Opinion ID: 462493
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Late Production of Change Sheets

Text: 172 During the trial, but after Cobb and Pistone had testified, the government found in its files two change sheets applicable to the Snug's 302. One is irrelevant; the other made a change in the account of Balistrieri's remarks. We recounted the content in the preceding subsection. DiSalvo contends that the late production of this change sheet denied him his right to confront Cobb and Pistone with it. He argues simply that cross-examination of Cobb and Pistone with the change sheet would have affected the jury's determination of their credibility, on which the government's case rested. 173 The trial judge has considerable discretion to place restrictions on the scope of cross-examination once the right to confront witnesses has been substantially exercised. United States ex rel. Scarpelli v. George, 687 F.2d 1012, 1014 (7th Cir.1982), cert. denied, 459 U.S. 1171, 103 S.Ct. 817, 74 L.Ed.2d 1015 (1983). In this case the right to confront Cobb and Pistone had been substantially exercised; they were vigorously cross-examined by various defense counsel. Cobb in particular was cross-examined on the Peppercorn change sheet. We think that the marginal value of further cross-examination on the Snug's change sheet would have been so slight that the trial judge did not abuse his discretion in refusing to recall Cobb and Pistone. 174 DiSalvo also suggests that the late production of the Snug's change sheet violated his rights under Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963). Assuming that the change sheet was exculpatory, we hold that its late production was not reversible error. The relevant test, we think, is a variant of the test of materiality set forth in United States v. Bagley, --- U.S. ----, 105 S.Ct. 3375, 81 L.Ed.2d 481 (1985). 36 The late production of exculpatory evidence during trial is reversible error only if there is a reasonable probability that, had the evidence been timely disclosed to the defense, the result of the trial would have been different. There is no such reasonable probability in this case. We noted above that the change sheet would have had only slight, if any, additional value in the cross-examination of Cobb and Pistone. Furthermore, the defense was able to use the change sheet as additional support for the argument that the references to Sam Librizzi had been fabricated by the FBI. 175