Pre-Sentence Investigation (Psi) Report

• Jurisdiction: Maryland

VI. Pre-sentence investigation (PSI) report

A. Confidentiality

PSI reports are confidential. Md. Rule 4-341. However, PSI reports are available (1) upon court order; or (2) for use by a correctional institution, defense counsel, and/or the State's Attorney's office. Haynes v. State, 19 Md. App. 428, 432 (1973).

Nonetheless, in Germain v. State, 363 Md. 511, 515 (2001), the Court of Appeals held that it was error to preclude the defendant from using his cellmate's PSI from a prior conviction to refresh the cellmate's recollection of his prior offenses when they were relevant and material to alleged attack by the cellmate on the defendant. The Court held that a probation officer's testimony, based on a PSI interview, was admissible to impeach the defendant's statement: "The confidentiality of a PSI is primarily directed to protect against 'public inspection.' It is not absolute." Id. at 540.

B. Whether to order a PSI report

The ordering of a PSI report and the use of a PSI report are controlled by Md. Rule 4-341.

1. Discretionary PSI report

Whether to order a PSI report is a decision that is normally within the discretion of the sentencing court. Callahan v. State, 30 Md. App. 628, 636 (1976). If the court decides that a PSI report would assist the court in determining the appropriate sentence, the court may order the Department of Parole and Probation (DPP) to prepare and submit a PSI report. Md. Code Ann., Corr. Serv. § 6-112(b)(1). In Armstead v. State, 195 Md. App. 599, 615 (2010), cert. denied, 418 Md. 191 (2011), the Court of Special Appeals held that the trial court abused its discretion by never ordering or using a PSI report, except in cases for which a PSI report is mandatory.

In Somers v. State, 156 Md. App. 279, 318-19 (2004), the Court of Special Appeals held that it was not an abuse of discretion to deny the defendant's PSI request when there was no showing of a need for a PSI report. See also Sample v. State, 33 Md. App. 398, 406 (1976); Church v. State, 5 Md. App. 642, 646 (1969). In Ware v. State, 170 Md. App. 1, 31-35, cert. denied, 396 Md. 13 (2006), cert. denied, 549 U.S. 1342 (2007), the Court of Special Appeals held that there can be only one PSI report per case. See also Armstead, 195 Md. App. at 615-16 (explaining that if the court abused its discretion in failing to order a PSI report, the error was harmless).

2. Mandatory PSI report

Ordering and using a PSI report is mandatory in cases of life without parole. Md. Code Ann., Corr...