Opinion ID: 553829
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Treasury Affidavits.

Text: 45 Appellants' remaining objections involve challenges to evidentiary rulings and the resentencing orders. Since retrial is necessary in any event because of the misjoinder, we need not reach these objections. However, since the question may well recur at a new trial, it is useful to express our concern about the government's use of Treasury Department affidavits in this case to establish that no currency reform program was ever considered. 46 Negative public records have, of course, been used routinely in the past without raising Confrontation Clause problems. See, e.g., United States v. Lee, 589 F.2d 980, 988 (9th Cir.1979) (upholding introduction of affidavits prepared by three CIA officials stating that a search of their records failed to reveal any entries for the defendant), cert. denied, 444 U.S. 969, 100 S.Ct. 460, 62 L.Ed.2d 382 (1979). Moreover, recent Supreme Court decisions have further softened the Confrontation Clause's requirements of unavailability and reliability. See Bourjailly v. United States, 483 U.S. 171, 181-84, 107 S.Ct. 2775, 2781-83, 97 L.Ed.2d 144 (1987) (there is no violation when out-of-court statement is admitted under the co-conspirator hearsay exception). 47 The government argues that negative public records admissible under the hearsay exception in Federal Rule of Evidence 803(10) should be equally immune from constitutional challenge. Even so, we are somewhat troubled by the government's extensive use of affidavits in this case. Unlike routine searches of easily pinpointed data compilations that courts have upheld in the past, this case presents us with a situation where the affidavits were based on a far-ranging review of different Department files for any evidence that the government considered a currency reform proposal along the lines represented to SCT. Under these circumstances, especially absent any explanation from the government as to why it could not have easily called on these Treasury officials to testify in person, use of affidavits in lieu of Department officials who conducted the search may unjustifiably circumscribe defendants' confrontation rights. We think that the district court must carefully scrutinize any similar use of such evidence on retrial.