Opinion ID: 1940588
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Failure To File Motion To Suppress Evidence Based On Its Partial Disappearance

Text: Luna next argues he was denied effective assistance of counsel when Roubideaux failed to file a motion to suppress the microscopic glass particles on the grounds that some of the particles were missing after the State examined them. According to FBI exhibits, glass particles were found on Luna's shirt, t-shirt, jeans, and a pair of gloves seized from Luna's van. Luna's expert testified that when he received these items the jeans had one less particle than reported in the FBI exhibit, and that the gloves and t-shirt contained no particles. Luna argues he had a due process right to have evidence derived from the seized particles withheld because the State lost or suppressed the missing particles. If he had no such right he obviously was not prejudiced by his counsel's inaction, and whether such a right existed thus becomes a pivotal issue. In State v. Clabaugh, 346 N.W.2d 448 (S.D.1984), we stated suppression by the prosecution of evidence favorable to an accused violates due process where the evidence has been requested by the accused and is material either to guilt or punishment, irrespective of the good faith or bad faith of the prosecutor. To fall within the rule, the defendant must make a timely request for the evidence, the evidence must be in the state's possession, and the evidence must be material and exculpatory. If the evidence was destroyed, making it impossible to show its exculpatory nature, the inability to show that the evidence was exculpatory does not alone defeat a defendant's claim.... [I]mplicit in the requirement of materiality is a concern that the suppressed evidence might have affected the outcome of the trial. 346 N.W.2d at 450-51 (citations omitted). An initial flaw in Luna's argument is his inability to establish that State suppressed the missing particle. As we stated in Luna I, 378 N.W.2d at 235: The record discloses a considerable debate between the FBI agent and the defense expert on the proper means of preserving the [glass particle] evidence in question. It appears as equally possible that the defense expert may have lost the charts by his method of handling as that the FBI Lab did not properly preserve them. There is certainly no evidence that anyone else had any responsibility for any loss. Furthermore, even if we assume the State suppressed the particles, we cannot conclude that the alleged destruction of the evidence violated Luna's due process rights. First, enough of the evidence was present for Luna's expert to reach conclusions regarding its origin and to testify that the remaining fragments could not have come from the scene of the crime. Second, because the glass particles were the only direct evidence linking Luna to the crime, the jury very likely found that the glass fragment evidence was inculpatory. It is extremely doubtful therefore that the missing fragments should be considered exculpatory or that their availability to the defense would have had any effect on the outcome of the trial. The Clabaugh elements therefore have not been established.