Opinion ID: 1060156
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Failure of Commonwealth to disclose certain statements

Text: At the suppression hearing, the arresting officer was permitted, without objection, to refresh her memory by examining an investigation memorandum prepared following the arrest. During cross-examination, it was determined that the officer prepared this memorandum using handwritten notes taken at the time of Clagett's arrest. Clagett then requested that these notes be produced for his examination. At the request of the trial court, the officer retrieved her notes which were examined by the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth represented to the trial court that no statements made by Clagett or other potentially exculpatory evidence were contained within the notes and, on that basis, the trial court denied Clagett's request to review the notes. Clagett also sought disclosure of statements made by Holsinger. The Commonwealth represented that her statements were wholly inculpatory and did not offer any exculpatory benefit to Clagett. The trial court denied Clagett's request. Holsinger did not testify at Clagett's trial. In neither instance did the trial court review the material, nor did Clagett request that the trial court undertake an in camera review. The notes and the statement were not made a part of the record. Accordingly, we must limit our review to the rulings made by the trial court based upon the representations of the Commonwealth. There is no general right to discovery of witness statements, reports, or other memoranda possessed by the Commonwealth. Bunch v. Commonwealth, 225 Va. 423, 436, 304 S.E.2d 271, 278, cert. denied, 464 U.S. 977, 104 S.Ct. 414, 78 L.Ed.2d 352 (1983); see also Spencer v. Commonwealth, 238 Va. 295, 303, 384 S.E.2d 785, 791 (1989), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 1093, 110 S.Ct. 1171, 107 L.Ed.2d 1073 (1990). Because the requested documents were represented as having no exculpatory material, and nothing in the record before us contradicts those representations, we hold that the trial court properly denied Clagett's requests in these two instances.