DOJ-OGR-00002898.jpg
Extracted Text (OCR)
Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document195 Filed 04/05/21 Page9of11
Page 9
II. Any Records Obtained Pursuant to a Rule 17(c) Subpoena Should Be Marked
Confidential Under the Protective Order and Produced to the Opposing Party
Additionally, and to the extent the defendant has issued or will issue other subpoenas ex
parte pursuant to Rule 17(c), the responsive records should be produced to the Government and
marked confidential pursuant to the protective order. See Fed. R. Crim. P. 17(c)(1).
First, materials gathered pursuant to a Rule 17(c) subpoena by either party should be
promptly made available to their adversary. As noted above, the text of Rule 17(c) plainly provides
that materials obtained pursuant to a subpoena may be returned to the Court which “may permit
the parties and their attorneys to inspect all or part of them.” Fed. R. Crim. P. 17(c)(1). Nowhere
does the Rule provide for one party’s ability to use a subpoena to secretively gather material in
advance of trial, nor does it include a categorical exception due to concerns about defense or trial
strategy. Indeed, because the purpose of Rule 17 is to obtain evidence for use at trial, and not to
investigate for evidence or obtain impeachment material, disclosure of the fruits of a Rule 17(c)
subpoena fits neatly with Rule 16’s reciprocal obligations for disclosure of evidence that the
defendant intends to introduce in her case-in-chief. See Fed. R. Crim. P. 16(b)(1)(A); United States
v. St. Lawrence, 16 Cr. 259 (CS), Dkt. No. 66 at 6 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 22, 2016) (“It seems to the Court
that because Rule 17(c) subpoenas are intended to obtain specific materials that the party expects
to offer into evidence, Rule 16 would oblige the party to make the materials available to the other
side anyway.”).°
By contrast, to the extent the defendant has improperly obtained information through a
Rule 17(c) subpoena, the Government should have the opportunity to move to preclude its use at
trial. In order to permit such a motion to be made in a timely manner—and so as to avoid the
® To the extent the Government makes use of Rule 17(c) subpoenas, it similarly will promptly
produce all material received to the defendant.
DOJ-OGR- 00002898
Extracted Information
Dates
Document Details
| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00002898.jpg |
| File Size | 743.3 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 94.6% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 2,217 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 16:28:19.764128 |