Court Opinion

ID: 9848208
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 04:14:36.962792+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:18:07.587581
License: Public Domain

BIRD, C. J.
I concur in the conclusion reached by the majority. A defendant is entitled to discovery prior to a preliminary examination and a magistrate has the authority to order it.1
It should not be forgotten that a defendant’s right to discovery is rooted in the Constitution. Due process requires a prosecutor to disclose all material evidence favorable to a defendant, including evidence related to guilt, punishment, and the credibility of witnesses. (People v. Ruthford (1975) 14 Cal.3d 399, 406 [121 Cal.Rptr. 261, 534 P.2d 1341].) This court has recognized that the scope of permissible discovery must be enlarged “to promote the orderly ascertainment of the truth.” (Jones v. Superior Court (1962) 58 Cal.2d 56, 60 [22 Cal.Rptr. 879, 372 P.2d 919, 96 A.L.R.2d 1213].)
The right to discovery at a preliminary hearing is also based on constitutional law. A defendant has the “constitutional and statutory” right to present an affirmative defense at the preliminary hearing and to cross-examine the prosecution’s witnesses. (Jennings v. Superior Court (1967) 66 Cal.2d 867, 880 [59 Cal.Rptr. 440, 428 P.2d 304].) Discovery is necessary to effectuate these rights and to ensure that the magistrate’s evaluation of probable cause to hold to answer is based on an accurate assessment of the evidence. “‘The reasons that require disclosure at the trial also require disclosure at the preliminary hearing *487.... The exercise of these rights ... may enable the defendant to show that there is no reasonable cause to commit him for trial and thus to avoid the degradation and expense of a criminal trial.’” (Theodor v. Superior Court (1972) 8 Cal.3d 77, 90 [104 Cal.Rptr. 226, 501 P.2d 234], quoting Mitchell v. Superior Court (1958) 50 Cal.2d 827, 829 [330 P.2d 48], citations omitted; see Salmon, Criminal Discovery At and Before the Preliminary Examination (1975) 15 Santa Clara Law. 665, 687-693.)
Having recognized a right to discovery at the preliminary hearing, I would take the next step and recognize such a right before the hearing, just as courts have recognized that the right to a fair trial mandates pretrial discovery, not just discovery at trial. (Cf. Cash v. Superior Court (1959) 53 Cal.2d 72, 75 [346 P.2d 407].) Careful investigation of criminal charges and thorough preparation for trial require access to relevant information as early as possible. As the Court of Appeal said in People v. Hertz (1980) 103 Cal.App.3d 770, 776 [163 Cal.Rptr. 233], a case relied on by the majority, “If we conclude a defendant has a right to present an affirmative defense at a preliminary hearing, which now seems clear, in order for that right to be meaningful, it must include the opportunity to obtain discovery prior to the hearing.” (Citations omitted, italics added.)
Although the majority purport to limit pre-preliminary hearing discovery to that “reasonably necessary to prepare for the preliminary examination,” this language should not be read narrowly since the functions of the preliminary hearing in our criminal process are broad and complex. (Hawkins v. Superior Court (1978) 22 Cal.3d 584, 587-589 [150 Cal.Rptr. 435, 586 P.2d 916]; see Graham & Letwin, The Preliminary Hearing in Los Angeles: Some Field Findings and Legal-Policy Observations (1971) 18 UCLA L.Rev. 916, 916-957.) The vast majority of criminal defendants plead guilty before trial. For most felony defendants, the preliminary hearing will be the only hearing they will have. Therefore, discovery prior to the preliminary hearing must be extensive enough to include the information needed to prepare for the myriad of functions served by the preliminary examination.
Broad discovery prior to the preliminary examination will lead to more efficient pretrial proceedings, enabling the judge, prosecutor, defendant and defense counsel to make more accurate assessments of the evidence and of proposed dispositions of the criminal charges.' Discovery will also lead to fairer preliminary hearings. As this court said over 20 *488years ago, while discussing pretrial discovery, “nondisclosure partakes of the nature of a game” and “lose[s] sight of the purpose of a trial, ... the ascertainment of the truth.” (Cash v. Superior Court, supra, 53 Cal.2d 72, 75.) The purpose of a preliminary examination is to ascertain the truth, and discovery prior to that hearing is essential to ensure the fairness of our criminal process.
Miller, J.,* concurred.

The majority’s difficulty in distinguishing People v. Peters (1978) 21 Cal.3d 749 [147 Cal.Rptr. 646, 581 P.2d 651], is but one more indication of the problems this court created when it decided that case and held that a magistrate is not a “court” under Penal Code section 1385. I would overrule Peters and hold that the cases authorizing “courts” to order discovery apply equally to magistrates.

Assigned by the Chairperson of the Judicial Council.