Motion for Discovery (Criminal) - Louisiana

MOTION FOR DISCOVERY (CRIMINAL) — LOUISIANA

Table of Contents

1. Caption
2. Introduction
3. Constitutional Basis
4. Statutory Authority
5. Categories of Discovery Requested
6. Good Faith Certification
7. Proposed Order
8. Certificate of Service
9. Louisiana Practice Notes

1. Caption

[________________________________] JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT
PARISH OF [________________________________]
STATE OF LOUISIANA

2. Introduction

NOW INTO COURT, through undersigned counsel, comes the Defendant, [DEFENDANT FULL NAME], who respectfully moves this Honorable Court pursuant to Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure Articles 716 through 729.1 for an Order directing the State to disclose and produce the materials described herein.

Pursuant to Article 729, this motion includes all relief sought under Chapter 5 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Discovery and Inspection).

3. Constitutional Basis

The Defendant's right to discovery is grounded in:

• Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963) — Suppression of favorable evidence material to guilt or punishment violates due process.
• Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150 (1972) — Material evidence affecting witness credibility falls within the Brady rule, subject to materiality.
• United States Constitution, Amendments V, VI, and XIV — Due process and right to a fair trial.
• Louisiana Constitution, Art. I, §§ 2, 13, and 16 — Due process and rights of the accused.

4. Statutory Authority

• Art. 716 — Statements by the defendant, co-defendants, and witnesses
• Art. 717 — Disclosure of criminal records and inducements to witnesses
• Art. 718 — Documents and tangible objects
• Art. 719 — Reports of examinations and tests
• Art. 720 — Evidence of other crimes
• Art. 721 — Statements of coconspirators
• Art. 722 — Confessions and statements of codefendants
• Art. 723 — Matters not subject to discovery (work product)
• Art. 729 — Time and scope of motion
• Art. 729.1 — Court's disposition of motion

5. Categories of Discovery Requested

The Defendant respectfully requests the State to disclose the following:

A. Defendant's Statements (Art. 716)

☐ Any relevant written or recorded confession or statement made by the Defendant within the district attorney's possession, custody, control, or knowledge
☐ The existence, time, place, and recipient of any oral confession or statement by the Defendant or a codefendant that the State intends to offer in its case in chief (Art. 716(B))
☐ Any written or recorded statement of a co-defendant
☐ The substance of any oral statement by the Defendant or a codefendant that the State intends to offer in its case in chief, if made in response to interrogation by a person then known to be a law-enforcement officer (Art. 716(C))

B. Witness Information (Art. 716, Art. 717)

☐ Written or recorded statements of witnesses the State intends to call in its case in chief, subject to Art. 716(D)'s production timing
☐ Records of arrests and convictions of the Defendant, any codefendant, and witnesses the State calls or intends to call at trial, subject to Art. 717's disclosure timing and Art. 729.7's witness-identity protection
☐ Any inducement offered to a State witness by the district attorney or a law-enforcement officer on the district attorney's behalf (Art. 717(B))

C. Police and Investigative Reports

☐ Law-enforcement reports created and known to the prosecutor in this case, subject to Art. 723
☐ Investigative notes, field notes, memoranda, and correspondence only to the extent specifically discoverable under this Chapter or constitutionally required as favorable evidence under Art. 723(B)
☐ 911 call recordings and dispatch/CAD logs within the scope of Art. 718 or Art. 723(B)
☐ Body-worn camera, dashboard camera, and surveillance footage within the scope of Art. 718 or Art. 723(B)

D. Laboratory and Scientific Evidence (Art. 719)

☐ Results or reports of physical or mental examinations made in connection with or material to this case, within the district attorney's possession, custody, control, or knowledge, and intended for use at trial
☐ Results or reports of scientific tests or experiments meeting those same Art. 719 conditions
☐ Chain-of-custody documentation within the scope of Art. 718 or Art. 723(B)
☐ Expert reports or required written summaries, including the expert's qualifications, materials, opinion, and reasons when Art. 719 applies

E. Exculpatory and Impeachment Material

☐ All exculpatory evidence required under Brady v. Maryland
☐ Material impeachment evidence required under Brady/Giglio and any broader state discovery rule
☐ Prior inconsistent statements of prosecution witnesses within Art. 716(D) or constitutionally required disclosure
☐ Internal affairs files or disciplinary records of testifying officers to the extent disclosure is constitutionally required under Art. 723(B)
☐ Evidence of bias, motive, or interest of a prosecution witness to the extent disclosure is required by Art. 717 or Art. 723(B)

F. Electronic and Digital Evidence

☐ Cell phone records, text messages, emails, social media evidence, GPS and location data within the scope of Art. 718 or Art. 723(B)
☐ Computer forensic reports and digital analysis within the scope of Art. 719 or Art. 723(B)
☐ Photographs within the scope of Art. 718 or Art. 723(B)

