The Confrontation Clause

In the course of its history, the United States has adopted a number of protections for those accused of a crime to prevent individuals from being wrongfully convicted at trial. One of those protections is found in the confrontation clause of the 6th amendment of the United States Constitution.

The confrontation clause states that individuals who have been accused of a crime “shall enjoy the right . . . to be confronted with the witnesses against him.” This right was seen as so important to the protection of the liberties the individuals writing the Constitution had just fought to win that it was included in the Bill of Rights, one of the key bartering tools to ensure that the Constitution was ratified.

While important to the American system of criminal justice (this clause does not apply in civil courts), the confrontation clause was actually taken from both the English common law and the Roman laws. The English protected the right of cross-examination while the Romans ensured that the accused had the right to look their accusers in the eye.

Since the adoption of the Constitution there have been a number of cases affirming the right of the accused to confront his or her accuser and also have an opportunity to cross-examine the accuser. The most recent case dealing with this topic was Crawford v. Washington in 2004. Crawford held that an accused party’s right to confrontation could not be taken away in cases or situations where the judges believe that hearsay evidence offered in testimony is reliable. They held this since the hearsay evidence could not be tested through the exceedingly important process of cross-examination.

Contact a Las Vegas Criminal Defense Attorney

If you have been accused of a crime, contact the Las Vegas criminal lawyers of Palmer & Associates, P.C., at 702-888-2222.