Siskiyou — Standing Order re the Discovery & Production of Law Enforcement MVARS

Source: https://www.siskiyou.courts.ca.gov/system/files/general/discovery-production-law-enforcement-mvars.pdf

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2 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA 3 COUNTY OF SISKIYOU 4

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6 STANDING ORDER REGARDING THE DISCOVERY AND PRODUCTION OF 7 LAW ENFORCEMENT MOBILE AUDIO¬ 8 VIDEO RECORDING SYSTEMS (MVARS)

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10 The following orders shall govern the use and disclosure of the Mobile Audio 11 Video Recording System (MVARS) produced in accordance with Discovery disclosure 12 13 under the laws of California in all criminal cases within the jurisdiction of Siskiyou

14 County.

15 References in this order to individual MVARS apply to the specific criminal case 16 for which the discovery is produced. 17 To allow the District Attorney’s Office to disseminate this type of discovery to 18 19 defense counsel as efficiently as possible, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, as follows:

20 1. Under no circumstances shall the MVARS be used in any proceeding

21 other than the criminal case involved or be disseminated, in any form, except by further 22 order of this court. 23 2. Under no circumstances shall the MVARS, either orally or by written form, 24 25 be inputted into any computer program or database or listed manually in any manual,

26 notebook or other listing as it pertains to law enforcement personnel. This does not

27 apply to any computer program or case file maintained specifically as to the involved 28

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1 criminal case.

2 3. Disclosure of the MVARS shall be limited to the personnel and/or 3 classification of persons listed below: 4 a. The parties and Counsel for parties to the involved criminal case; 5 6 b. Staff personnel employed by counsel for any party;

7 c. The court and its personnel in connection with the involved criminal

8 case; 9 d. Experts or consultants retained to work on the involved criminal case 10 by counsel for any party to the involved criminal case; and 11 12 e. Investigators retained by counsel for any party to the involved criminal

13 case.

14 4. Defense counsel shall not provide to the defendant, either orally or in 15 writing, the address or telephone number of persons (complainants or witnesses) 16 identified within the MVARS, but may discuss the information obtained from any 17 18 investigation conducted with the persons identified within the MVARS.

19 5. Counsel for any party to an action where such discovery is involved, shall

20 advise any individuals to whom disclosure of MVARS is to be made of the contents of 21 this ORDER, and such counsel shall obtain the consent of such individuals that he or 22 she will be bound by this ORDER. In the event such individual does not consent to be 23 24 bound by this ORDER, no disclosure of the MVARS or the contents of the MVARS shall

25 be made to such individual.

26 6. Any parties, counsel, expert, consultant or investigator retained by counse 27 for any party to the involved criminal case shall not refer to the MVARS in any other 28

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1 court proceeding subject to further order of this court.

2 7. Except for documentation filed under seal by this court, all originals and 3 copies of the MVARS shall be returned to the Custodian of Records for the law 4 enforcement agency that provided the MVARS by all persons in receipt of the MVARS 5 6 within ten (10) days after:

7 a. Final termination of the involved criminal case, whether such

8 termination occurs by plea, settlement, judgment, dismissal, appeal, or 9 as otherwise required; and/or 10 b. Expiration of the preservation period required by attorneys licensed to 11 12 practice law in the State of California.

13 8. This ORDER and the obligations of all persons subject to it, including

14 those relating to the disclosure and use of the MVARS shall survive the final termination 15 of the involved criminal case, whether such termination is by settlement, judgment, 16 dismissal, appeal or otherwise, until further order of this court. 17 18 9. Nothing in this ORDER is intended to prevent authorized individuals from

19 having access to the MVARS to which they would have had access in the normal

20 course of their duties. 21 IT IS SO ORDERED. 22 Dated: November 28, 2023 23 tbAfin M. Bicego, Presiding Judge 24 ^Kiyou County Superior Coorr

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