Cite as: 517 U. S. 416 (1996)
Stevens, J., dissenting
tected because the jury has already returned its verdict of guilt. See United States v. Wilson, 420 U. S., at 345.5
Third, subdivision (c) requires defense counsel to file the postverdict motion for judgment of acquittal promptly, while the trial judge presumably retains a firm recollection of the evidence and therefore is able to rule expeditiously and efficiently. The untimeliness of a later motion provides the judge with a sufficient reason for denying it without even reading it or reviewing the transcript. Thus, a judge's entirely discretionary decision to enter sua sponte an acquittal after the 7-day period in no way annuls the 7-day deadline. Defendants are still bound by that time limitation, and the Rule thus serves the useful function of limiting a defendant's right to require a judge to reconsider the sufficiency of the evidence. As then-Judge Kennedy explained: "Rule 29(c) creates a deadline by which defendants must present motions for judgment of acquittal to the court; it does not address the court's inherent power to grant such a judgment." Arizona v. Manypenny, 672 F. 2d, at 764.
5 The majority is also wrong to contend that it would make a "farce" of subdivision (b) to construe it to permit judges to act sua sponte. Ante, at 422. There are sound reasons for setting forth regulations concerning a court's power to reserve a defense motion that it must entertain even if the court also possesses the entirely discretionary power to acquit at any time on its own initiative as long as it possesses jurisdiction over the case. For example, the new Rule 29(b) makes clear that the district court, even if it reserves a motion for acquittal filed after the prosecution's case in chief, may not consider any evidence submitted thereafter in disposing of the motion. That limitation on the district court's authority protects a defendant's right to make a motion for acquittal and to put on rebuttal evidence without risking that new evidence of guilt will emerge. Such a protection serves a useful function even though in the absence of a motion to acquit a court would have the discretionary power to enter judgment in the defendant's favor. Thus, it is simply not true that there "would be no need" for the procedures set forth in Rule 29(b) if, "even without reserving, the court had continuing power to grant judgment of acquittal on its own." Ibid.
445
Page: Index Previous 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007