Opinion ID: 2621432
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 35

Heading: S. Rape Conviction Reversal â Denial of In Camera Request

Text: ś 274 In Gregory's rape trial, defense counsel requested the trial court to review sealed dependency files relating to R.S.'s children. Defense counsel sought to find nonexistent evidence that R.S. had recently engaged in prostitution to bolster Gregory's latest defense. After dropping the alibi defense, Gregory had claimed the sex was consensual (i.e., prostitution). The majority wrongly holds that the trial court erred by not conducting an in camera review of those sealed child dependency files. ś 275 I dissented from an earlier order of this court directing the in camera review, but the review was conducted by another judge, revealing no evidence of recent prostitution. Gregory's rape conviction should be upheld. I shall summarize why the trial judge was correct (and later vindicated). ś 276 This court has held: In order to make an adequate threshold showing to justify an in camera inspection, a defendant must make a particularized factual showing that information useful to the defense is likely to be found in the records. State v. Kalakosky, 121 Wash.2d 525, 550, 852 P.2d 1064 (1993). See also Pennsylvania v. Ritchie, 480 U.S. 39, 58 n. 15, 107 S.Ct. 989, 94 L.Ed.2d 40 (1987). ś 277 A criminal defendant may not require the trial court to search through a privileged file without first establishing a basis for his claim that the file contains material evidence. United States v. Valenzuela-Bernal, 458 U.S. 858, 867, 102 S.Ct. 3440, 73 L.Ed.2d 1193 (1982). Evidence is material only if there is a reasonable probability that it would impact the outcome of the trial. Ritchie, 480 U.S. at 58 n. 15, 107 S.Ct. 989. A reasonable probability is probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome. Id. The decision whether to conduct an in camera review of privileged records is subject to an abuse of discretion standard. Kalakosky, 121 Wash.2d at 549-50, 852 P.2d 1064. ś 278 Here, when defendant's trial counsel sought an in camera review of sealed dependency files of R.S.'s children, the sole argument was that he supposed that the files might contain information that R.S. had been engaging in prostitution. This request was made on the day the case was set for trial. The trial court denied the request, citing the privileged nature of the dependency files and privacy interests of R.S.'s children. The trial court also granted defense counsel's request to reinterview R.S. to ask her about alleged prostitution activities from 1995 through 1998. ś 279 Upon these facts, the majority does not establish that the trial court's denial of an in camera review was an abuse of discretion. The majority's conclusion seems to reflect a presumption favoring any defense request for in camera review of confidential material. That is surely not the standard set in our cases.