Opinion ID: 653713
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Admission of Copies of Documents

Text: 26 Childs argues that the district court improperly admitted copies of a number of documents into evidence. 4 Specifically, Childs challenges the admission of the government's exhibits 19, 20, 23, 24 and 32, which were admitted as business records of the auto dealerships. These exhibits include several types of documentation kept by the auto dealers in connection with the stolen cars, such as certificates of title, purchase orders and odometer statements. 27 Childs objected to the admission of all of these exhibits, but he did not object to the admission of exhibits 23, 24 and 32 on the ground that they were copies. A defendant who objects to the admission of evidence must state the specific grounds for his objection. Fed.R.Evid. 103(a)(1). Since Childs did not object to the admission of exhibits 23, 24 and 32 on the basis that they were copies, we review the admission of these exhibits for plain error. See United States v. Gomez-Norena, 908 F.2d 497, 500 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 498 U.S. 947, 111 S.Ct. 363, 112 L.Ed.2d 326 (1990). 28 While it is somewhat difficult to tell from the record the basis of Childs' objection at trial to the admission of exhibits 19 and 20, Childs' objection appears to have been based in part on the fact that they were copies. Therefore, we review the district court's decision to admit these copies for abuse of discretion. See United States v. Skillman, 922 F.2d 1370, 1375 (9th Cir.1990). 29 Childs argues that exhibits 19, 20, 23, 24, and 32 were uncertified copies of documents authorized to be recorded and supposedly recorded or filed with the State of Arizona and the State of Minnesota. Therefore, Childs asserts that Rule 1005 of the Federal Rules of Evidence applies to the admission of these documents and that the government did not comply with Rule 1005. Rule 1005 provides in part: 30 The contents of an official record, or of a document authorized to be recorded or filed and actually recorded or filed ... if otherwise admissible, may be proved by copy, certified as correct in accordance with rule 902 or testified to be correct by a witness who has compared it with the original. 31 Rule 1005 is designed to insure the reliability of public records while making it easier to prove their content. Public records receive somewhat different treatment from other records under the rules of evidence because [r]emoving [public records] from their usual place of keeping would be attended by serious inconvenience to the public and to the custodian. Fed.R.Evid. 1005 advisory committee's note. 32 If the proponent is not attempting to establish the content of the public record as such, but rather is trying to prove the content of the original document regardless of whether or not it is a public record, the rationale behind Rule 1005 does not apply. In that situation it is more appropriate to admit a copy of that document under Rule 1003, the general provision addressing the admission of duplicates, rather than under Rule 1005. 5 David W. Louisell & Christopher B. Mueller, Federal Evidence Sec. 593, at 530-531 (1981). 33 This reasoning is particularly applicable if the copy was made from an outsider's files, not from the public record. While the term 'record' should be read to embrace every kind of official document ..., the reasons underlying Rule 1005 suggest that the provision ought not to extend to a copy of such material made from an original in the hands of an outsider, and that any such copy should be received, if at all, only under Rule 1003. Id. at 532. 5 34 If the exhibits in question were introduced to prove the content of public records as such, the government would have been required to comply with Rule 1005. However, the prosecutor did not admit these exhibits to prove the content of public records. Rather, these exhibits were admitted to prove that the cars stolen from the auto dealerships were the same cars Childs possessed in Canada. The exhibits are photocopies made from documents in the auto dealerships' files and were admitted to prove the content of those files. Accordingly, we review the admission of these exhibits for compliance with Rule 1003. 35 Rule 1003 of the Federal Rules of Evidence provides that [a] duplicate is admissible to the same extent as an original unless (1) a genuine question is raised as to the authenticity of the original or (2) in the circumstances it would be unfair to admit the duplicate in lieu of the original. 36 Childs asserts that it was unfair to admit these duplicates in lieu of the originals because the duplicates were obtained from law enforcement files. He asserts that because the duplicates were obtained from law enforcement, the opportunity for mischief existed and the admission of these exhibits should be given higher scrutiny. Since there is nothing in the record suggesting that these exhibits were altered by law enforcement personnel, the district court did not err by admitting these exhibits. See Skillman, 922 F.2d at 1375; see also United States v. Morgan, 555 F.2d 238, 243 (9th Cir.1977). 37 Childs also objects to the admission of exhibits 2 through 8, arguing that they were not properly authenticated. A district court's decision regarding the authenticity of evidence is reviewed for abuse of discretion. United States v. Chu Kong Yin, 935 F.2d 990, 994 (9th Cir.1991). Exhibits 2 through 8 were documents filed with the Alberta DMV. Rule 902(3) of the Federal Rules of Evidence provides for the self-authentication of foreign public documents. Childs correctly contends that the requirements of Rule 902(3) were not met with regards to exhibits 2 through 8. However, complying with Rule 902 is not the only means of authenticating a document. Under the Federal Rules of Evidence, documents may provide their own authentication or the necessary foundation may be established by extrinsic evidence. Chu Kong Yin, 935 F.2d at 994. 38 Under Rule 901(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Evidence, a document can be authenticated by the testimony of a witness with knowledge. Marie Vernon, a supervisor at the Alberta DMV, testified concerning exhibits 2 through 8 as the custodian of those records. In response to Childs' argument at trial that exhibits 2 through 8 did not meet the requirements for being self-authenticating, the district court recognized that Ms. Vernon's testimony presented an alternative means for authenticating those exhibits. The district court did not abuse its discretion in relying on Ms. Vernon's testimony to authenticate exhibits 2 through 8. See United States v. Blackwood, 878 F.2d 1200, 1202 (9th Cir.1989) (per curiam).