A Brady (Brady v. Maryland (1963) 373 U.S. 83) violation occurred where supervisors in the district attorney’s office were aware that evidence existed which could be used to impeach the pathologist who performed the autopsy on the infant who was the murder victim and whose opinion as to time of infliction of the injury established a crucial timeline as to who had custody of the infant. Specifically, in other cases (including one nearly identical to this one, which involved a head injury to an infant and timelines establishing potential perpetrators), the doctor had changed his opinion as to time of display of symptoms, time of cause of death, and timing of infliction of of injury. The prosecution’s duty to disclose Brady information continues after the defendant is convicted.
Case Summaries