State v. Daniels

A prosecutor can obtain recordings of inmate conversations from the Department of Corrections for discovery and must disclose the recordings to the defendant if the recordings are in the prosecutor's possession or control.

Marvin James Daniels appealed a conviction for two counts of first-degree sodomy. M, the adopted child of Daniels, communicated that on several occasions Daniels performed oral sex on him and required that he perform oral sex on Daniels. Daniels claimed multiple assignments of error—the trial court erred by granting a motion to amend the indictment and denied a motion to compel discovery of recordings of telephone calls Daniels made while in custody. First, the Court held that Daniels’s defense theory shifted between trial and appeal and consequently the assignment of error was unpreserved. Second, the prosecution can obtain records from the Department of Corrections and must disclose the recordings of certain inmate conversations if the recordings were in their possession or control. The Court held that the prosecutor was not in possession or control of Daniels’s recorded telephone conversations while he was incarcerated and was not required to obtain the recordings and disclose them to Daniels. Affirmed.