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Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document 252 Filed 04/27/21 Page2of9
The purpose of Rule 17(c) is to facilitate the trial by designating a time and place prior to
trial to obtain and inspect evidentiary material. See United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683, 698-99
(1974) (citing Bowman Dairy Co. v. United States, 341 U.S. 214, 220 (1951)). It is not intended
to provide an additional means of discovery or to serve as a general “fishing expedition.” Jd. at
698-700. As a result, courts must be mindful not to allow the Rule 17(c) process to become a
“broad discovery device” that would undermine the discovery procedures set forth in Rule 16.
United States v. Cherry, 876 F. Supp. 547, 552 (S.D.N.Y. 1995). Thus, if an item is not
discoverable under Rule 16, a party cannot make it discoverable simply by subpoenaing it under
Rule 17. United States v. Barnes, No. S9 04-CR-186 (SCR), 2008 WL 9359654, at *2 (S.D.N.Y.
Apr. 2, 2008).
To determine whether issuance of the subpoena is appropriate, the Court considers the
factors articulated in United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. at 699-700. In Nixon, the Supreme Court
explained that in order to require production prior to trial, the moving party must show: (1) that
the documents are evidentiary and relevant; (2) that they are not otherwise procurable reasonably
in advance of trial by exercise of due diligence; (3) that the party cannot properly prepare for
trial without such production and inspection in advance of trial and that the failure to obtain such
inspection may tend unreasonably to delay the trial; and (4) that the application is made in good
faith and is not intended as a general ‘fishing expedition.’” Jd. at 698-700. To clear that hurdle,
the Court considers (1) relevancy, (2) admissibility, and (3) specificity. /d. at 700.
Il. Discussion
A. The BSF Subpoena
The proposed subpoena makes twelve requests. Some of the requests relate to documents
that Maxwell believes will be relevant at trial. For others, the proffered relevance relates to
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| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00004040.jpg |
| File Size | 686.8 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 93.3% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 2,022 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 16:43:37.669311 |