United States America v. Lawrence Thomas and Michael Angelo Balducci

Defendants Balducci and Thomas have been convicted by a jury of violating Title 18 U.S.C.A. ? 659, Thomas with the theft of goods moving in interstate commerce and Balducci with knowing possession of the stolen goods subsequent to the theft. Upon his appeal Thomas urges as error (1) that effective cross-examination of the governments principal witness against him upon the vital issue of felonious intent was thwarted by the destruction by an F.B.I. agent of rough handwritten notes after they had been used as the basis of a typewritten report; and (2) that, after the jury was reported to be deadlocked, the court gave a prejudicial version of the "Allen" charge, which takes its name from Allen v. United States, 1896, 164 U.S. 492, 17 S. Ct. 154, 41 L. Ed. 528. Balducci upon his appeal, contends (1) that the evidence was insufficient to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt; (2) that the indictment should have been dismissed or a mistrial declared upon failure of the F.B.I. agent to produce his original notes; and (3) that the court gave an improper charge as to hostile witness testimony and previous criminal records of witnesses.