Opinion
3:20-CR-44 (CAR)
08-04-2021
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v. MARQUET ANTWAIN BURGESS MATTOX, a/k/a MARQUET ANTWAIN BURGESS MATTOX EL a/k/a MARQUET BURGESS MATTOX, a/k/a ASIM ASHUNTA EL, a/k/a ASIM EL BEY,
ORDER ON THE GOVERNMENT'S MOTION TO ADMIT CERTIFIED BUSINESS RECORDS
C. ASHLEY ROYAL, SENIOR JUDGE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
Before the Court is the Government's Motion to Admit Certified Business Records [Doc. 48]. The Government seeks admission of the documents listed in Exhibit A [Doc. 48-1] as certified records of regularly conducted business activity under Fed.R.Evid. 803(6). These documents include Defendant's bank statements, his home and vehicle purchase agreements, and other miscellaneous records.
A document is admissible under Fed.R.Evid. 803(6) if (1) it was “made at or near the time by . . . someone with knowledge”; (2) it was “kept in the course of a regularly conducted activity”; and (3) “making the record was a regular practice of that activity.” These requirements can be “shown by the testimony of the custodian or another qualified witness, or by a certification that complies with Rule 902(11).”
Fed.R.Evid. 803(6)(A)-(C); See United States v. Wrubleski, 707 F. Appʹx 650, 655 (11th Cir. 2017).
Id.
Here, the government seeks admission of the documents using Fed.R.Evid. 902(11) certifications. Under Rule 902(11), a party may use a written “certification of the custodian” of the record to meet the requirements of Rule 803(6)(A)-(C). The Eleventh Circuit has “join[ed] other circuits in concluding that business records certifications are not testimonial, ” and thus admission of business records via certification does not violate the Confrontation Clause.
United States v. Clotaire, 963 F.3d 1288, 1296 (11th Cir. 2020), cert. denied, 141 S.Ct. 1743 (2021).
The government has provided certifications for each document stating that each was “made at or near the time by . . . someone with knowledge”; was “kept in the course of a regularly conducted activity”; and “making the record was a regular practice of that activity.” The Court find these certifications comply with Rule 902(11). Thus, the Government's Motion [Doc. 48] is GRANTED, and the records in Exhibit A are ADMITTED, subject to a relevancy determination and any objections Defendant may make prior to trial.
SO ORDERED.