Defending Myself in Federal Court: Question About the Process

[greentea1]

Hello!

I have a trial date set for Federal Court (petty offense), and I'm representing myself. I am disputing the prosecutor's evidence, so here is my question:

Am I required to reciprocate my evidence (before the trial date) to:

1) the prosecution, and
2) to the judge at the federal courthouse?

Or can I simply show up with my evidence and have them review it there? Would that be considered rude anyway?

Thanks,

GT

[flyingron]

Reciprocate? You mean disclose in advance? No. But you'd do well to understand the procedure for intro ducting evidence and giving pro se self testimony.
Some judges might give a little leniency to pro se defendants but many Federal courts don't take much nonsense.

[greentea1]

Thanks for the reply.

Well, the prosecutor sent me a packet of their evidence against me, along with a letter saying:

"Pusuant to the Court's discover order entered March 1, 2012, and the Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure Rule 16, the United States is requesting reciprocal discovery in the above-styled action. Please forward your discovery to my office at the above address."

I found rule 16 and read it, (http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCODE-...up1-rule16.pdf) and it sounds like I'm required to give them my evidence, too. Does that just mean I can do it at the trial, though? It's ~3 pages of testimony that is clearly organized and logical. Do you think they'll just let me read it in court?

Also, I'm unsure whether the judge is supposed to see any of my evidence (or that of the prosecution) beforehand. Do you think I should drop off a copy before the trial?

Thanks again,

GT

[flyingron]

If they request it, unless you feel it is incriminatory, you must provide it.
No, the judge doesn't normally look at the discovery.