State v. Merriman
Annotate this CaseDefendant was indicted on one count each of driving under the influence, reckless driving, reckless endangerment with a motor vehicle, and violation of the implied consent law. The video recording of the arresting officer's pursuit and stop of Defendant's vehicle was lost before trial. Defendant filed a motion to dismiss the indictment due to the State's alleged failure to preserve potentially exculpatory evidence. Following an evidentiary hearing, the trial court dismissed several of the charges. The court of criminal appeals affirmed. After applying a de novo standard of review, the Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) based on the record, the trial court did not err by finding it would be fundamentally unfair to require Defendant to go to trial without the video recording; and (2) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in choosing dismissal of several charges as a remedy for the State's loss of the video recording.
Court Description: Authoring Judge: Justice Janice M. Holder
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