Opinion ID: 901122
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: clayborne complaint

Text: [¶ 10.] On April 22, 2002 Rapid City attorney Courtney R. Clayborne filed a complaint with the Disciplinary Board concerning Eicher's conduct in a criminal court trial held February 8, 2002. [¶ 11.] Eicher represented Shawna Martin who was accused of stealing money from her employer. Clayborne represented her employer and was the first witness called during Martin's criminal trial. Clayborne testified that he had spoken with Martin who admitted to him that she had taken money from her employer on two or three occasions. He also testified that he had watched two videotapes supplied by Martin's employer which showed Martin stealing money. [¶ 12.] Eicher, in open court and as an officer of the court moved to dismiss the charges because the State no longer had the videotapes of Martin in its possession. Eicher told the trial court that he had watched the videotapes and they showed Martin didn't take anything. He claimed that the videotapes were Defendant's best evidence because of what it shows and what it doesn't show. It's our best evidence because the other testimony would be that people are in and out of that [money] bag all the time. He argued, It's manifest that when the State loses evidence, that is significant it is grossly prejudicial to the defendant[.] It deprived him of evidence necessary to cross examine witnesses. [¶ 13.] Eicher did not tell the trial court that he possessed copies of the videotapes. He received them from one of the employer's attorneys seven months earlier in a civil proceeding Martin initiated. During a break in the criminal trial Clayborne confronted Eicher and told him that it was unethical and misleading to fail to tell the court that he had copies of the videotape. Following the recess, Eicher told the court of Clayborne's accusation. He admitted that he had copies of the videotapes but did not bring them. He told the court that I haven't misled the court about anything. The official tapes that are in evidence are not here. He also told the court, [b]ut for [Clayborne] to accuse me of unethical conduct is about how low we've got to this thing.