In Brady v. Maryland and Giglio v. United States, the U.S. Supreme Court established the rule that defendants in criminal trials have a due process right to receive favorable information from prosecutors regarding the defendants’ conduct that would aid in the defense of the charges. Although there have been varying interpretations of what is favorable, the Supreme Court, in Pennsylvania v. Ritchie , said the information must be disclosed if it would overturn a verdict of guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
There has been considerable discussion of the government’s duty to turn over favorable evidence resulting from the trial and conviction of former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens from Alaska in the District of Columbia in 2008. His conviction was overturned when it was discovered that prosecutors had withheld substantial favorable evidence from defense counsel. As a result of that decision, the attorney general issued a Jan. 4 Memorandum for Department Prosecutors detailing guidelines regarding searching for and disclosing favorable material. This article discusses a vastly overlooked area for Brady material: the sentencing phase.
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