Opinion ID: 507780
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Trooper Downes's Report

Text: 12 Versaint's defense at trial was simple: he was not the person from whom Trooper Downes purchased crack cocaine on the February 17 visit to the mobile home. At trial, Versaint sought to introduce Trooper Downes's police report as substantive evidence under Fed. R.Evid. 803(6), the business record exception to the hearsay rule. 6 In response to this proffer of evidence, the government argued that although the police report was a public record within the meaning of Fed.R.Evid. 803(8), it failed to qualify as an exception to the hearsay rule, because it did not fulfill the criteria of trustworthiness established by that rule. 7 Jt.App. at 516-17. The district court agreed with the government. The district court noted that Trooper Downes had written the report one month after he had conducted the undercover activities, and reasoned that since the investigation leading up to the arrests had been completed[,] [t]here was no[ ] ... pressure upon Detective Downes to record carefully, exactly what had occurred. Jt.App. at 527. The district court therefore permitted the report to be used as impeachment evidence, but did not admit it as substantive evidence. Id. at 527-528. 13 Versaint contends here that Trooper Downes' report is admissible under either Fed.R.Evid. 803(6) or Fed.R.Evid. 803(8). With respect to Fed.R.Evid. 803(8), he argues that Downes's delay in preparing the report is irrelevant since, under the rule, preparation of a report at or near the time of the event is not required. He also argues that the government failed to meet its burden under Fed.R.Evid. 803(8) of making an affirmative showing of untrustworthiness, since it did no more than point to the delay in the report's preparation. 14 The government argues that even if exclusion of the police report was error, it was harmless error because appellant was able to make full and effective use of the report during trial by impeaching Trooper Downes's testimony regarding the identity of the individual involved in the drug transactions. In support of this position, the government relies on the Supreme Court's statement that, [i]f, when all is said and done ... the error did not influence the jury, or had but very slight effect, the verdict and judgment should stand. Kotteakos v. United States, 328 U.S. 750, 764, 66 S.Ct. 1239, 1248, 90 L.Ed. 1557 (1946). 15 We review district court decisions to admit or exclude evidence under an abuse of discretion standard. See generally In re Japanese Electronic Products Antitrust Litigation, 723 F.2d 238, 260 (3d Cir.1983) rev'd on other grounds sub nom. Matsushita Electric Ind. Co. v. Zenith Radio, 475 U.S. 574, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). In reviewing a decision to admit or exclude evidence, this Court must determine whether the district court error affected a substantial right of the defendant. Fed.R.Evid. 103(a). 8 In deciding that an error is not harmless, we must, similarly, determine that it does not affect substantial rights of the defendant. Fed.R.Crim.P. 52(a). 16 We agree with the district court that the admissibility of the police report is appropriately considered under Fed.R.Evid. 803(8). United States v. DePeri, 778 F.2d 963, 976 (3d Cir.1985) (FBI reports fall under the public record exception to the hearsay rule and are admissible against the government), cert. denied sub nom. Pecic v. United States, 475 U.S. 1110, 106 S.Ct. 1518, 89 L.Ed.2d 916 (1986). 9 Under this rule, this Court must decide whether the district court abused its discretion by [g]iving undue weight to trustworthiness factors of slight relevance while disregarding factors more significant. In re Japanese Electronic Products Antitrust Litigation, 723 F.2d at 266 (3d Cir.1983). We are not persuaded by the rationale underlying the district court's finding that the police report was untrustworthy. Fed.R.Evid. 803(8) does not require that a report be made at or near the time of the event it is describing. It does require that the party objecting to inclusion make an affirmative showing that the proffered evidence is untrustworthy. Bradford Trust Co. v. Merrill Lynch, 805 F.2d 49, 54 (2d Cir.1986) (quoting Kehm v. Proctor & Gamble Mfg. Co., 724 F.2d 613, 618 (8th Cir.1983)). The government made no showing that Downes had any reason not to be accurate in setting out what he knew in his police report. On the contrary, Downes's testimony that he volunteered to complete the report when he discovered that it had not been written by those responsible for it, even though the investigation had already been completed, implies that he wanted to ensure an accurate record of his undercover activities. Jt.App. at 219-220. Fed.R.Evid. 803(8) is premised on the assumption that public officials perform their duties properly without motive or interest other than to submit accurate and fair reports. Bradford Trust Co., 805 F.2d at 54. The government does not provide any evidence that Downes's actions deviated from this standard of public service. In the absence of a showing of untrustworthiness, we find that the district court abused its discretion in excluding the report's admission as substantive evidence. 17 We also find unconvincing the government's contention that the district court's error was harmless. Versaint's defense was that he was not the individual from whom Trooper Downes purchased the crack cocaine. In this case, in which the issue of identification is critical, it cannot be said that the exclusion of the police report naming a co-defendant in connection with the activities with which Versaint was charged had but very slight effect. Kotteakos, 328 U.S. at 764, 66 S.Ct. at 1248. Accord United States v. Smith, 521 F.2d 957, 969-971 (D.C.Cir.1975). We find that the district court's ruling prevented the defense from introducing significant relevant evidence to support Versaint's claim of misidentification. 10 18 The government attempts to minimize the error by stating that Trooper Downes' testimony was corroborated by Deal. But, as we recounted above, Deal's testimony was contradicted by her prior statements. The record reveals that Deal, at least initially, expressed uncertainty regarding the identity of the person involved in the drug transactions. We find that Deal's confusion as to the seller's identity heightens, rather than diminishes, the importance of allowing the defense to admit the police report as substantive evidence. Both the critical nature of the contents of the report and Deal's equivocation regarding Versaint's identification, lead us to conclude that the district court's failure to admit the police report impaired Versaint's substantial right of introducing significant relevant evidence in his defense. Under these circumstances, we cannot say the error was harmless. Government of the Virgin Islands v. Toto, 529 F.2d 278, 284 (3d Cir.1976). We hold that the district court abused its discretion in refusing to admit Trooper Downes's report under Fed.R.Evid. 803(8). 11