
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Motions to Expand the Record

Text: Rule 5 of the Rules Governing Section 2254 cases, as it existed when Beuke filed his habeas petition, provided that “[t]he court on its own motion or upon request of the petitioner may order that further portions of the existing transcripts be furnished or that certain portions of the non-transcribed proceedings be transcribed and furnished.” The former version of Rule 7 similarly stated: “[T]he judge may direct that the record be expanded by the parties by the inclusion of additional materials relevant to the determination of the merits of the petition.” We have recognized that expansion of the record in habeas cases “is not mandatory . . . and is left to the discretion of the trial judge.” Ford v. Seabold, 841 F.2d 677, 691 (6th Cir. 1988). We review the district court’s denial of a motion to expand the record for abuse of discretion. Id. In his motions to expand the record, Beuke sought to introduce (1) nine documents referenced in the state court trial transcripts, (2) all prior statements that Michael Cahill and other prosecution witnesses made to the authorities, and (3) background information regarding Robert Craig. Beuke asserted that the prosecution failed to provide him with most of these documents prior to trial and that these documents were essential to his Brady claim. The district court denied both of Beuke’s motions to expand the record. The court’s order reviewed the procedural history of the case, noting that at the time the parties were compiling the record before the district court, the court explicitly directed Beuke’s counsel to “make a thorough review of the eight volume appendix . . . and advise [the state’s] counsel . . . of any documents not included in the appendix which [were] relevant to a claim in the federal habeas corpus petition[.]” Counsel for both parties thereafter stated that they had “reached agreement as to the documents [Beuke] sought to include in the appendix.” More than three months later, however, Beuke’s counsel filed these motions to expand the record. After reviewing this procedural history, the district court reasoned: [Beuke] has failed to make any showing that the [proffered] documents . . . are necessary to a full and fair consideration of his claims by this Court. [Beuke] had the opportunity to make the documents . . . part of the record at trial and on direct appeal No. 96-3050 Beuke v. Houk Page 24 but failed to do so. He has made no showing of cause for that failure, nor has he demonstrated that inclusion of the documents in the record before this Court would establish his right to relief in federal habeas corpus. . . . Most of the documents go to the alleged unreliability of Michael Cahill and to alleged inconsistencies between his prior statements or the statements of other persons and Cahill’s trial testimony. None of the alleged inconsistencies goes to a fact material to [Beuke’s] conviction. . . . Briefly summarized, the evidence of [Beuke’s] guilt is overwhelming. [The district court then summarized the wealth of physical evidence against Beuke.] We find that the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying Beuke’s motions to expand the record. Beuke’s counsel had adequate opportunities to include the proffered documents in the record; the district court even instructed him to “advise [the state’s] counsel . . . of any documents not included in the appendix which [were] relevant” to his claims. More importantly, Beuke did not demonstrate how these documents would further any of his constitutional claims. In his motions to expand the record, Beuke primarily argued that these documents would support his Brady claim. We have already concluded that these proffered documents do not satisfy Brady’s materiality requirement, and thus affirm the district court’s finding that these documents would not have furthered Beuke’s Brady claim. Consequently, the district court did not abuse its discretion by denying Beuke’s motions to expand the record.10