NORTH CAROLINA IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE
____________ COUNTY FILE NO.
STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
vs. MOTION FOR ORDER PRESERVING INVESTIGATIVE MATERIALS
______________________l,
Defendant.
NOW COMES the defendant, ________________, by and through counsel and moves this Court pursuant to Kyles v. Whitley, 514 U.S. 419, 115 S.Ct. 1555 (1995)(the individual prosecutor has a duty to learn of any favorable evidence known to the others acting on the government's behalf in the case, including the police), Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963), Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150 (1972), and Napue v. Illinois, 360 U.S. 264 (1959), and pursuant to N.C.G.S. 15A-902 & 15A-903, for an order directing all law enforcement agencies involved with this case, through the District Attorney's office, to preserve and keep available and secure any and all handwritten and other rough notes, data compilations, recordings of any data or measurements and any other testing results, whether or not such information has been incorporated into any formal report or more presentable form. Such material is potentially discoverable and defendant seeks to insure through this motion that such material is not inadvertently destroyed.
In the leading case of United States v. Harrison, 524 F.2d 421 (D.C. Cir. 1975), the Court held that the rough notes made by F.B.I. agents involved in the investigation of a case were potentially discoverable material. Further, the Court held that Brady and the applicable federal discovery rules impose a duty on government investigators to preserve material that is subject to disclosure in the future. Such notes must be kept so that the trial court can make a determination as to whether they should be made available to the defendant. Id. at 433. The Court went on to state that no valid law enforcement interest is impaired by the retention of the investigator’s rough notes. Id. at 435.
This request applies to all law enforcement agencies investigative materials but at the time of this motion it is specifically directed to the following investigative materials believed to be presently extant:
Through this motion defendant is also placing the District Attorney’s Office on notice that the materials referenced herein are considered by the defendant to be potential evidence and the State is hereby requested to make every effort to preserve this material until such time as the Court may rule upon this motion.
Respectfully submitted, this the ______ day of _________, 20____.
By________________________________
Attorney for Defendant
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
This is to certify that the undersigned has this date served this paper (Defendant's motion to preserve investigative materials) in the above-entitled action upon all other parties to this cause either by hand delivery or by depositing a copy hereof in a postpaid wrapper in a post office or official depository under the exclusive care and custody of the United States Post Office Department properly addressed to:
This, the _______ day of ________, 20____.
__________________________________
Attorney for Defendant