People v. Sneed

Defendant was charged by information with 2 counts of forgery, alleging that he made 2 false paychecks with intent to defraud Dairy Queen (his wife's employer) and "financial institutions. Court erred in denying State's motion to compel production of cell phone passcode. Evidence established with reasonable particularity that Defendant had possession or control of the phone, and thus has possession or control of the passcode required to access and utilize the phone. A passcode is self-authenticating when the passcode provides entry to the phone. Thus, the foregone conclusion doctrine is satisfied, rendering the act of producing the passcode non-testimonial and outside the protection of the 5th amendment privilege against self-incrimination. As State made commitment to the trial court that it will not use evidence of Defendant's act of production of the passcode at trial, State will be required to prove Defendant's knowledge of the phone's contents through other means. (DeARMOND and TURNER, concurring.)