Cite as: 527 U. S. 263 (1999)
Opinion of the Court
After reviewing the Stoltzfus materials, and making the assumption that the three disputed exhibits had been available to the defense, the District Court concluded that the failure to disclose the other five was sufficiently prejudicial to undermine confidence in the jury's verdict. Id., at 396. It granted summary judgment to petitioner and granted the writ.
The Court of Appeals vacated in part and remanded. It held that petitioner's Brady claim was procedurally defaulted because the factual basis for the claim was available to him at the time he filed his state habeas petition. Given that he knew that Stoltzfus had been interviewed by Harrisonburg police officers, the court opined that "reasonably competent counsel would have sought discovery in state court" of the police files, and that in response to this "simple request, it is likely the state court would have ordered the production of the files." App. 421. Therefore, the Court of Appeals reasoned, it could not address the Brady claim unless petitioner could demonstrate both cause and actual prejudice.
Under Fourth Circuit precedent a party "cannot establish cause to excuse his default if he should have known of such claims through the exercise of reasonable diligence." App. 423 (citing Stockton v. Murray, 41 F. 3d 920, 925 (1994)). Having already decided that the claim was available to reasonably competent counsel, the Fourth Circuit stated that the basis for finding procedural default also foreclosed a finding of cause. Moreover, the Court of Appeals reasoned, petitioner could not fault his trial lawyers' failure to make a Brady claim because they reasonably relied on the prosecutor's open file policy. App. 423-424.18
As an alternative basis for decision, the Court of Appeals also held that petitioner could not establish prejudice be-18 For reasons we do not entirely understand, the Court of Appeals thus concluded that, while it was reasonable for trial counsel to rely on the open file policy, it was unreasonable for postconviction counsel to do so.
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