Opinion ID: 531039
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Admission of a Cassette Tape

Text: 34 Appellant asserts that the trial court abused its discretion in admitting a tape that was not shown by the government to be free of material deletions, additions or alterations. 35 Although the preferred practice is for the government to produce evidence regarding the competence of the tape machine operator, fidelity of the equipment, the absence of alterations to the tape and the identity of the speakers, the trial court has broad discretion to allow tapes into evidence without such a showing so long as there is independent evidence of accuracy. United States v. Richardson, 764 F.2d 1514, 1523-24 (11th Cir.1985). The record of the hearing on Reed's motion to suppress the tape shows that the United States laid an adequate foundation for the introduction of the tape. Accordingly, we find that the trial judge properly acted within his discretion in admitting the tapes.