United States v. Christopher Williams

RANDOLPH, Circuit Judge:

When a district court’s ruling on a pretrial motion involves factual issues, Rule 12(e) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure commands the court to “state its essential findings on the record.” The rule serves several functions. Findings on the record inform the parties and other interested persons of the grounds of the ruling, add discipline to the process of judicial decision-making and enable appellate courts properly to perform their reviewing function. If the district court not only fails to make “essential findings on the record,” but also expresses nothing…