G. Prior Acts Evidence (Art. 720)

☐ Notice of the State's intent to offer other-crimes evidence under Art. 720, subject to that Article's exceptions
☐ Notice of intent to introduce other-crimes evidence under La. C.E. Art. 404(B)
☐ Notice under La. C.E. Art. 412.2(B) in a covered sex-offense case, if requested and applicable

H. Co-Defendant and Coconspirator Information (Arts. 721, 722)

☐ Disclosure of the State's intent to use coconspirator statements in its case in chief (Art. 721)
☐ Inspection and copying of written or recorded confessions and statements of codefendants (Art. 722)
☐ Plea agreements, immunity grants, or cooperation agreements with a codefendant or coconspirator to the extent disclosure is required by Art. 717 or Art. 723(B)

I. Documents and Tangible Objects (Art. 718)

☐ Documents and tangible objects within the State's possession, custody, or control that it intends to use in its case in chief at trial (Art. 718)
☐ Documents and tangible objects within the State's possession, custody, or control that were obtained from or belong to the Defendant (Art. 718)
☐ Search warrant applications, affidavits, and returns within the scope of Art. 718 or Art. 723(B)
☐ Items seized during the investigation within the scope of Art. 718 or Art. 723(B)

6. Good Faith Certification

Undersigned counsel certifies that this Motion is filed in good faith, that this motion includes all discovery relief sought under Chapter 5 of the Code of Criminal Procedure as required by Article 729, and that counsel has made a reasonable effort to confer with the district attorney regarding voluntary disclosure.

7. Proposed Order

[________________________________] JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT
PARISH OF [________________________________], STATE OF LOUISIANA

ORDER ON DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR DISCOVERY

Docket No.: [________________________________]

Having considered the Defendant's Motion for Discovery:

☐ GRANTED. The State shall comply with the selected discovery requests within [____] days of this Order, subject to the disclosure timing in Arts. 716(D) and 717(C).

☐ GRANTED IN PART as to the following categories: [________________________________]

☐ DENIED for the following reasons: [________________________________]

☐ The parties shall comply with the continuing notification duty in Art. 729.3 for additional evidence subject to this Order.

THUS DONE AND SIGNED this [____] day of [________________], [________].

_______________________________________________
District Judge
[________________________________] Judicial District Court

8. Certificate of Service

I hereby certify that on this [____] day of [________________], [________], I have served a true and correct copy of the foregoing Motion for Discovery upon:

[DISTRICT ATTORNEY NAME]
Office of the District Attorney
[________________________________] Judicial District
[________________________________]
[________________________________]

☐ Hand delivery
☐ U.S. Mail, postage prepaid
☐ Electronic filing / e-service

_______________________________________________
[ATTORNEY NAME], Louisiana Bar Roll No. [________]
Attorney for Defendant
[________________________________]
[________________________________]
[________________________________]
Telephone: [________________________________]
Email: [________________________________]

9. Louisiana Practice Notes

Comprehensive First Motion Required:

• Article 729 requires that the discovery motion include ALL relief sought under the chapter. A subsequent motion may be considered only upon a showing that it is in the interest of justice. Draft this motion as comprehensively as possible.

Contradictory Hearing:

• Under Article 729.1, a motion for discovery shall not be denied without a contradictory hearing unless the motion is facially deficient as a matter of law.

Timing:

• Article 729 permits filing within Article 521's time or another reasonable time allowed by the court. Article 521 generally measures the pretrial-motion deadline as thirty days after receipt of initial discovery, subject to its exceptions and court extensions for good cause.

Work Product Protection:

• Article 723 generally protects internal state reports, memoranda, notes, and attorney or investigator mental impressions, except where this Chapter specifically provides for disclosure. It expressly preserves the State's constitutional duty to disclose favorable evidence.

Open File Practice:

• Record the materials actually offered through any voluntary file access; use this motion to request relief under the governing articles.

Reciprocal Discovery:

• Louisiana provides limited reciprocal discovery of trial-use materials and examination or test reports under Articles 724-725, when their statutory conditions are met. Articles 726-727 separately govern mental-condition and alibi notices; Article 727 requires identification of alibi witnesses after a proper State demand. These articles do not create a general defense witness-list duty.

Sanctions:

• Under Article 729.5, if a party fails to comply with discovery law or an order, the court may order inspection, grant a continuance, order a mistrial on the Defendant's motion, prohibit introduction of undisclosed evidence, or enter other appropriate relief except dismissal.

Unique Louisiana Provisions:

• Art. 720 addresses notice of the State's intent to offer covered other-crimes evidence upon defense motion; it does not itself require production of every item of that evidence.
• Art. 721 specifically addresses coconspirator statements.
• Art. 722 specifically addresses codefendant confessions and statements.

This template is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Consult a licensed Louisiana attorney before use.