A California criminal jury may take certain papers into the jury room, but Penal Code section 1137 does not give jurors a blanket right to every exhibit or file. The item must fit the statute’s list, including the requirement that evidence papers have been received at trial. Depositions are excluded. The court controls whether certain copies may be used and must provide for safekeeping of the listed materials. (Penal Code § 1137; the statute’s text is also reproduced in People v. Von Villas)
Confirm the item was admitted
Check the exhibit list and the judge’s rulings, not just an exhibit number or sticker. Section 1137 concerns papers that were received in evidence. A marked document that was never admitted does not become evidence because it is in the trial file, and the statute does not decide what happens to every physical or electronic exhibit. If a jury asks about an item, counsel can compare the request with the admission record and the court’s instructions.
The section separately permits copies of public records or private documents that were given in evidence when, in the court’s view, the originals should not be taken from the person who has them. The court decides whether that condition applies and what copy is appropriate. This is a limited rule for documents; do not assume the jury receives every original or a copy of every exhibit. (Penal Code § 1137)
Instructions and jurors’ own notes
Jurors may also take the written instructions given by the court and notes of testimony or other trial proceedings taken by jurors themselves. Notes taken by someone else are not included in that permission. The court must provide custody and safekeeping for the materials that go with the jury. (Penal Code § 1137)
That question is different from a jury’s request to hear testimony again or ask the court about the law. Section 1137 addresses items taken into deliberations, not a readback or legal-clarification request. Ask counsel to preserve the jury note, exhibit list, admission rulings, any objection, and the court’s decision.
The Law Offices of David S. Chesley represents people facing California criminal charges. Call (800) 755-5174 to discuss an exhibit ruling or jury request.