Opinion ID: 1433870
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Admission of the bloody towel

Text: Long used a towel to stop the bleeding on his head caused by Beck's assault. Because the Government had been unable to locate Long before the first trial, it was unaware of the towel until a Saturday two days before the start of the second trial. The Government immediately disclosed the existence of the towel to Beck, who moved in limine to preclude the Government from offering it. The district court denied that motion, a decision we review for abuse of discretion. E.g., United States v. Gianakos, 415 F.3d 912, 919 (8th Cir.2005). We find no abuse of discretion here. A district court does not abuse its discretion in allowing the introduction of evidence disclosed in a dilatory fashion unless that evidence substantially prejudiced the defendant. See United States v. Williams, 902 F.2d 675, 677 (8th Cir.1990). Here, Long testified that Beck hit him with a firearm, and he further testified concerning the extent of his injury, which was consistent with being struck by an object. Schwerb and Chambers corroborated Long's version of events, testifying that Long had a gash on his head when they arrived on the scene. The purpose of admitting the towel was merely to corroborate this testimony. Accordingly, it likely had little (if any) impact on the trial. Furthermore, there is no dispute that Beck was aware, in advance, that Long would be called to testify about the assault at the second trial. Accordingly, he cannot credibly argue that the admission of the towelwhich merely corroborated Long's testimonysomehow amounted to unfair surprise. Indeed, Beck could have requested a continuance given the late disclosure, but tellingly he did not. See United States v. Bissonette, 164 F.3d 1143, 1145 (8th Cir.1999) (failure to request continuance after untimely disclosure indicat[es] that [the defendant] did not perceive the need for additional time to prepare). For these reasons, we conclude that Beck has failed to show any substantial prejudice from the admission of the towel.