State v. DeLeon

The appeal in this case provides this court with an opportunity to clarify the procedure used when it is discovered that a court reporter's notes are lost while post-trial proceedings are pending.

The defendant, Raul DeLeon, seeks a reversal of his conviction for first-degree sexual assault because a portion of the court reporter's notes was lost, creating an omission in the trial court transcript. We hold that the fifteen minutes of lost testimony did not constitute a prejudicial omission in the transcript justifying reversal. We affirm.

DeLeon was charged with first-degree sexual assault,…